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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/6708.txt b/6708.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b733106 --- /dev/null +++ b/6708.txt @@ -0,0 +1,16921 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of China, by Demetrius Charles Boulger + +Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the +copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing +this or any other Project Gutenberg eBook. + +This header should be the first thing seen when viewing this Project +Gutenberg file. Please do not remove it. Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: China + +Author: Demetrius Charles Boulger + +Release Date: October, 2004 [EBook #6708] +[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] +[This file was first posted on January 17, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHINA *** + + + + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Charles Franks +and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + + + + + +CHINA + +BY +DEMETRIUS CHARLES BOULGER + +WITH A SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER OF RECENT EVENTS +BY MAYO W. HAZELTINE + +[Illustration: THE EMPEROR RECEIVING THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS +_China Frontispiece_] + + + + +I DEDICATE THIS SHORT +HISTORY OF CHINA +TO +SIR HALLIDAY MACARTNEY, K.C.M.G. +AS A SLIGHT TRIBUTE OF PERSONAL RESPECT AND ADMIRATION FOR ONE WHO +HAS MAINTAINED THE RIGHT OF CHINA TO BE TREATED BY THE +GOVERNMENTS OF EUROPE WITH THE DIGNITY AND +CONSIDERATION THAT BECOME A +GREAT EMPIRE. + +IF TO LORD MACARTNEY WE OWE THE FIRST SUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN +AUDIENCE OF THE EMPEROR OF CHINA ON THE SAME CONDITIONS +AS THOSE ON WHICH FOREIGN AMBASSADORS +ARE RECEIVED AT EUROPEAN COURTS, TO +SIR HALLIDAY MACARTNEY +A SCION OF THE SAME FAMILY +CHINA +OWES MUCH OF THE SUCCESS THAT HAS ATTENDED HER DIPLOMACY +IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES + + + + +CONTENTS + +CHAP. + +I. THE EARLY AGES + +II. THE FIRST NATIONAL DYNASTY + +III. A LONG PERIOD OF DISUNION + +IV. THE SUNGS AND THE KINS + +V. THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA + +VI. KUBLAI AND THE MONGOL DYNASTY + +VII. THE MING DYNASTY + +VIII. THE DECLINE OF THE MINGS + +IX. THE MANCHU CONQUEST OF CHINA + +X. THE FIRST MANCHU RULER + +XI. THE EMPEROR KANGHI + +XII. A SHORT REIGN AND THE BEGINNING OF A LONG ONE + +XIII. KEEN LUNG'S WARS AND CONQUESTS + +XIV. THE COMMENCEMENT OF EUROPEAN INTERCOURSE + +XV. THE DECLINE OF THE MANCHUS + +XVI. THE EMPEROR TAOUKWANG + +XVII. THE FIRST FOREIGN WAR + +XVIII. TAOUKWANG AND HIS SUCCESSOR + +XIX. THE SECOND FOREIGN WAR + +XX. THE TAEPING REBELLION + +XXI. THE REGENCY + +XXII. THE REIGN OF KWANGSU + +THE WAR WITH JAPAN AND SUBSEQUENT EVENTS + +THE FUTURE OF CHINA + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +_Frontispiece_--The Emperor Receiving the Diplomatic Corps +Hong Kong +Canton--The Flower Pagoda +Kang, the Reformer + + + + +PREFACE + + +As China has now fairly taken her place in the family of nations, it is +unnecessary to elaborate an argument in support of even the humblest +attempt to elucidate her history. It is a subject to which we can no +longer remain indifferent, because circumstances are bringing every day +more clearly into view the important part China must play in the changes +that have become imminent in Asia, and that will affect the security of +our position and empire in that continent. A good understanding with China +should be the first article of our Eastern policy, for not only in Central +Asia, but also in Indo-China, where French ambition threatens to create a +fresh Egypt, her interests coincide with ours and furnish the sound basis +of a fruitful alliance. + +This book, which I may be pardoned for saying is not an abridgment of my +original work, but entirely rewritten and rearranged with the view of +giving prominence to the modern history of the Chinese Empire, may appeal, +although they generally treat Asiatic subjects with regrettable +indifference, to that wider circle of English readers on whose opinion and +efforts the development of our political and commercial relations with the +greatest of Oriental States will mainly depend. + +D. C. BOULGER, April 28, 1893. + + + + +CHAPTER I + +THE EARLY AGES + + +The Chinese are unquestionably the oldest nation in the world, and their +history goes back to a period to which no prudent historian will attempt +to give a precise date. They speak the language and observe the same +social and political customs that they did several thousand years before +the Christian era, and they are the only living representatives to-day of +a people and government which were contemporary with the Egyptians, the +Assyrians, and the Jews. So far as our knowledge enables us to speak, the +Chinese of the present age are in all essential points identical with +those of the time of Confucius, and there is no reason to doubt that +before his time the Chinese national character had been thoroughly formed +in its present mold. The limits of the empire have varied from time to +time under circumstances of triumph or disunion, but the Middle Kingdom, +or China Proper, of the eighteen provinces has always possessed more or +less of its existing proportions. Another striking and peculiar feature +about China is the small amount of influence that the rest of the world +has exercised upon it. In fact, it is only during the present century that +that influence can be said to have existed at all. Up to that point China +had pursued a course of her own, carrying on her own struggles within a +definite limit, and completely indifferent to, and ignorant of, the +ceaseless competition and contests of mankind outside her orbit, which +make up the history of the rest of the Old World. The long struggles for +supremacy in Western Asia between Assyrian, Babylonian and Persian, the +triumphs of the Greek, followed by the absorption of what remained of the +Macedonian conquests in the Empire of Rome, even the appearance of Islam +and the Mohammedan conquerors, who changed the face of Southern Asia from +the Ganges to the Levant, and long threatened to overrun Europe, had no +significance for the people of China, and reacted as little on their +destiny as if they had happened in another planet. Whatever advantages the +Chinese may have derived from this isolation, it has entailed the penalty +that the early history of their country is devoid of interest for the lest +of the world, and it is only when the long independent courses of China +and Europe are brought into proximity by the Mongol conquests, the efforts +of the medieval travelers, the development of commerce, and the wars +carried on for the purpose of obtaining a secure position for foreigners +in China--four distinct phases covering the last seven centuries--that any +confidence can be felt in successfully attracting notice to the affairs of +China. Yet, as a curiosity in human existence, the earlier history of that +country may justly receive some notice. Even though the details are not +recited, the recollection of the antiquity of China's institutions must be +ever present with the student, as affording an indispensable clew to the +character of the Chinese people and the composition of their government. + +The first Chinese are supposed to have been a nomad tribe in the province +of Shensi, which lies in the northwest of China, and among them at last +appeared a ruler, Fohi, whose name at least has been preserved. His deeds +and his person are mythical, but he is credited with having given his +country its first regular institutions. One of his successors was Hwangti +(which means Heavenly Emperor), who was the first to employ the imperial +style of Emperor, the earlier rulers having been content with the inferior +title of Wang, or prince. He adopted the convenient decimal division in +his administration as well as his coinage. His dominions were divided into +ten provinces, each of these into ten departments, these again into ten +districts, each of which held ten towns. He regulated the calendar, +originating the Chinese cycle of sixty years, and he encouraged commerce. +He seems to have been a wise prince and to have been the first of the +great emperors. His grandson, who was also emperor, continued his good +work and earned the reputation of being "the restorer or even founder of +true astronomy." + +But the most famous of Hwangti's successors was his great-grandson Yao who +is still one of the most revered of all Chinese rulers. He was "diligent, +enlightened, polished and prudent," and if his words reflected his actions +he must have been most solicitous of the welfare of his people. He is +specially remarkable for his anxiety to discover the best man to succeed +him in the government, and during the last twenty-eight years of his reign +he associated the minister Chun with him for that purpose. On his death he +left the crown to him, and Chun, after some hesitation, accepted the +charge; but he in turn hastened to secure the co-operation of another +minister named Yu in the work of administration, just as he had been +associated with Yao. The period covered by the rule of this triumvirate is +considered one of the most brilliant and perfect in Chinese history, and +it bears a resemblance to the age of the Antonines. These rulers seem to +have passed their leisure from practical work in framing moral axioms, and +in carrying out a model scheme of government based on the purest ethics. +They considered that "a prince intrusted with the charge of a State has a +heavy task. The happiness of his subjects absolutely depends upon him. To +provide for everything is his duty; his ministers are only put in office +to assist him," and also that "a prince who wishes to fulfill his +obligations, and to long preserve his people in the ways of peace, ought +to watch without ceasing that the laws are observed with exactitude." They +were stanch upholders of temperance, and they banished the unlucky +discoverer of the fact that an intoxicating drink could be obtained from +rice. They also held fast to the theory that all government must be based +on the popular will. In fact, the reigns of Yao, Chun and Yu are the ideal +period of Chinese history, when all questions were decided by moral right +and justice, and even now Chinese philosophers are said to test their +maxims of morality by the degree of agreement they may have with the +conduct of those rulers. + +With them passed away the practice of letting the most capable and +experienced minister rule the State. Such an impartial and reasonable mode +of selecting the head of a community can never be perpetuated. The rulers +themselves may see its advantages and may endeavor as honestly as these +three Chinese princes to carry out the arrangement, but the day must come +when the family of the able ruler will assert its rights to the +succession, and take advantage of its opportunities from its close +connection with the government to carry out its ends. The Emperor Yu, true +to the practice of his predecessors, nominated the president of the +council as his successor, but his son Tiki seized the throne, and became +the founder of the first Chinese dynasty, which was called the Hia, from +the name of the province first ruled by his father. This event is supposed +to have taken place in the year 2197 B.C., and the Hia dynasty, of which +there were seventeen emperors, ruled down to the year 1776 B.C. These Hia +princes present no features of interest, and the last of them, named Kia, +was deposed by one of his principal nobles, Ching Tang, Prince of Chang. + +This prince was the founder of the second dynasty, known as Chang, which +held possession of the throne for 654 years, or down to 1122 B.C. With the +exception of the founder, who seems to have been an able man, this dynasty +of twenty-eight emperors did nothing very noteworthy. The public morality +deteriorated very much under this family, and it is said that when one of +the emperors wanted an honest man as minister he could only find one in +the person of a common laborer. At last, in the twelfth century before our +era, the enormities of the Chang rulers reached a climax in the person of +Chousin, who was deposed by a popular rising headed by Wou Wang, Prince of +Chow. + +This successful soldier, whose name signifies the Warrior King, founded +the third Chinese dynasty of Chow, which governed the empire for the long +space of 867 years down to 266 B.C. During that protracted period there +were necessarily good and bad emperors, and the Chow dynasty was rendered +specially illustrious by the appearance of the great social and religious +reformers, Laoutse, Confucius and Mencius, during the existence of its +power. The founder of the dynasty instituted the necessary reforms to +prove that he was a national benefactor, and one of his successors, known +as the Magnificent King, extended the authority of his family over some of +the States of Turkestan. But, on the whole, the rulers of the Chow dynasty +were not particularly distinguished, and one of them in the eighth century +B.C. was weak enough to resign a portion of his sovereign rights to a +powerful vassal, Siangkong, the Prince of Tsin, in consideration of his +undertaking the defense of the frontier against the Tartars. At this +period the authority of the central government passed under a cloud. The +emperor's prerogative became the shadow of a name, and the last three +centuries of the rule of this family would not call for notice but for the +genius of Laoutse and Confucius, who were both great moral teachers and +religious reformers. + +Laoutse, the founder of Taouism, was the first in point of time, and in +some respects he was the greatest of these reformers. He found his +countrymen sunk in a low state of moral indifference and religious +infidelity which corresponded with the corruption of the times and the +disunion in the kingdom. He at once set himself to work with energy and +devotion to repair the evils of his day, and to raise before his +countrymen a higher ideal of duty. He has been called the Chinese +Pythagoras, the most erudite of sinologues have pronounced his text +obscure, and the mysterious Taouism which he founded holds the smallest or +the least assignable part in what passes for the religion of the Chinese. +As a philosopher and minister Laoutse will always attract attention and +excite speculation, but as a practical reformer and politician he was far +surpassed by his younger and less theoretical contemporary Confucius. + +Confucius was an official in the service of one of the great princes who +divided the governing power of China among themselves during the whole of +the seventh century before our era, which beheld the appearance of both of +these religious teachers and leaders. He was a trained administrator with +long experience when he urged upon his prince the necessity of reform, and +advocated a policy of union throughout the States. His exhortations were +in vain, and so far ill-timed that he was obliged to resign the service of +one prince after another. In his day the authority of the Chow emperor had +been reduced to the lowest point. Each prince was unto himself the supreme +authority. Yet one cardinal point of the policy of Confucius was +submission to the emperor, as implicit obedience to the head of the State +throughout the country as was paid to the father of every Chinese +household. Although he failed to find a prince after his own heart, his +example and precepts were not thrown away, for in a later generation his +reforms were executed, and down to the present day the best points in +Chinese government are based on his recommendations. If "no intelligent +monarch arose" in his time, the greatest emperors have since sought to +conform with his usages and to rule after the ideal of the great +philosopher. His name and his teachings were perpetuated by a band of +devoted disciples, and the book which contained the moral and +philosophical axioms of Confucius passed into the classic literature of +the country and stood in the place of a Bible for the Chinese. The list of +the great Chinese reformers is completed by the name of Mencius, who, +coming two centuries later, carried on with better opportunities the +reforming work of Confucius, and left behind him in his Sheking the most +popular book of Chinese poetry and a crowning tribute to the great Master. + +From teachers we must again pass to the chronicle of kings, although few +of the later Chow emperors deserve their names to be rescued from +oblivion. One emperor suffered a severe defeat while attempting to +establish his authority over the troublesome tribes beyond the frontier; +of another it was written that "his good qualities merited a happier day," +and the general character of the age may be inferred from its being +designated by the native chroniclers "The warlike period." At last, after +what seemed an interminable old age, marked by weakness and vice, the Chow +dynasty came to an end in the person of Nan Wang, who, although he reigned +for nearly sixty years, was deposed in ignominious fashion by one of his +great vassals, and reduced to a humble position. His conqueror became the +founder of the fourth Chinese dynasty. + +During the period of internal strife which marked the last four centuries +of the Chow dynasty, one family had steadily waxed stronger and stronger +among the princes of China: the princes of Tsin, by a combination of +prudence and daring, gradually made themselves supreme among their +fellows. It was said of one of them that "like a wolf or a tiger he wished +to draw all the other princes into his claws, so that he might devour +them." Several of the later Tsin princes, and particularly one named Chow +Siang Wang, showed great capacity, and carried out a systematic policy for +their own aggrandizement. When Nan Wang was approaching the end of his +career, the Tsin princes had obtained everything of the supreme power +short of the name and the right to wear the imperial yellow robes. Ching +Wang, or, to give him his later name as emperor, Tsin Chi Hwangti, was the +reputed great-grandson of Chow Siang Wang, and under him the fame and +power of the Tsins reached their culminating point. This prince also +proved himself one of the greatest rulers who ever sat on the Dragon +throne of China. + +The country had been so long distracted by internal strife, and the +authority of the emperor had been reduced to such a shadow, that peace was +welcomed under any ruler, and the hope was indulged that the Tsin princes, +who had succeeded in making themselves the most powerful feudatories of +the empire, might be able to restore to the central government something +of its ancient power and splendor. Nor was the expectation unreasonable or +ungratified. The Tsins had fairly earned by their ability the confidence +of the Chinese nation, and their principal representative showed no +diminution of energy on attaining the throne, and exhibited in a higher +post, and on a wider field, the martial and statesmanlike qualities his +ancestors had displayed when building up the fabric of their power as +princes of the empire. Their supremacy was not acquiesced in by the other +great feudatories without a struggle, and more than one campaign was +fought before all rivals were removed from their path, and their authority +passed unchallenged as occupants of the Imperial office. + +It was in the middle of this final struggle, and when the result might +still be held doubtful, that Tsin Chi Hwangti began his eventful reign. +When he began to rule he was only thirteen years of age, but he quickly +showed that he possessed the instinct of a statesman, and the courage of a +born commander of armies. On the one hand he sowed dissension between the +most formidable of his opponents, and brought about by a stratagem the +disgrace of the ablest general in their service, and on the other he +increased his army in numbers and efficiency, until it became +unquestionably the most formidable fighting force in China. While he +endeavored thus to attain internal peace, he was also studious in +providing for the general security of the empire, and with this object he +began the construction of a fortified wall across the northern frontier to +serve as a defense against the troublesome Hiongnou tribes, who are +identified with the Huns of Attila. This wall, which he began in the first +years of his reign, was finished before his death, and still exists as the +Great Wall of China, which has been considered one of the wonders of the +world. He was careful in his many wars with the tribes of Mongolia not to +allow himself to be drawn far from his own border, and at the close of a +campaign he always withdrew his troops behind the Great Wall. Toward +Central Asia he was more enterprising, and one of his best generals, +Moungtien, crossed what is now the Gobi Desert, and made Hami the frontier +fortress of the empire. + +In his civil administration Hwangti was aided by the minister Lisseh, who +seems to have been a man of rare ability, and to have entered heartily +into all his master's schemes for uniting the empire. While Hwangti sat on +the throne with a naked sword in his hand, as the emblem of his authority, +dispensing justice, arranging the details of his many campaigns, and +superintending the innumerable affairs of his government, his minister was +equally active in reorganizing the administration and in supporting his +sovereign in his bitter struggle with the literary classes who advocated +archaic principles, and whose animosity to the ruler was inflamed by the +contempt, not unmixed with ferocity, with which he treated them. The +empire was divided into thirty-six provinces, and he impressed upon the +governors the importance of improving communications within their +jurisdiction. Not content with this general precept, he issued a special +decree ordering that "roads shall be made in all directions throughout the +empire," and the origin of the main routes in China may be found with as +much certainty in his reign as that of the roads of Europe in the days of +Imperial Rome. When advised to assign some portion of his power to his +relatives and high officials in the provinces he refused to repeat the +blunders of his predecessors, and laid down the permanent truth that "good +government is impossible under a multiplicity of masters." He centralized +the power in his own hands, and he drew up an organization for the civil +service of the State which virtually exists at the present day. The two +salient features in that organization are the indisputable supremacy of +the emperor and the non-employment of the officials in their native +provinces, and the experience of two thousand years has proved their +practical value. + +When he conquered his internal enemies he resolved to complete the +pacification of his country by effecting a general disarmament, and he +ordered that all weapons should be sent in to his capital at Hienyang. +This "skillful disarming of the provinces added daily to the wealth and +prosperity of the capital," which he proceeded to embellish. He built one +palace within the walls, and the Hall of Audience was ornamented with +twelve statues, each of which weighed twelve thousand pounds. But his +principal residence named the Palace of Delight, was without the walls, +and there he laid out magnificent gardens, and added building to building. +In one of the courts of this latter palace, it is said he could have drawn +up 10,000 soldiers. This eye to military requirements in even the building +of his residence showed the temper of his mind, and, in his efforts to +form a regular army, he had recourse to "those classes in the community +who were without any fixed profession, and who were possessed of +exceptional physical strength." He was thus the earliest possessor in +China of what might be called a regular standing army. With this force he +succeeded in establishing his power on a firm basis, and he may have hoped +also to insure permanence for his dynasty; but, alas! for the fallacy of +human expectations, the structure he erected fell with him. + +Great as an administrator, and successful as a soldier, Hwangti was +unfortunate in one struggle that he provoked. At an early period of his +career, when success seemed uncertain, he found that his bitterest +opponents were men of letters, and that the literary class as a body was +hostile to his interests and person. Instead of ignoring this opposition +or seeking to overcome it by the same agency, Hwangti expressed his hatred +and contempt, not only of the literary class, but of literature itself, +and resorted to extreme measures of coercion. The writers took up the gage +of battle thrown down by the emperor, and Hwangti became the object of the +wit and abuse of every literate who could use a pencil. His birth was +aspersed. It was said that he was not a Tsin at all, that his origin was +of the humblest, and that he was a substituted child foisted on the last +of the Tsin princes. These personal attacks were accompanied by +unfavorable criticism of all his measures, and by censure where he felt +that he deserved praise. It would have been more prudent if he had shown +greater indifference and patience, for although he had the satisfaction of +triumphing by brute force over those who jeered at him, the triumph was +accomplished by an act of Vandalism, with which his name will be quite as +closely associated in history as any of the wise measures or great works +that he carried out. His vanquished opponents left behind them a legacy of +hostility and revenge of the whole literary class of China, which has +found expression in all the national histories. + +The struggle, which had been in progress for some years, reached its +culminating point in the year 213 B.C., when a Grand Council of the empire +was summoned at Hienyang. At this council were present not only the +emperor's chief military and civil officers from the different provinces, +but also the large literary class, composed of aspirants to office and the +members of the academies and College of Censors. The opposing forces in +China were thus drawn up face to face, and it would have been surprising +if a collision had not occurred. On the one side were the supporters of +the man who had made China again an empire, believers in his person and +sharers in his glory; on the other were those who had no admiration for +this ruler, who detested his works, proclaimed his successes dangerous +innovations, and questioned his right to bear the royal name. The purpose +of the emperor may be detected when he called upon speakers in this +assembly of his friends and foes to express their opinions of his +administration, and when a member of his household rose to extol his work +and to declare that he had "surpassed the very greatest of his +predecessors." This courtier-like declaration, which would have been +excusable even if it had had a less basis of truth than it unquestionably +possessed in the case of Hwangti, was received with murmurs and marks of +dissent by the literati. One of them rose and denounced the speaker as "a +vile flatterer," and proceeded to expatiate on the superior merit of +several of the earlier rulers. Not content with this unseasonable eulogy, +he advocated the restoration of the empire to its old form of +principalities, and the consequent undoing of all that Hwangti had +accomplished. Hwangti interrupted this speaker and called upon his +favorite minister Lisseh to reply to him and explain his policy. Lisseh +began by stating what has often been said since, and in other countries, +that "men of letters are, as a rule, very little acquainted with what +concerns the government of a country, not that government of pure +speculation which is nothing more than a phantom, vanishing the nearer we +approached to it, but the practical government which consists in keeping +men within the sphere of their proper duties." He then proceeded to +denounce the literary class as being hostile to the State, and to +recommend the destruction of their works, declaring that "now is the time +or never to close the mouths of these secret enemies and to place a curb +on their audacity." The emperor at once from his throne ratified the +policy and ordered that no time should be lost in executing the necessary +measures. All books were proscribed, and orders were issued to burn every +work except those relating to medicine, agriculture, and such science as +then existed. The destruction of the national literature was carried out +with terrible completeness, and such works as were preserved are not free +from the suspicion of being garbled or incomplete versions of their +original text. The burning of the books was accompanied by the execution +of five hundred of the literati, and by the banishment of many thousands. +By this sweeping measure, to which no parallel is to be found in the +history of other countries, Hwangti silenced during the last few years of +his life the criticisms of his chief enemies, but in revenge his memory +has had to bear for two thousand years the sully of an inexcusable act of +tyranny and narrow-mindedness. The price will be pronounced too heavy for +what was a momentary gratification. + +The reign of Hwangti was not prolonged many years after the burning of the +books. In 210 B.C. he was seized with a serious illness, to which he +succumbed, partly because he took no precautions, and partly, no doubt, +through the incompetence of his physicians. His funeral was magnificent, +and, like the Huns, his grave was dug in the bed of a river, and with him +were buried his wives and his treasure. This great ruler left behind him +an example of vigor such as is seldom found in the list of Chinese kings +of effete physique and apathetic life. He is the only Chinese emperor of +whom it is said that his favorite exercise was walking, and his vigor was +apparent in every department of State. On one occasion when he placed a +large army of, it is said, 600,000 men at the disposal of one of his +generals, the commander expressed some fear as to how this huge force was +to be fed. Hwangti at once replied, "Leave it to me. I will provide for +everything. There shall be want rather in my palace than in your camp." He +does not seem to have been a great general himself, but he knew how to +select the best commanders, and he was also so quick in discovering the +merits of the generals opposed to him, that some of his most notable +victories were obtained by his skill in detaching them from their service +or by ruining their reputation by some intrigue more astute than +honorable. Yet, all deductions made, Tsin Chi Hwangti stands forth as a +great ruler and remarkable man. + +The Tsin dynasty only survived its founder a few years. Hwangti's son +Eulchi became emperor, but he reigned no more than three years. He was +foolish enough to get rid of the general Moungtien, who might have been +the buttress of his throne; and the minister Lisseh was poisoned, either +with or without his connivance. Eulchi himself shared the same fate, and +his successor, Ing Wang, reigned only six weeks, committing suicide after +losing a battle, and with him the Tsin dynasty came to an end. Its chief, +nay its only claim to distinction, arises from its having produced the +great ruler Hwangti, and its destiny was Napoleonic in its brilliance and +evanescence. + +Looking back at the long period which connects the mythical age with what +may be considered the distinctly historical epoch of the Tsins, we find +that by the close of the third century before the Christian era China +possessed settled institutions, the most remarkable portion of its still +existing literature, and mighty rulers. It is hardly open to doubt that +the Chinese annalist finds in these remote ages as much interest and +instruction as we should in the record of more recent times, and proof of +this may be discovered in the fact that the history of the first four +dynasties, which we must dismiss in these few pages, occupies as much +space in the national history as the chronicle of events from Tsin Chi +Hwangti to the end of the Ming dynasty in 1644, at which date the official +history of China stops, because the history of the Manchu dynasty, which +has occupied the throne ever since, will only be given to the world after +it has ceased to rule. We must not be surprised at this discursiveness, +because the teachings of human experience are as clearly marked in those +early times as they have been since, and Chinese historians aim as much at +establishing moral and philosophical truths as at giving a complete record +of events. The consequences of human folly and incompetence are as patent +and conspicuous in those days as they are now. The ruling power is lost by +one family and transferred to another because the prince neglects his +business, gives himself over to the indulgence of pleasure, or fails to +see the signs of the times. Cowardice and corruption receive their due and +inevitable punishment. The founders of the dynasties are all brave and +successful warriors, who are superior to the cant of a hypercivilized +state of society, which covers declining vigor and marks the first phase +of effeteness, and who see that as long as there are human passions they +may be molded by genius to make the many serve the few and to build up an +autocracy. Nor are the lessons to be learned from history applicable only +to individuals. The faults of an emperor are felt in every household of +the community, and injure the State. Indifference and obtuseness at the +capital entailed weakness on the frontier and in the provincial capitals. +The barbarians grew defiant and aggressive, and defeated the imperial +forces. The provincial governors asserted their independence, and founded +ruling families. The empire became attenuated by external attack and +internal division. But, to use tho phrase of the Chinese historians, +"after long abiding disunion, union revived." The strong and capable man +always appears in one form or another, and the Chinese people, impressed +with a belief in both the divine mission of their emperor and also in the +value of union, welcome with acclaim the advent of the prince who will +restore their favorite and ideal system of one-man government. The time is +still hidden in a far-distant and undiscoverable future when it will be +otherwise, and when the Chinese will be drawn away from their consistent +and ancient practice to pursue the ignis fatuus of European politics that +seeks to combine human equality with good practical government and +national security. The Chinese have another and more attainable ideal, nor +is there any likelihood of their changing it. The fall of dynasties may, +needs must, continue in the ordinary course of nature, but in China it +will not pave the way to a republic. The imperial authority will rise +triumphant after every struggle above the storm. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +THE FIRST NATIONAL DYNASTY + + +As the Chinese are still proud to call themselves the sons of Han, it will +be understood that the period covered by the Han rulers must be an +important epoch in their history, and in more than one respect they were +the first national dynasty, When the successors of Tsin Chi Hwangti proved +unable to keep the throne, the victorious general who profited by their +discomfiture was named Liu Pang. He had been a trusted official of the +Emperor Hwangti, but on finding that his descendants could not bear the +burden of government, he resolved to take his own measures, and he lost no +time in collecting troops and in making a bid for popularity by +endeavoring to save all the books that had not been burned. His career +bears some resemblance to that of Macbeth, for a soothsayer meeting him on +the road predicted, "by the expression of his features, that he was +destined to become emperor." He began his struggle for the throne by +defeating another general named Pawang, who was also disposed to make a +bid for supreme power. After this success Liu Pang was proclaimed emperor +as Kao Hwangti, meaning Lofty and August Emperor, which has been shortened +into Kaotsou. He named his dynasty the Han, after the small state in which +he was born. + +Kaotsou began his reign by a public proclamation in favor of peace, and +deploring the evils which follow in the train of war. He called upon his +subjects to aid his efforts for their welfare by assisting in the +execution of many works of public utility, among which roads and bridges +occupied the foremost place. He removed his capital from Loyang in Honan +to Singanfoo in Shensi, and as Singan was difficult of access in those +days, he constructed a great highroad from the center of China to this +somewhat remote spot on the western frontier. This road still exists, and +has been described by several travelers in our time. It was constructed by +the labor of one hundred thousand men through the most difficult country, +crossing great mountain chains and broad rivers. The Chinese engineers +employed on the making of this road, which has excited the admiration of +all who have traversed it, first discovered and carried into execution the +suspension bridge, which in Europe is quite a modern invention. One of +these "flying bridges," as the Chinese called them, is one hundred and +fifty yards across a valley five hundred feet below, and is still in use. +At regular intervals along this road Kaotsou constructed rest-houses for +travelers, and postal-stations for his couriers. No Chinese ruler has done +anything more useful or remarkable than this admirable road from Loyang to +Singanfoo. He embellished his new capital with many fine buildings, among +which was a large palace, the grandeur of which was intended to correspond +with the extent of his power. + +The reign of Kaotsou was, however, far from being one of uncheckered +prosperity. Among his own subjects his popularity was great because he +promoted commerce and improved the administration of justice. He also +encouraged literature, and was the first ruler to recognize the claims of +Confucius, at whose tomb he performed an elaborate ceremony. He thus +acquired a reputation which induced the King of Nanhai--a state composed +of the southern provinces of China, with its capital at or near the modern +Canton--to tender his allegiance. But he was destined to receive many +slights and injuries at the hands of a foreign enemy, who at this time +began a course of active aggression that entailed serious consequences for +both China and Europe. + +Reference has been made to the Hiongnou or Hun tribes, against whom Tsin +Hwangti built the Great Wall. In the interval between the death of that +ruler and the consolidation of the power of Kaotsou, a remarkable chief +named Meha, or Meta, had established his supremacy among the disunited +clans of the Mongolian Desert, and had succeeded in combining for purposes +of war the whole fighting force of what had been a disjointed and +barbarous confederacy. The Chinese rulers had succeeded in keeping back +this threatening torrent from overflowing the fertile plains of their +country, as much by sowing dissension among these clans and by bribing one +chief to fight another, as by superior arms. But Meha's success rendered +this system of defense no longer possible, and the desert chieftain, +realizing the opportunity of spoil and conquest, determined to make his +position secure by invading China. If the enterprise had failed, there +would have been an end to the paramounce of Meha, but his rapid success +convinced the Huns that their proper and most profitable policy was to +carry on implacable war with their weak and wealthy neighbors. Meha's +success was so great that in a single campaign he recovered all the +districts taken from the Tartars by the general Moungtien. He turned the +western angle of the Great Wall, and brought down his frontier to the +river Hoangho. His light cavalry raided past the Chinese capital into the +province of Szchuen, and returned laden with the spoil of countless +cities. These successes were crowned by a signal victory over the emperor +in person. Kaotsou was drawn into an ambuscade in which his troops had no +chance with their more active adversaries, and, to save himself from +capture, Kaotsou had no alternative but to take refuge in the town of +Pingching, where he was closely beleaguered. It was impossible to defend +the town for any length of time, and the capture of Kaotsou seemed +inevitable, when recourse was had to a stratagem. The most beautiful +Chinese maiden was sent as a present to propitiate the conqueror, and +Meha, either mollified by the compliment, or deeming that nothing was to +be gained by driving the Chinese to desperation, acquiesced in a +convention which, while it sealed the ignominious defeat of the Chinese, +rescued their sovereign from his predicament. + +This disaster, and his narrow personal escape, seem to have unnerved +Kaotsou, for when the Huns resumed their incursions in the very year +following the Pingching convention, he took no steps to oppose them, and +contented himself with denouncing in his palace Meha as "a wicked and +faithless man, who had risen to power by the murder of his father, and one +with whom oaths and treaties carried no weight." Notwithstanding this +opinion, Kaotsou proceeded to negotiate with Meha as an equal, and gave +this barbarian prince his own daughter in marriage as the price of his +abstaining from further attacks on the empire. Never, wrote a historian, +"was so great a shame inflicted on the Middle Kingdom, which then lost its +dignity and honor." Meha observed this peace during the life of Kaotsou, +who found that his reputation was much diminished by his coming to terms +with his uncivilized opponent, but although several of his generals +rebelled, until it was said that "the very name of revolt inspired Kaotsou +with apprehension," he succeeded in overcoming them all without serious +difficulty. His troubles probably shortened his life, for he died when he +was only fifty-three, leaving the crown to his son, Hoeiti, and +injunctions to his widow, Liuchi, as to the conduct of the administration. + +The brief reign of Hoeiti is only remarkable for the rigor and terrible +acts of his mother, the Empress Liuchi, who is the first woman mentioned +in Chinese history as taking a supreme part in public affairs. Another of +Kaotsou's widows aspired to the throne for her son, and the chief +direction for herself. Liuchi nipped their plotting in the bud by +poisoning both of them. She marked out those who differed from her, or who +resented her taking the most prominent part in public ceremonies, as her +enemies, to be removed from her path by any means. At a banquet she +endeavored to poison one of the greatest princes of the empire, but her +plot was detected and baffled by her son. It is perhaps not surprising +that Hoeiti did not live long after this episode, and then Liuchi ruled in +her own name, and without filling up the vacancy on the throne, until the +public dissatisfaction warned her that she was going too far. She then +adopted a supposititious child as her grandson and governed as regent in +his name. The mother of this youth seems to have made inconvenient demands +on the empress, who promptly put her out of the way, and when the son +showed a disposition to resent this action, she caused him to be poisoned. +She again ruled without a puppet emperor, hoping to retain power by +placing her relatives in the principal offices; but the dissatisfaction +had now reached an acute point, and threatened to destroy her. It may be +doubted whether she would have surmounted these difficulties and dangers, +when death suddenly cut short her adventurous career. The popular legend +is that this Chinese Lucretia Borgia died of fright at seeing the +apparitions of her many victims, and there can be no doubt that her crimes +did not conduce to make woman government more popular in China. + +It says much for the excellence of Kaotsou's work, and for the hold the +Han family had obtained on the Chinese people, that when it became +necessary to select an emperor after the death of Liuchi the choice should +have fallen unanimously on the Prince of Tai, who was the illegitimate son +of Kaotsou. On mounting the throne, he took the name of Wenti. He began +his reign by remitting taxes and by appointing able and honest governors +and judges. He ordered that all old men should be provided with corn, meat +and wine, besides silk and cotton for their garments. At the suggestion of +his ministers, who were alive to the dangers of a disputed succession, he +proclaimed his eldest son heir to the throne. He purified the +administration of justice by declaring that prince and peasant must be +equally subject to the law; he abolished the too common punishment of +mutilation, and had the satisfaction of seeing crime reduced to such low +proportions in the empire that the jails contained only four hundred +prisoners. Wenti was a strong advocate of peace, which was, indeed, +necessary to China, as it had not recovered from the effects of the last +Hun invasion. He succeeded by diplomacy in inducing the Prince at Canton, +who had shown a disposition to assert his independence, to recognize his +authority, and thus averted a civil war. In his relations with the Huns, +among whom the authority of Meha had passed to his son, Lao Chang, he +strove to preserve the peace, giving that chief one of his daughters in +marriage, and showing moderation in face of much provocation. When war was +forced upon him by their raids he did everything he could to mitigate its +terrors, but the ill success of his troops in their encounters with the +Tartars broke his confidence, and he died prematurely after a reign of +twenty-three years, which was remarkable as witnessing the consolidation +of the Hans. The good work of Wenti was continued during the peaceful +reign of sixteen years of his son Kingti. + +The next emperor was Vouti, a younger son of Kingti, and one of his +earliest conquests was to add the difficult and inaccessible province of +Fuhkien to the empire. He also endeavored to propitiate the Huns by giving +their chief one of the princesses of his family as a wife, but the opinion +was gaining ground that it would be better to engage in a war for the +overthrow of the national enemy than to purchase a hollow peace. Wang Kua, +a general who had commanded on the frontier, and who knew the Hun mode of +warfare, represented that success would be certain, and at last gained the +emperor's ear. Vouti decided on war, and raised a large army for the +purpose. But the result was not auspicious. Wang Kua failed to bring the +Huns to an engagement, and the campaign which was to produce such great +results ended ingloriously. The unlucky general who had promised so much +anticipated his master's displeasure by committing suicide. Unfortunately +for himself, his idea of engaging in a mortal struggle with the Tartars +gained ground, and became in time the fixed policy of China. +Notwithstanding this check, the authority of Vouti continued to expand. He +annexed Szchuen, a province exceeding in size and population most European +states, and he received from the ruler of Manchuria a formal tender of +submission. In the last years of his reign the irrepressible Hun question +again came up for discussion, and the episode of the flight of the Yuchi +from Kansuh affords a break in the monotony of the struggle, and is the +first instance of that western movement which brought the tribes of the +Gobi Desert into Europe. The Yuchi are believed to have been allied with +the Jats of India, and there is little or no doubt that the Sacae, or +Scythians, were their descendants. They occupied a strip of territory in +Kansuh from Shachow to Lanchefoo, and after suffering much at the hands of +the Huns under Meha, they resolved to seek a fresh home in the unknown +regions of Western Asia. The Emperor Vouti wished to bring them back, and +he sent an envoy named Chang Keen to induce them to return. That officer +discovered them in the Oxus region, but all his arguments failed to +incline them to leave a quarter in which they had recovered power and +prosperity. Powerless against the Huns, they had more than held their own +against the Parthians and the Greek kingdom of Bactria. They retained +their predominant position in what is now Bokhara and Balkh, until they +were gathered up by the Huns in their western march, and hurled, in +conjunction with them, on the borders of the Roman Empire. Meantime, the +war with the Huns themselves entered upon a new phase. A general named Wei +Tsing obtained a signal victory over them, capturing 15,000 prisoners and +the spoil of the Tartar camp. This success restored long-lost confidence +to the Chinese troops, and it was followed by several other victories. One +Chinese expedition, composed entirely of cavalry, marched through the Hun +country to Soponomo on the Tian Shan, carrying everything before it and +returning laden with spoil, including some of the golden images of the Hun +religion. Encouraged by these successes, Vouti at last took the field in +person, and sent a formal summons to the Tartar king to make his +submission to China. His reply was to imprison the bearer of the message, +and to defy the emperor to do his worst. This boldness had the effect of +deterring the emperor from his enterprise. He employed his troops in +conquering Yunnan and Leaoutung instead of in waging another war with the +Huns. But he had only postponed, not abandoned, his intention of +overthrowing, once and for all, this most troublesome and formidable +national enemy. He raised an enormous force for the campaign, which might +have proved successful but for the mistake of intrusting the command to an +incompetent general. In an ill-advised moment, he gave his brother-in-law, +Li Kwangli, the supreme direction of the war. His incompetence entailed a +succession of disasters, and the only redeeming point amid them was that +Li Kwangli was taken prisoner and rendered incapable of further mischief. +Liling, the grandson of this general, was intrusted with a fresh army to +retrieve the fortunes of the war; but, although successful at first, he +was outmaneuvered, and reduced to the unpleasant pass of surrendering to +the enemy. Both Li Kwangli and Liling adapted themselves to circumstances, +and took service under the Tartar chief. As this conduct obtained the +approval of the historian Ssematsien, it is clear that our views of such a +proceeding would not be in harmony with the opinion in China of that day. +The long war which Vouti waged with the Huns for half a century, and which +was certainly carried on in a more honorable and successful manner than +any previous portion of that historic struggle, closed with discomfiture +and defeat, which dashed to the ground the emperor's hopes of a complete +triumph over the most formidable national enemy. + +After a reign of fifty-four years, which must be pronounced glorious, +Vouti died, amid greater troubles and anxieties than any that had beset +him during his long reign. He was unquestionably a great ruler. He added +several provinces to his empire, and the success he met with over the Huns +was far from being inconsiderable. He was a Nimrod among the Chinese, and +his principal enjoyment was to chase the wildest animals without any +attendants. Like many other Chinese princes, Vouti was prone to believe in +the possibility of prolonging human life, or, as the Chinese put it, in +the draught of immortality. In connection with this weakness an anecdote +is preserved that will bear telling. A magician offered the emperor a +glass containing the pretended elixir of eternal life, and Vouti was about +to drink it when a courtier snatched it from his hand and drained the +goblet. The enraged monarch ordered him to prepare for instant death, but +the ready courtier at once replied, "How can I be executed, since I have +drunk the draught of immortality?" To so convincing an argument no reply +was possible, and Vouti lived to a considerable age without the aid of +magicians or quack medicines. Of him also it may be said that he added to +the stability of the Han dynasty, and he left the throne to Chaoti, the +youngest of his sons, a child of eight, for whom he appointed his two most +experienced ministers to act as governors. As these ministers were true to +their duty, the interregnum did not affect the fortunes of the State +adversely, and several claimants to the throne paid for their ambition +with their lives. The reign of Chaoti was prosperous and successful, but, +unfortunately, he died at the early age of thirty-one, and without leaving +an heir. + +After some hesitation, Chaoti's uncle Liucho was proclaimed emperor, but +he proved to be a boor with low tastes, whose sole idea of power was the +license to indulge in coarse amusements. The chief minister, Ho Kwang, +took upon himself the responsibility of deposing him, and also of placing +on the throne Siuenti, who was the great-grandson, or, according to +another account, the grandson, of Vouti. The choice was a fortunate one, +and "Ho Kwang gave all his care to perfecting the new emperor in the +science of government." As a knowledge of his connection with the Imperial +family had been carefully kept from him, Siuenti was brought from a very +humble sphere to direct the destinies of the Chinese, and his greater +energy and more practical disposition were probably due to his not having +been bred in the enervating atmosphere of a palace. He, too, was brought +at an early stage of his career face to face with the Tartar question, and +he had what may be pronounced a unique experience in his wars with them. +He sent several armies under commanders of reputation to wage war on them, +and the generals duly returned, reporting decisive and easily obtained +victories. The truth soon leaked out. The victories were quite imaginary. +The generals had never ventured to face the Tartars, and they were given +no option by their enraged and disappointed master but to poison +themselves. Other generals were appointed, and the Tartars were induced to +sue for peace, partly from fear of the Chinese, and partly because they +were disunited among themselves. Such was the reputation of Siuenti for +justice that several of the Tartar chiefs carried their grievances to the +foot of his throne, and his army became known as "the troops of justice." +It is said that all the tribes and countries of Central Asia as far west +as the Caspian sent him tribute, and to celebrate the event he built a +kilin or pavilion, in which he placed statues of all the generals who had +contributed toward his triumph. Only one incident marred the tranquillity +of Siuenti's reign. The great statesman, Ho Kwang, had sunk quietly into +private life as soon as he found the emperor capable of governing for +himself; but his wife Hohien was more ambitious and less satisfied with +her position, although she had effected a marriage between her daughter +and Siuenti. This lady was only one of the queens of the ruler, and not +the empress. Hohien, to further her ends, determined to poison the +empress, and succeeded only too well. Her guilt would have been divulged +by the doctor she employed, but that Ho Kwang, by an exercise of his +authority, prevented the application of torture to him when thrown into +prison. This narrow escape from detection did not keep Hohien from crime. +She had the satisfaction of seeing her daughter proclaimed empress, but +her gratification was diminished by the son of the murdered Hiuchi being +selected as heir to the throne. Hohien resolved to poison this prince, but +her design was discovered, and she and all the members of her family were +ordered to take poison. The minister, Ho Kwang, had taken no part in these +plots, which, however, injured his reputation, and his statue in the +Imperial pavilion was left without a name. + +Siuenti did not long survive these events, and Yuenti, the son of Hiuchi, +became emperor. His reign of sixteen years presents no features of +interest beyond the signal overthrow of the Tartar chief, Chichi, whose +head was sent by the victorious general to be hung on the walls of Singan. +Yuenti was succeeded by his son Chingti, who reigned twenty-six years, and +who gained the reputation of a Chinese Vitellius. His nephew Gaiti, who +was the next emperor, showed himself an able and well-intentioned prince, +but his reign of six years was too brief to allow of any permanent work +being accomplished. One measure of his was not without its influence on +the fate of his successors. He had disgraced and dismissed from the +service an official named Wang Mang, who had attained great power and +influence under Chingti. The ambition of this individual proved fatal to +the dynasty. On Gaiti's death he emerged from his retirement, and, in +conjunction with that prince's mother, seized the government. They placed +a child, grandson of Yuenti, on the throne, and gave him the name of +Pingti, or the Peaceful Emperor, but he never governed. Before Pingti was +fourteen, Wang Mang resolved to get rid of him, and he gave him the +poisoned cup with his own hands. This was not the only, or perhaps the +worst, crime that Wang Mang perpetrated to gain the throne. Pressed for +money to pay his troops, he committed the sacrilege of stripping the +graves of the princes of the Han family of the jewels deposited in them. +One more puppet prince was placed on the throne, but he was soon got rid +of, and Wang Mang proclaimed himself emperor. He also decreed that the Han +dynasty was extinct, and that his family should be known as the Sin. + +Wang Mang the usurper was certainly a capable administrator, but in +seizing the throne he had attempted a task to which he was unequal. As +long as he was minister or regent, respect and regard for the Han family +prevented many from revolting against his tyranny, but when he seized the +throne he became the mark of popular indignation and official jealousy. +The Huns resumed their incursions, and, curiously enough, put forward a +proclamation demanding the restoration of the Hans. Internal enemies +sprang up on every side, and Wang Mang's attempt to terrify them by +severity and wholesale executions only aggravated the situation. It became +clear that the struggle was to be one to the death, but this fact did not +assist Wang Mang, who saw his resources gradually reduced and his enemies +more confident as the contest continued. After twelve years' fighting, +Wang Mang was besieged at Singan. The city was soon carried by storm, and +Wang Mang retired to the palace to put an end to his existence. But his +heart failed him, and he was cut down by the foe. His last exclamation and +the dirge of his short-lived dynasty, which is denied a place in Chinese +history, was, "If Heaven had given me courage, what could the family of +the Hans have done?" + +The eldest of the surviving Han princes, Liu Hiuen, was placed on the +throne, and the capital was removed from Singan to Loyang, or Honan. +Nothing could have been more popular among the Chinese people than the +restoration of the Hans. It is said that the old men cried for joy when +they saw the banner of the Hans again waving over the palace and in the +field. But Liu Hiuen was not a good ruler, and there might have been +reason to regret the change if he had not wisely left the conduct of +affairs to his able cousin, Liu Sieou. At last the army declared that Liu +Sieou should be emperor, and when Liu Hiuen attempted to form a faction of +his own he was murdered by Fanchong, the leader of a confederacy known as +the Crimson Eyebrows, on whose co-operation he counted. The Crimson +Eyebrows were so called from the distinguishing mark which they had +adopted when first organized as a protest against the tyranny of Wang +Mang. At first they were patriots, but they soon became brigands. After +murdering the emperor, Fanchong, their leader, threw off all disguise, and +seizing Singan, gave it over to his followers to plunder. Liu Sieou, on +becoming emperor, took the style of Kwang Vouti, and his first task was to +overthrow the Crimson Eyebrows, who had become a public enemy. He +intrusted the command of the army he raised for this purpose to Fongy, who +justified his reputation as the most skillful Chinese general of his day +by gaining several victories over a more numerous adversary. Within two +years Kwang Vouti had the satisfaction of breaking up the formidable +faction known as the Crimson Eyebrows, and of holding its leader Fanchong +as a prisoner in his capital. + +Kwang Vouti was engaged for many more years in subduing the numerous +potentates who had repudiated the imperial authority. His efforts were +invariably crowned with success, but he acquired so great a distaste for +war that it is said when his son asked him to explain how an army was set +in battle array he refused to reply. But the love of peace will not avert +war when a State has turbulent or ambitious neighbors who are resolved to +appeal to arms, and so Kwang Vouti was engaged in almost constant +hostilities to the end of his days. Chingtse, the Queen of Kaochi, which +may be identified with the modern Annam, defied the Chinese, and defeated +the first army sent to bring her to reason. This reverse necessitated a +still greater effort on the part of the Chinese ruler to bring his +neighbor to her senses. The occupant of the Dragon throne could not sit +down tamely under a defeat inflicted by a woman, and an experienced +general named Mayuen was sent to punish the Queen of Kaochi. The Boadicea +of Annam made a valiant defense, but she was overthrown, and glad to +purchase peace by making the humblest submission. The same general more +than held his own on the northern and northwest frontiers. When Kwang +Vouti died, in A.D. 57, after a brilliant reign of thirty-three years, he +had firmly established the Han dynasty, and he left behind him the +reputation of being both a brave and a just prince. + +His son and successor, Mingti, was not unworthy of his father. His acts +were characterized by wisdom and clemency, and the country enjoyed a large +measure of peace through the policy of Mingti and his father. A general +named Panchow, who was perhaps the greatest military commander China ever +produced, began his long and remarkable career in this reign, and, without +the semblance of an effort, kept the Huns in order, and maintained the +imperial authority over them. Among other great and important works, +Mingti constructed a dike, thirty miles long, for the relief of the +Hoangho, and the French missionary and writer, Du Halde, states that so +long as this was kept in repair there were no floods. The most remarkable +event of Mingti's reign was undoubtedly the official introduction of +Buddhism into China. Some knowledge of the great Indian religion and of +the teacher Sakya Muni seems to have reached China through either Tibet, +or, more probably, Burma, but it was not until Mingti, in consequence of a +dream, sent envoys to India to study Buddhism, that its doctrine became +known in China. Under the direct patronage of the emperor it made rapid +progress, and although never unreservedly popular, it has held its ground +ever since its introduction in the first century of our era, and is now +inextricably intertwined with the religion of the Chinese state and +people. Mingti died after a successful reign of eighteen years in 75 A.D. +His son, Changti, with the aid of his mother, Machi, the daughter of the +general Mayuen, enjoyed a peaceful reign of thirteen years, and died at an +early age lamented by his sorrowing people. + +After Changti came his son, Hoti, who was only ten at the time of his +accession, and who reigned for seventeen years. He was a virtuous and +well-intentioned prince, who instituted many internal reforms, and during +his reign a new writing paper was invented, which is supposed to have been +identical with the papyrus of Egypt. But the reign of Hoti is rendered +illustrious by the remarkable military achievements of Panchow. The +success of that general in his operations with the Huns has already been +referred to, and he at last formed a deliberate plan for driving them away +from the Chinese frontier. Although he enjoyed the confidence of his +successive sovereigns, the imperial sanction was long withheld from this +vast scheme, but during the life of Changti he began to put in operation +measures for the realization of this project that were only matured under +Hoti. He raised and trained a special army for frontier war. He enlisted +tribes who had never served the emperor before, and who were specially +qualified for desert warfare. He formed an alliance with the Sienpi tribes +of Manchuria, who were probably the ancestors of the present Manchus, and +thus arranged for a flank attack on the Huns. This systematic attack was +crowned with success. The pressure brought against them compelled the +Hiongnou to give way, and as they were ousted from their possessions, to +seek fresh homes further west. In this they were, no doubt, stimulated by +the example of their old opponents, the Yuchi, but Panchow's energy +supplied a still more convincing argument. He pursued them wherever they +went, across the Gobi Desert and beyond the Tian Shan range, taking up a +strong position at modern Kuldja and Kashgar, sending his expeditions on +to the Pamir, and preparing to complete his triumph by the invasion of the +countries of the Oxus and Jaxartes. When Hoti was still a youth, he +completed this programme by overrunning the region as far as the Caspian, +which was probably at that time connected with the Aral, and it may be +supposed that Khiva marked the limit of the Chinese general's triumphant +progress. It is affirmed with more or less show of truth that he came into +contact with the Roman empire or the great Thsin, as the Chinese called +it, and that he wished to establish commercial relations with it. But +however uncertain this may be, there can be no doubt that he inflicted a +most material injury on Rome, for before his legions fled the Huns, who, +less than four centuries later, debased the majesty of the imperial city, +and whose leader, Attila, may have been a descendant of that Meha at whose +hands the Chinese suffered so severely. + +After this brilliant and memorable war, Panchow returned to China, where +he died at the great age of eighty. With him disappeared the good fortune +of the Han dynasty, and misfortunes fell rapidly on the family that had +governed China so long and so well. Hoti's infant son lived only a few +months, and then his brother, Ganti, became emperor. The real power rested +in the hands of the widow of Hoti, who was elevated to the post of regent. +Ganti was succeeded in A.D. 124 by his son, Chunti, in whose time several +rebellions occurred, threatening the extinction of the dynasty. Several +children were then elevated to the throne, and at last an ambitious noble +named Leangki, whose sister was one of the empresses, acquired the supreme +direction of affairs. He gave a great deal of trouble, but at last, +finding that his ambitious schemes did not prosper, he took poison, thus +anticipating a decree passed for his execution. Hwanti, the emperor who +had the courage to punish this powerful noble, was the last able ruler of +the Hans. His reign was, on the whole, a brilliant one, and the Sienpi +tribes, who had taken the place of the Hiongnou, were, after one arduous +campaign, defeated in a pitched battle. The Chinese were on the verge of +defeat when their general, Twan Kang, rushed to the front, exclaiming: +"Recall to your minds how often before you have beaten these same +opponents, and teach them again to-day that in you they have their +masters." + +After Hwanti's death the decline of the Hans was rapid. They produced no +other ruler worthy of the throne. In the palace the eunuchs, always +numerous at the Chinese court, obtained the upper hand, and appointed +their own creatures to the great governing posts. Fortunately this +dissension at the capital was not attended by weakness on the frontier, +and the Sienpi were again defeated. The battle is chiefly memorable +because the Sienpi endeavored to frighten the Chinese general by +threatening to kill his mother, who was a prisoner in their hands, if he +attacked. Not deterred by this menace, Chow Pow attacked the enemy, and +gained a decisive victory, but at the cost of his mother's life, which so +affected him that he died of grief shortly afterward. After some time +dissensions rose in the Han family, and two half-brothers claimed the +throne. Pienti became emperor by the skillful support of his uncle, +General Hotsin, while his rival, Hienti, enjoyed the support of the +eunuchs. A deadly feud ensued between the two parties, which was +aggravated by the murder of Hotsin, who rashly entered the palace without +an escort. His soldiers avenged his death, carrying the palace by storm +and putting ten thousand eunuchs to the sword. After this the last +emperors possessed only the name of emperor. The practical authority was +disputed among several generals, of whom Tsow Tsow was the most +distinguished and successful; and he and his son Tsowpi founded a dynasty, +of which more will be heard hereafter. In A.D. 220 Hienti, the last Han +ruler, retired into private life, thus bringing to an end the famous Han +dynasty, which had governed China for four hundred and fifty years. + +Among the families that have reigned in China none has obtained as high a +place in popular esteem as the Hans. They rendered excellent work in +consolidating the empire and in carrying out what may be called the +imperial mission of China. Yunnan and Leaoutung were made provinces for +the first time. Cochin China became a vassal state. The writ of the +emperor ran as far as the Pamir. The wealth and trade of the country +increased with the progress of its armies. Some of the greatest public +works, in the shape of roads, bridges, canals, and aqueducts, were +constructed during this period, and still remain to testify to the glory +of the Hans. As has been seen, the Hans produced several great rulers. +Their fame was not the creation of one man alone, and as a consequence the +dynasty enjoyed a lengthened existence equaled by few of its predecessors +or successors. No ruling family was ever more popular with the Chinese +than this, and it managed to retain the throne when less favored rulers +would have expiated their mistakes and shortcomings by the loss of the +empire. With the strong support of the people, the Hans overcame +innumerable difficulties, and even the natural process of decay; and when +they made their final exit from history it was in a graceful manner, and +without the execration of the masses. That this feeling retains its force +is shown in the pride with which the Chinese still proclaim themselves to +be the sons of Han. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +A LONG PERIOD OF DISUNION + + +The ignominious failure of the usurper Wang Mang to found a dynasty was +too recent to encourage any one to take upon himself the heavy charge of +administering the whole of the Han empire, and so the state was split up +into three principalities, and the period is known from this fact as the +Sankoue. One prince, a member of the late ruling family, held possession +of Szchuen, which was called the principality of Chow. The southern +provinces were governed by a general named Sunkiuen, and called Ou. The +central and northern provinces, containing the greatest population and +resources, formed the principality of Wei, subject to Tsowpi, the son of +Tsow Tsow. A struggle for supremacy very soon began between these princes, +and the balance of success gradually declared itself in favor of Wei. It +would serve no useful purpose to enumerate the battles which marked this +struggle, yet one deed of heroism deserves mention, the defense of +Sinching by Changte, an officer of the Prince of Wei. The strength of the +place was insignificant, and, after a siege of ninety days, several +breaches had been made in the walls. In this strait Changte sent a message +to the besieging general that he would surrender on the hundredth day if a +cessation of hostilities were granted, "as it was a law among the princes +of Wei that the governor of a place which held out for a hundred days and +then surrendered, with no prospect of relief visible, should not be +considered as guilty." The respite was short and it was granted. But the +disappointment of the besieger, already counting on success, was great +when a few days later he saw that the breaches had been repaired, that +fresh defenses had been improvised, and that Sinching was in better +condition than ever to withstand a siege. On sending to inquire the +meaning of these preparations, Changte gave the following reply: "I am +preparing my tomb and to bury myself in the ruins of Sinching." Of such +gallantry and resource the internecine strife of the Sankoue period +presents few instances, but the progress of the struggle steadily pointed +in the direction of the triumph of Wei. + +The Chow dynasty of the Later Hans was the first to succumb to the princes +of Wei, and the combined resources of the two states were then directed +against the southern principality of Ou. The supreme authority in Wei had +before this passed from the family of Tsowpi to his best general, +Ssemachow, who had the satisfaction of beginning his reign with the +overthrow of the Chow dynasty. If he had earned out the wishes of his own +commander, Tengai, by attacking Ou at once, and in the flush of his +triumph over Chow, he might have completed his work at a stroke, for as +Tengai wrote, "An army which has the reputation of victory flies from one +success to another." But Ssemachow preferred a slower and surer mode of +action, with the result that the conquest of Ou was put off for twenty +years. Ssemachow died in A.D. 265, and his son Ssemachu founded the new +dynasty of the Later Tsins under the name of Vouti, or the warrior prince. + +The main object with Vouti was to add the Ou principality to his +dominions, and the descendants of Sunkiuen thought it best to bend before +the storm. They sent humble embassies to Loyang, expressing their loyalty +and submission, but at the same time they made strenuous preparations to +defend their independence. This double policy precipitated the collision +it was intended to avert. Vouti paid more heed to the acts than the +promises of his neighbor, and he ordered the invasion of his territory +from two sides. He placed a large fleet of war junks on the Yangtsekiang +to attack his opponent on the Tunting Lake. The campaign that ensued was +decided before it began. The success of Vouti was morally certain from the +beginning, and after his army had suffered several reverses Sunhow threw +up the struggle and surrendered to his opponent. Thus was China again +reunited for a short time under the dynasty of the Later Tsins. Having +accomplished his main task, Vouti gave himself up to the pursuit of +pleasure, and impaired the reputation he had gained among his somewhat +severe fellow-countrymen by entertaining a theatrical company of five +thousand female comedians, and by allowing himself to be driven in a car +drawn by sheep through the palace grounds. Vouti lived about ten years +after the unity of the empire was restored, and his son, Ssemachong, or +Hweiti, became emperor on his death in A.D. 290. One of the great works of +his reign was the bridging of the Hoangho at Mongtsin, at a point much +lower down its course than is bridged at the present time. + +The reign of Hweiti was marred by the ambitious vindictiveness of his +wife, Kiachi, who murdered the principal minister and imprisoned the widow +of the Emperor Vouti. The only good service she rendered the state was to +discern in one of the palace eunuchs named Mongkwan a great general, and +his achievements bear a strong resemblance to those of Narses, who was the +only other great commander of that unfortunate class mentioned in history. +Wherever Mongkwan commanded in person victory attended his efforts, but +the defeats of the other generals of the Tsins neutralized his success. At +this moment there was a recrudescence of Tartar activity which proved more +fatal to the Chinese ruler than his many domestic enemies. Some of the +Hiongnou tribes had retired in an easterly direction toward Manchuria when +Panchow drove the main body westward, and among them, at the time of which +we are speaking, a family named Lin had gained the foremost place. They +possessed all the advantages of Chinese education, and had married several +times into the Han family. Seeing the weakness of Hweiti these Lin chiefs +took the title of Kings of Han, and wished to pose as the liberators of +the country. Hweiti bent before the storm, and would have made an +ignominious surrender but that death saved him the trouble. + +His brother and successor, Hwaiti, fared somewhat better at first, but +notwithstanding some flashes of success the Lin Tartars marched further +and further into the country, capturing cities, defeating the best +officers of the Tsins, and threatening the capital. In A.D. 310 Linsong, +the Han chief, invaded China in force and with the full intention of +ending the war at a blow. He succeeded in capturing Loyang, and carrying +off Hwaiti as his prisoner. The capital was pillaged and the Prince Royal +executed. Hwaiti is considered the first Chinese emperor to have fallen +into the hands of a foreign conqueror. Two years after his capture, Hwaiti +was compelled to wait on his conqueror at a public banquet, and when it +was over he was led out to execution. This foul murder illustrates the +character of the new race and men who aspired to rule over China. The +Tartar successes did not end here, for a few years later they made a fresh +raid into China, capturing Hwaiti's brother and successor, Mingti, who was +executed, twelve months after his capture, at Pingyang, the capital of the +Tartar Hans. + +After these reverses the enfeebled Tsin rulers removed their capital to +Nankin, but this step alone would not have sufficed to prolong their +existence had not the Lin princes themselves suffered from the evils of +disunion and been compelled to remove their capital from Pingyang to +Singan. Here they changed their name from Han to Chow, but the work of +disintegration once begun proceeded rapidly, and in the course of a few +years the Lin power crumbled completely away. Released from their most +pressing danger by the fall of this family, the Tsin dynasty took a new +lease of life, but it was unable to derive any permanent advantage from +this fact. The last emperors of this family were weak and incompetent +princes, whose names need not be given outside a chronological table. +There would be nothing to say about them but that a humble individual +named Linyu, who owed everything to himself, found in the weakness of the +government and the confusion in the country the opportunity of +distinction. He proved himself a good soldier and able leader against the +successors of the Lin family on one side, and a formidable pirate named +Sunghen on the other. Dissatisfied with his position, Linyu murdered one +emperor and placed another on the throne, and in two years he compelled +his puppet, the last of the Later Tsins, to make a formal abdication in +his favor. For a considerable portion of their rule they governed the +whole of China, and it is absolutely true to say that they were the least +worthy family ever intrusted with so great a charge. Of the fifteen +emperors who ruled for one hundred and fifty-five years there is not more +than the founder whose name calls for preservation on his own merits. + +Although Linyu's success was complete as far as it went, his dynasty, to +which he gave the name of Song, never possessed exclusive power among the +Chinese. It was only one administration among many others, and during his +brief reign of three years he could do nothing toward extending his power +over his neighbors, although he may have established his own the more +firmly by poisoning the miserable Tsin emperor whom he deposed. His son +and successor, Chowti, was deposed and murdered after a brief reign of one +year. His brother Wenti succeeded him, and he was soon drawn into a +struggle for power, if not existence, with his northern neighbor the King +of Wei, who was one of the most powerful potentates in the empire. The +principal and immediate bone of contention between them was the great +province of Honan, which had been overrun by the Wei ruler, but which +Wenti was resolved to recover. As the Hoangho divides this province into +two parts, it was extremely difficult for the Wei ruler to defend the +portion south of it, and when Wenti sent him his declaration of war, he +replied, "Even if your master succeeds in seizing this province I shall +know how to retake it as soon as the waters of the Hoangho are frozen." +Wenti succeeded in recovering Honan, but after a protracted campaign, +during which the Wei troops crossed the river on the ice, his armies were +again expelled from it, and the exhausted combatants found themselves at +the close of the struggle in almost the same position they had held at the +commencement. For a time both rulers devoted their attention to peaceful +matters, although Topatao, king of Wei, varied them by a persecution of +the Buddhists, and then the latter concentrated all his forces with the +view of overwhelming the Song emperor. When success seemed certain, +victory was denied him, and the Wei forces suffered severely during their +retreat to their own territory. This check to his triumphant career +injured his reputation and encouraged his enemies. A short time after this +campaign, Topatao was murdered by some discontented officers. + +Nor was the Song ruler, Wenti, any more fortunate, as he was murdered by +his son. The parricide was killed in turn by a brother who became the +Emperor Vouti. This ruler was fond of the chase and a great eater, but, on +the whole, he did no harm. The next two emperors were cruel and +bloodthirsty princes, and during their reigns the executioner was +constantly employed. Two more princes, who were, however, not members of +the Song family, but only adopted by the last ruler of that house, +occupied the throne, but this weakness and unpopularity--for the Chinese, +unlike the people of India, scout the idea of adoption and believe only in +the rights of birth--administered the finishing stroke to the Songs, who +now give place to the Tsi dynasty, which was founded by a general named +Siaotaoching, who took the imperial name of Kaoti. The change did not +bring any improvement in the conditions of China, and it was publicly said +that the Tsi family had attained its pride of place not by merit, but by +force. The Tsi dynasty, after a brief and ignominious career, came to an +end in the person of a youthful prince named Hoti. After his deposition, +in A.D. 502, his successful enemies ironically sent him in prison a +present of gold. He exclaimed, "What need have I of gold after my death? a +few glasses of wine would be more valuable." They complied with his wish, +and while he was drunk they strangled him with his own silken girdle. + +After the Tsi came the Leang dynasty, another of those insignificant and +unworthy families which occupy the stage of Chinese history during this +long period of disunion. The new Emperor Vouti was soon brought into +collision with the state of Wei, which during these years had regained all +its power, and had felt strong enough to transfer its capital from the +northern city of Pingching to Honan, while the Leang capital remained at +Nankin. The progress of this contest was marked by the consistent success +of Wei, and the prince of that kingdom seems to have been as superior in +the capacity of his generals as in the resources of his state. One +incident will be sufficient to show the devotion which he was able to +inspire in his officers. During the absence of its governor, Vouti +attempted to capture the town of Ginching, and he would certainly have +succeeded in his object had not Mongchi, the wife of that officer, +anticipating by many centuries the conduct of the Countess of Montfort and +of the Countess of Derby, thrown herself into the breach, harangued the +small garrison, and inspired it with her own indomitable spirit. Vouti was +compelled to make an ignominious retreat from before Ginching, and his +troops became so disheartened that they refused to engage the enemy, +notwithstanding their taunts and their marching round the imperial camp +with the head of a dead person decked out in a widow's cap and singing a +doggerel ballad to the effect that none of Vouti's generals was to be +feared. In the next campaign Vouti was able to restore his declining +fortunes by the timely discovery of a skillful general in the person of +Weijoui, who, taking advantage of the division of the Wei army into two +parts by a river, gained a decisive victory over each of them in turn. If +Vouti had listened to his general's advice, and followed up this success, +he might have achieved great and permanent results, but instead he +preferred to rest content with his laurels, with the result that the Wei +prince recovered his military power and confidence. The natural +consequences of this was that the two neighbors once more resorted to a +trial of strength, and, notwithstanding the valiant and successful defense +of a fortress by another lady named Liuchi, the fortune of war declared in +the main for Vouti. This may be considered one of the most remarkable +periods for the display of female capacity in China, as the great state of +Wei was governed by a queen named Houchi; but the general condition of the +country does not support an argument in favor of female government. + +The tenure of power by Houchi was summarily cut short by the revolt of the +Wei commander-in-chief, Erchu Jong, who got rid of his mistress by tying +her up in a sack and throwing her into the Hoangho. He then collected two +thousand of her chief advisers in a plain outside the capital, and there +ordered his cavalry to cut them down. Erchu Jong then formed an ambitious +project for reuniting the empire, proclaiming to his followers his +intention in this speech: "Wait a little while, and we shall assemble all +the braves from out our western borders. We will then go and bring to +reason the six departments of the north, and the following year we will +cross the great Kiang, and place in chains Siaoyen, who calls himself +emperor." This scheme was nipped in the bud by the assassination of Erchu +Jong. Although the death of its great general signified much loss to the +Wei state, the Emperor Vouti experienced bitter disappointment and a rude +awakening when he attempted to turn the event to his own advantage. His +army was defeated in every battle, his authority was reduced to a shadow, +and a mutinous officer completed in his palace the overthrow begun by his +hereditary enemy. Vouti was now eighty years of age, and ill able to stand +so rude a shock. On being deposed he exclaimed: "It was I who raised my +family, and it was I who have destroyed it. I have no reason to complain"; +and he died a few days later, from, it is said, a pain in his throat which +his jailers refused to alleviate with some honey. On the whole, Vouti was +a creditable ruler, although the Chinese annalists blame him for his +superstition and denounce his partiality for Buddhism. + +Vouti's prediction that his family was destroyed proved correct. He was +succeeded in turn by three members of his family, but all of these died a +violent death. A general named Chinpasien founded a fresh dynasty known as +the Chin, but he died before he had enjoyed power many years. At this +period also disappeared the Wei state, which was dissolved by the death of +Erchu Jong, and now merged itself into that of Chow. The growth of this +new power proved very rapid, and speedily extinguished that of the +unfortunate Chins. The Chow ruler took the name of Kaotsou Wenti, and +ruled over a great portion of China. He changed the name of his dynasty to +the Soui, which, although it did not hold possession of the throne for +long, vindicated its claim to supremacy by successful wars and admirable +public works. This prince showed himself a very capable administrator, and +his acts were marked by rare generosity and breadth of view. His son and +successor, Yangti, although he reached the throne by the murder of a +brother, proved himself an intelligent ruler and a benefactor of his +people. He transferred his capital from Nankin to Honan, which he resolved +to make the most magnificent city in the world. It is declared that he +employed two million men in embellishing it, and that he caused fifty +thousand merchants to take up their residence there. But of all his works +none will compare with the great system of canals which he constructed, +and in connection with which his name will live forever in history. +Although he reigned no more than thirteen years, he completed nearly five +thousand miles of canals. Some of these, such as the Grand Canal, from the +Hoangho to the Yangtsekiang, are splendid specimens of human labor, and +could be made as useful today as they were when first constructed. The +canal named is forty yards wide and is lined with solid stone. The banks +are bordered with elms and willows. These works were constructed by a +general corvee or levy en masse, each family being required to provide one +able-bodied man, and the whole of the army was also employed on this +public undertaking. It is in connection with it that Yangti's name will be +preserved, as his wars, especially one with Corea, were not successful, +and an ignominious end was put to his existence by a fanatic. His son and +successor was also murdered, when the Soui dynasty came to an end, and +with it the magnificent and costly palace erected at Loyang, which was +denounced as only calculated "to soften the heart of a prince and to +foment his cupidity." + +There now ensues a break in the long period of disunion which had +prevailed in China, and for a time the supreme authority of the emperor +recovered the general respect and vigor which by right belonged to it. The +deposer of the Souis was Liyuen, who some years before had been given the +title of Prince of Tang. In the year A.D. 617 he proclaimed himself +emperor under the style of Kaotsou, and he began his reign in an +auspicious manner by proclaiming an amnesty and by stating his "desire to +found his empire only on justice and humanity." While he devoted his +attention to the reorganization of the administration at Singan, which he +chose for his capital, his second son, Lichimin, was intrusted with the +command of the army in the field, to which was assigned the task of +subjecting all the provinces. Lichimin proved himself a great commander, +and his success was both rapid and unqualified. He was equally victorious +over Chinese rebels and foreign enemies. His energy and skill were not +more conspicuous than his courage. At the head of his chosen regiment of +cuirassiers, carrying black tiger skins, he was to be found in the front +of every battle, and victory was due as often to his personal intrepidity +as to his tactical skill. Within a few years the task of Lichimin was +brought to a glorious completion, and on his return to Singan he was able +to assure his father that the empire was pacified in a sense that had not +been true for many centuries. His entry into Singan at the head of his +victorious troops reminds the reader of a Roman triumph. Surrounded by his +chosen bodyguard, and followed by forty thousand cavalry, Lichimin, +wearing a breastplate of gold and accompanied by the most important of his +captives, rode through the streets to make public offering of thanks for +victory achieved, at the Temple of his ancestors. His success was enhanced +by his moderation, for he granted his prisoners their lives, and his +reputation was not dimmed by any acts of cruelty or bloodshed. + +The magnitude of Lichimin's success and his consequent popularity aroused +the envy and hostility of his elder brother, who aspired to the throne. +The intrigues against him were so far successful that he fell into +disgrace with the emperor, and for a time withdrew from the court. But his +brother was not content with anything short of taking his life, and formed +a conspiracy with his other brothers and some prominent officials to +murder him. The plot was discovered, and recoiled upon its authors, who +were promptly arrested and executed. Then Lichimin was formally proclaimed +heir to the throne; but the event sinks into comparative insignificance +beside the abdication of the throne by Kaotsou in the same year. The real +cause of this step was probably not disconnected with the plot against +Lichimin, but the official statement was that Kaotsou felt the weight of +years, and that he wished to enjoy rest and the absence of responsibility +during his last days. Kaotsou must be classed among the capable rulers of +China, but his fame has been overshadowed by and merged in the greater +splendor of his son. He survived his abdication nine years, dying in A.D. +635 at the age of seventy-one. + +On ascending the throne, Lichimin took the name of Taitsong, and he is one +of the few Chinese rulers to whom the epithet of Great may be given +without fear of its being challenged. The noble task to which he at once +set himself was to prove that the Chinese were one people, that the +interests of all the provinces, as of all classes of the community, were +the same, and that the pressing need of the hour was to revive the spirit +of national unity and patriotism. Before he became ruler in his own name +he had accomplished something toward this end by the successful campaigns +he had conducted to insure the recognition of his father's authority. But +Taitsong saw that much more remained to be done, and the best way to do it +seemed to him to be the prosecution of what might be called a national war +against those enemies beyond the northern frontier, who were always +troublesome, and who had occasionally founded governments within the +limits of China like the Topa family of Wei. In order to achieve any great +or lasting success in this enterprise, Taitsong saw that it was essential +that he should possess a large and well-trained standing army, on which he +could rely for efficient service beyond the frontier as well as in China +itself. Before his time Chinese armies had been little better than a rude +militia, and the military knowledge of the officers could only be +described as contemptible. The soldiers were, for the most part, peasants, +who knew nothing of discipline, and into whose hands weapons were put for +the first time on the eve of a war. They were not of a martial +temperament, and they went unwillingly to a campaign; and against such +active opponents as the Tartars they would only engage when superiority of +numbers promised success. They were easily seized with a panic, and the +celerity and dash of Chinese troops only became perceptible when their +backs were turned to the foe. So evident had these faults become that more +than one emperor had endeavored to recruit from among the Tartar tribes, +and to oppose the national enemy with troops not less brave or active than +themselves. But the employment of mercenaries is always only a half +remedy, and not free from the risk of aggravating the evil it is intended +to cure. But Taitsong did not attempt any such palliation; he went to the +root of the question, and determined to have a trained and efficient army +of his own. He raised a standing army of nine hundred thousand men, which +he divided into three equal classes of regiments, one containing one +thousand two hundred men, another one thousand, and the third eight +hundred. The total number of regiments was eight hundred and ninety-five, +of which six hundred and thirty-four were recruited for home service and +two hundred and sixty-one for foreign. By this plan he obtained the +assured services of more than a quarter of a million of trained troops for +operations beyond the frontier. Taitsong also improved the weapons and +armament of his soldiers. He lengthened the pike and supplied a stronger +bow. Many of his troops wore armor; and he relied on the co-operation of +his cavalry, a branch of military power which has generally been much +neglected in China. He took special pains to train a large body of +officers, and he instituted a Tribunal of War, to which the supreme +direction of military matters was intrusted. As these measures greatly +shocked the civil mandarins, who regarded the emperor's taking part in +reviews and the physical exercises of the soldiers as "an impropriety," it +will be allowed that Taitsong showed great moral courage and surmounted +some peculiar difficulties in carrying out his scheme for forming a +regular army. He overcame all obstacles, and gathered under his banner an +army formidable by reason of its efficiency and equipment, as well as for +its numerical strength. + +Having acquired what he deemed the means to settle it, Taitsong resolved +to grapple boldly with the ever-recurring danger from the Tartars, Under +different names, but ever with the same object, the tribes of the vast +region from Corea to Koko Nor had been a trouble to the Chinese +agriculturist and government from time immemorial. Their sole ambition and +object in life had been to harry the lands of the Chinese, and to bear +back to their camps the spoils of cities. The Huns had disappeared, but in +their place had sprung up the great power of the Toukinei or Turks, who +were probably the ancestors of the Ottomans. With these turbulent +neighbors, and with others of different race but of the same disposition +on the southern frontier, Taitsong was engaged in a bitter and arduous +struggle during the whole of his life; and there can be little or no doubt +that he owed his success to the care he bestowed on his army. The Great +Wall of Tsin Hwangti had been one barrier in the path of these enemies, +but, held by a weak and cowardly garrison, it had proved inadequate for +its purpose. Taitsong supplied another and a better defense in a +consistent and energetic policy, and in the provision of a formidable and +confident army. + +The necessity for this military reform was clearly shown by the experience +of his first campaign with these implacable enemies, when, in the year of +his accession and before his organization had been completed, a horde of +these barbarians broke into the empire and carried all before them, almost +to the gates of the capital. On this occasion Taitsong resorted to +diplomacy and remonstrance. He rode almost unattended to the Tartar camp, +and reproached their chiefs with their breach of faith, reminding them +that on his sending one of his sisters to be the bride of their chief they +had sworn by a solemn oath to keep the peace. He asked: "Are these +proceedings worthy, I will not say of princes, but of men possessing the +least spark of honor? If they forget the benefits they have received from +me, at the least they ought to be mindful of their oaths. I had sworn a +peace with them; they are now violating it, and by that they place the +justice of the question on my side." The Chinese chroniclers declare that +the Tartars were so impressed by Taitsong's majestic air and remonstrances +that they agreed to retire, and fresh vows of friendship and peace were +sworn over the body of a white horse at a convention concluded on the +Pienkiao bridge across the Weichoui River. The only safe deduction from +this figurative narrative is that there was a Tartar incursion, and that +the Chinese army did not drive back the invaders. Their retreat was +probably purchased, but it was the first and last occasion on which +Taitsong stooped to such a measure. + +The peace of Pienkiao was soon broken. The tribes again drew their forces +to a head for the purpose of invading China, but before their plans were +complete Taitsong anticipated them by marching into their territory at the +head of a large army. Taken by surprise, the Tartars offered but a feeble +resistance. Several of their khans surrendered, and at a general assembly +Taitsong proclaimed his intention to govern them as Khan of their khans, +or by the title of Tien Khan, which means Celestial Ruler. This was the +first occasion on which a Chinese ruler formally took over the task of +governing the nomad tribes and of treating their chiefs as his +lieutenants. Down to the present day the Chinese emperor continues to +govern the Mongol and other nomadic tribes under this very title, which +the Russians have rendered as Bogdo Khan. The success of this policy was +complete, for not only did it give tranquillity to the Chinese borders, +but it greatly extended Chinese authority. Kashgaria was then, for the +first time, formed into a province under the name of Lonugsi, and +Lichitsi, one of the emperor's best generals, was appointed Warden of the +Western Marches. Some of the most influential of Taitsong's advisers +disapproved of this advanced policy, and attempted to thwart it, but in +vain. Carried out with the vigor and consistency of Taitsong there cannot +be two opinions about its wisdom and efficacy. + +During this reign the relations between China and two of its neighbors, +Tibet and Corea, were greatly developed, and the increased intercourse was +largely brought about by the instrumentality of war. The first envoys from +Tibet, or, as it was then called, Toufan or Toupo, are reported to have +reached the Chinese capital in the year 634. At that time the people of +Tibet were rude and unlettered, and their chiefs were little better than +savages. Buddhism had not taken that firm hold on the popular mind which +it at present possesses, and the power of the lamas had not arisen in what +is now the most priest-ridden country in the world. A chief, named the +Sanpou--which means the brave lord--had, about the time of which we are +speaking, made himself supreme throughout the country, and it was said +that he had crossed the Himalaya and carried his victorious arms into +Central India. Curiosity, or the desire to wed a Chinese princess, and +thus to be placed on what may be termed a favored footing, induced the +Sanpou to send his embassy to Singan; but although the envoys returned +laden with presents, Taitsong declined to trust a princess of his family +in a strange country and among an unknown people. The Sanpou chose to +interpret this refusal as an insult to his dignity, and he declared war +with China. But success did not attend his enterprise, for he was defeated +in the only battle of the war, and glad to purchase peace by paying five +thousand ounces of gold and acknowledging himself a Chinese vassal. The +Sanpou also agreed to accept Chinese education, and as his reward Taitsong +gave him one of his daughters as a wife. It is stated that one of his +first reforms was to abolish the national practice of painting the face, +and he also built a walled city to proclaim his glory as the son-in-law of +the Emperor of China. During Taitsong's life there was no further trouble +on the side of Tibet. + +Taitsong was not so fortunate in his relations with Corea, where a +stubborn people and an inaccessible country imposed a bar to his ambition. +Attempts had been made at earlier periods to bring Corea under the +influence of the Chinese ruler, and to treat it as a tributary state. A +certain measure of success had occasionaly attended these attempts, but on +the whole Corea had preserved its independence. When Taitsong in the +plenitude of his power called upon the King of Corea to pay tribute, and +to return to his subordinate position, he received a defiant reply, and +the Coreans began to encroach on Sinlo, a small state which threw itself +on the protection of China. The name of Corea at this time was Kaoli, and +the supreme direction of affairs at this period was held by a noble named +Chuen Gaisoowun, who had murdered his own sovereign. Taitsong, irritated +by his defiance, sent a large army to the frontier, and when Gaisoowun, +alarmed by the storm he had raised, made a humble submission and sent the +proper tribute, the emperor gave expression to his displeasure and +disapproval of the regicide's acts by rejecting his gifts and announcing +his resolve to prosecute the war. It is never prudent to drive an opponent +to desperation, and Gaisoowun, who might have been a good neighbor if +Taitsong had accepted his offer, proved a bitter and determined +antagonist. The first campaign was marked by the expected success of the +Chinese army. The Coreans were defeated in several battles, several +important towns were captured, but Taitsong had to admit that these +successes were purchased at the heavy loss of twenty-five thousand of his +best troops. The second campaign resolved itself into the siege and +defense of Anshu, an important town near the Yaloo River. Gaisoowun raised +an enormous force with the view of effecting its relief, and he attempted +to overwhelm the Chinese by superior numbers. But the better discipline +and tactics of the Chinese turned the day, and the Corean army was driven +in rout from the field. But this signal success did not entail the +surrender of Anshu, which was gallantly defended. The scarcity of supplies +and the approach of winter compelled the Chinese emperor to raise the +siege after he had remained before the place for several months, and it is +stated that as the Chinese broke up their camp the commandant appeared on +the walls and wished them "a pleasant journey." After this rebuff Taitsong +did not renew his attempt to annex Corea, although to the end of his life +he refused to hold any relations with Gaisoowun. + +During the first portion of his reign Taitsong was greatly helped by the +labors of his wife, the Empress Changsun-chi, who was a woman of rare +goodness and ability, and set a shining example to the whole of her court. +She said many wise things, among which the most quotable was that "the +practice of virtue conferred honor upon men, especially on princes, and +not the splendor of their appointments." She was a patron of letters, and +an Imperial Library and College in the capital owed their origin to her. +She was probably the best and most trustworthy adviser the emperor had, +and after her death the energy and good fortune of Taitsong seemed to +decline. She no doubt contributed to the remarkable treatise on the art of +government, called the "Golden Mirror," which bears the name of Taitsong +as its author. Taitsong was an ardent admirer of Confucius, whom he +exalted to the skies as the great sage of the world, declaring +emphatically that "Confucius was for the Chinese what the water is for the +fishes." The Chinese annalists tell many stories of Taitsong's personal +courage. He was a great hunter, and in the pursuit of big game he +necessarily had some narrow escapes, special mention being made of his +slaying single-handed a savage boar. Another instance was his struggle +with a Tartar attendant who attempted to murder him, and whom he killed in +the encounter. He had a still narrower escape at the hands of his eldest +son, who formed a plot to assassinate him which very nearly succeeded. The +excessive anxiety of Prince Lichingkien to reach the crown cost him the +succession, for on the discovery of his plot he was deposed from the +position of heir-apparent and disappeared from the scene. + +After a reign of twenty-three years, during which he accomplished a great +deal more than other rulers had done in twice the time, Taitsong died in +A.D. 649, leaving the undisturbed possession of the throne to his son, +known as the Emperor Kaotsong. There need be no hesitation in calling +Taitsong one of the greatest rulers who ever sat on the Dragon Throne, and +his death was received with extraordinary demonstrations of grief by the +people he had ruled so well. Several of his generals wished to commit +suicide on his bier, the representatives of the tributary nations at his +capital cut off their hair or sprinkled his grave with their blood, and +throughout the length and breadth of the land there was mourning and +lamentation for a prince who had realized the ideal character of a Chinese +emperor. Nor does his claim to admiration and respect seem less after the +lapse of so many centuries. His figure still stands out boldly as one of +the ablest and most humane of all Chinese rulers. He not only reunited +China, but he proved that union was for his country the only sure basis of +prosperity and power. + +Under Kaotsong the power of the Tangs showed for thirty years no +diminution, and he triumphed in directions where his father had only +pointed the way to victory. He began his reign with a somewhat risky act +by marrying one of his father's widows, who then became the Empress Won. +She was perhaps the most remarkable woman in the whole range of Chinese +history, acquiring such an ascendency over her husband that she +practically ruled the state, and retained this power after his death. In +order to succeed in so exceptional a task she had to show no excessive +delicacy or scrupulousness, and she began by getting rid of the other +wives, including the lawful empress of Kaotsong, in a summary fashion. It +is stated that she cast them into a vase filled with wine, having +previously cut off their hands and feet to prevent their extricating +themselves. But on the whole her influence was exerted to promote the +great schemes of her husband. + +The Tibetan question was revived by the warlike proclivities of the new +Sanpou, who, notwithstanding his blood relationship with the Chinese +emperor, sought to extend his dominion at his expense toward the north and +the east. A desultory war ensued, in which the Chinese got the worst of +it, and Kaotsong admitted that Tibet remained "a thorn in his side for +years." A satisfactory termination was given to the struggle by the early +death of the Sanpou, whose warlike character had been the main cause of +the dispute. Strangely enough the arms of Kaotsong were more triumphant in +the direction of Corea, where his father had failed. From A.D. 658 to 670 +China was engaged in a bitter war on land and sea with the Coreans and +their allies, the Japanese, who thus intervened for the first time in the +affairs of the continent. Owing to the energy of the Empress Wou victory +rested with the Chinese, and the Japanese navy of four hundred junks was +completely destroyed. The kingdom of Sinlo was made a Chinese province, +and for sixty years the Coreans paid tribute and caused no trouble. In +Central Asia also the Chinese power was maintained intact, and the extent +of China's authority and reputation may be inferred from the King of +Persia begging the emperor's governor in Kashgar to come to his aid +against the Arabs, who were then in the act of overrunning Western Asia in +the name of the Prophet. Kaotsong could not send aid to such a distance +from his borders, but he granted shelter to several Persian princes, and +on receiving an embassy from the Arabs, he impressed upon them the wisdom +and magnanimity of being lenient to the conquered. Kaotsong died in 683, +and the Empress Wou retained power until the year 704, when, at the age of +eighty, she was compelled to abdicate. Her independent rule was marked by +as much vigor and success as during the life of Kaotsong. She vanquished +the Tibetans and a new Tartar race known as the Khitans, who appeared on +the northern borders of Shensi. She placed her son in confinement and wore +the robes assigned for an emperor. The extent of her power may be inferred +from her venturing to shock Chinese sentiment by offering the annual +imperial sacrifice to heaven, and by her erecting temples to her +ancestors. Yet it was not until she was broken down by age and illness +that any of her foes were bold enough to encounter her. She survived her +deposition one year, and her banished son Chongtsong was restored to the +throne. + +Chongtsong did not reign long, being poisoned by his wife, who did not +reap the advantage of her crime. Several emperors succeeded without doing +anything to attract notice, and then Mingti brought both his own family +and the Chinese empire to the verge of ruin. Like other rulers, he began +well, quoting the maxims of the "Golden Mirror" and proclaiming Confucius +King of Literature. But defeats at the hands of the Khitans and Tibetans +imbittered his life and diminished his authority. A soldier of fortune +named Ganlochan revolted and met with a rapid and unexpected success owing +to "the people being unaccustomed, from the long peace, to the use of +arms." He subdued all the northern provinces, established his capital at +Loyang, and compelled Mingti to seek safety in Szchuen, when he abdicated +in favor of his son. The misfortunes of Mingti, whose most memorable act +was the founding of the celebrated Hanlin College and the institution of +the "Pekin Gazette," the oldest periodical in the world, both of which +exist at the present day, foretold the disruption of the empire at no +remote date. His son and successor Soutsong did something to retrieve the +fortunes of his family, and he recovered Singan from Ganlochan. The empire +was then divided between the two rivals, and war continued unceasingly +between them. The successful defense of Taiyuen, where artillery is said +to have been used for the first time, A.D. 757, by a lieutenant of the +Emperor Soutsong, consolidated his power, which was further increased by +the murder of Ganlochan shortly afterward. The struggle continued with +varying fortune between the northern and southern powers during the rest +of the reign of Soutsong, and also during that of his successor, Taitsong +the Second. This ruler showed himself unworthy of his name, abandoning his +capital with great pusillanimity when a small Tibetan army advanced upon +it. The census returns threw an expressive light on the condition of the +empire during this period. Under Mingti the population was given at fifty- +two million; in the time of the second Taitsong it had sunk to seventeen +million. A great general named Kwo Tsey, who had driven back the Tibetan +invaders, enabled Tetsong, the son and successor of Taitsong, to make a +good start in the government of his dominion, which was sadly reduced in +extent and prosperity. This great statesman induced Tetsong to issue an +edict reproving the superstitions of the times, and the prevalent fashion +of drawing auguries from dreams and accidents. The edict ran thus: "Peace +and the general contentment of the people, the abundance of the harvest, +skill and wisdom shown in the administration, these are prognostics which +I hear of with pleasure; but 'extraordinary clouds,' 'rare animals,' +'plants before unknown,' 'monsters,' and other astonishing productions of +nature, what good can any of these do men as auguries of the future? I +forbid such things to be brought to my notice." The early death of Kwo +Tsey deprived the youthful ruler of his best adviser and the mainstay of +his power. He was a man of magnificent capacity and devotion to duty, and +when it was suggested to him that he should not be content with any but +the supreme place, he proudly replied that he was "a general of the +Tangs." It seems from the inscription on the stone found at Singan that he +was a patron of the Nestorian Christians, and his character and career +have suggested a comparison with Belisarius. + +Tetsong lived twenty-four years after the death of his champion, and these +years can only be characterized as unfortunate. The great governors +claimed and exacted the privilege that their dignities should be made +hereditary, and this surrender of the imperial prerogative entailed the +usual deterioration of the central power which preceded a change of +dynasty. Unpopularity was incurred by the imposition of taxes on the +principal articles of production and consumption, such as tea, and, worst +symptom of all, the eunuchs again became supreme in the palace. Although +the dynasty survived for another century, it was clear that its knell was +sounded before Tetsong died. Under his grandson Hientsong the mischief +that had been done became more clearly apparent. Although he enjoyed some +military successes, his reign on the whole was unfortunate, and he was +poisoned by the chief of the eunuchs. His son and successor, Moutsong, +from his indifference may be suspected of having been privy to the +occurrence. At any rate, he only enjoyed power for a few years before he +was got rid of in the same summary fashion. Several other nonentities came +to the throne, until at last one ruler named Wentsong, whose intentions at +least were stronger than those of his predecessors, attempted to grapple +with the eunuchs and formed a plot for their extermination. His courage +failed him and the plot miscarried. The eunuchs exacted a terrible revenge +on their opponents, of whom they killed nearly three thousand, and +Wentsong passed the last year of his life as a miserable puppet in their +hands. He was not allowed even to name his successor. The eunuchs ignored +his two sons, and placed his brother Voutsong on the throne. + +The evils of the day became specially revealed during the reign of Ytsong, +who was scarcely seated on the throne before his troops suffered several +defeats at the hands of a rebel prince in Yunnan, who completely wrested +that province from the empire. He was as pronounced a patron of Buddhism +as some of his predecessors had been oppressors, and he sent, at enormous +expense, to India a mission to procure a bone of Buddha's body, and on its +arrival he received the relic on bended knees before his whole court. His +extravagance of living landed the Chinese government in fresh +difficulties, and he brought the exchequer to the verge of bankruptcy. Nor +was he a humane ruler. On one occasion he executed twenty doctors because +they were unable to cure a favorite daughter of his. His son Hitsong came +to the throne when he was a mere boy, and at once experienced the depth of +misfortune to which his family had sunk. He was driven out of his capital +by a rebel named Hwang Chao, and if he had not found an unexpected ally in +the Turk chief Likeyong, there would then have been an end to the Tang +dynasty. This chief of the Chato immigrants--a race supposed to be the +ancestors of the Mohammedan Tungani of more recent times--at the head of +forty thousand men of his own race, who, from the color of their uniform, +were named "The Black Crows," marched against Hwang Chao, and signally +defeated him. The condition of the country at this time is painted in +deplorable colors. The emperor did not possess a palace, and all the great +towns of Central China were in ruins. Likeyong took in the situation at a +glance, when he said, "The ruin of the Tangs is not far distant." +Likeyong, who was created Prince of Tsin, did his best to support the +emperor, but his power was inadequate for coping with another general +named Chuwen, prince of Leang, in whose hands the emperor became a mere +puppet. At the safe moment Chuwen murdered his sovereign, and added to +this crime a massacre of all the Tang princes upon whom he could lay his +hands. Chao Siuenti, the last of the Tangs, abdicated, and a few months +later Chuwen, to make assurance doubly sure, assassinated him. Thus +disappeared, after two hundred and eighty-nine years and after giving +twenty rulers to the state, the great Tang dynasty which had restored the +unity and the fame of China. It forms a separate chapter in the long +period of disunion from the fall of the Hans to the rise of the Sungs. + +After the Tangs came five ephemeral and insignificant dynasties, with the +fate of which we need not long detain the reader. In less than sixty years +they all vanished from the page of history. The struggle for power between +Chuwen, the founder of the so-called Later Leang dynasty, and Likeyong was +successfully continued by the latter's son, Litsunhiu, who proved himself +a good soldier. He won a decisive victory at Houlieoupi, and extinguished +the Leang dynasty by the capture of its capital and of Chuwen's son, who +committed suicide. Litsunhiu ruled for a short time as emperor of the +Later Leangs, but he was killed during a mutiny of his turbulent soldiers. +This dynasty had a very brief existence; the last ruler of the line, +finding the game was up, retired with his family to a tower in his palace, +which he set on fire, and perished, with his wives and children, in the +flames. Then came the Later Tsins, who only held their authority on the +sufferance of the powerful Khitan king, who reigned over Leaoutung and +Manchuria. The fourth and fifth of these dynasties, named the Later Hans +and Chows, ran their course in less than ten years; and when the last of +these petty rulers was deposed by his prime minister a termination was at +last reached to the long period of internal division and weakness which +prevailed for more than seven hundred and fifty years. The student reaches +at this point firmer ground in the history of China as an empire, and his +interest in the subject must assume a more definite form on coming to the +beginning of that period of united government and settled authority which +has been established for nearly one thousand years, during which no more +than four separate families have held possession of the throne. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +THE SUNGS AND THE KINS + + +One fact will have been noticed during the latter portion of the period +that has now closed, and that is the increasing interest and participation +in Chinese affairs of the races neighboring to, but still outside, the +empire. A large number of the successful generals, and several of the +princely families which attained independence, were of Tartar or Turk +origin; but the founder of the new dynasty, which restored the unity of +the empire, was of pure Chinese race, although a native of the most +northern province of the country. Chow Kwang Yu was born in Pechihli, at +the small town of Yeoutou, on the site of which now stands the modern +capital of Pekin. His family had provided the governor of this place for +several generations, and Chow himself had seen a good deal of military +service during the wars of the period. He is described as a man of +powerful physique and majestic appearance, to whose courage and presence +of mind the result of more than one great battle was due, and who had +become in consequence the idol of the soldiery. The ingenuity of later +historians, rather than the credulity of his contemporaries, may have +discovered the signs and portents which indicated that he was the chosen +of Heaven; but his army had a simple and convincing method of deciding the +destiny of the empire. Like the legionaries of Rome, they exclaimed, "The +empire is without a master, and we wish to give it one. Who is more worthy +of it than our general?" Thus did Chow Kwang Yu become the Emperor Taitsou +and the founder of the Sung dynasty. + +Taitsou began his reign by proclaiming a general amnesty, and he sent the +proclamation of his pardon into provinces where he had not a shred of +authority. The step was a politic one, for it informed the Chinese people +that they again had an emperor. At the same time he ordered that the gates +and doors of his palace should always be left open, so that the humblest +of his subjects might have access to him at any time. His own words were +that "his house should resemble his heart, which was open to all his +subjects." He also devoted his attention to the improvement of his army, +and particularly to the training of his officers, who were called upon to +pass an examination in professional subjects as well as physical +exercises. A French writer said, forty years ago, that "The laws of +military promotion in the states of Europe are far from being as rational +and equitable as those introduced by this Chinese ruler." His solicitude +for the welfare of his soldiers was evinced during a campaign when the +winter was exceedingly severe. He took off his own fur coat, and sent it +to the general in command, with a letter stating that he was sorry that he +had not one to send to every soldier in the camp. A soldier himself, he +knew how to win a soldier's heart, and the affection and devotion of his +army never wavered nor declined. He had many opportunities of testing it. +His first war was with the Prince of Han, aided by the King of Leaoutung, +whom he speedily vanquished, and whose capacity for aggression was much +curtailed by the loss of the frontier fortress of Loochow. His next +contest was with an old comrade-in-arms named Li Chougsin, whom he had +treated very well, but who was seized with a foolish desire to be greater +than his ability or power warranted. The struggle was brief, and Li +Chougsin felt he had no alternative save to commit suicide. + +The tranquillity gained by these successes enabled Taitsou to institute a +great reform in the civil administration of the empire, and one which +struck at the root of the evil arising from the excessive power and +irresponsibility of the provincial governors. Up to this date the +governors had possessed the power of life and death without reference to +the capital. It had enabled them to become tyrants, and had simplified +their path to complete independence. Taitsou resolved to deprive them of +this prerogative and to retain it in his own hands, for, he said, "As life +is the dearest thing men possess, should it be placed at the disposal of +an official who is often unjust or wicked?" This radical reform greatly +strengthened the emperor's position, and weakened that of the provincial +viceroys; and Taitsou thus inaugurated a rule which has prevailed in China +down to the present day, where the life of no citizen can be taken without +the express authority and order of the emperor. Taitsou then devoted his +attention to the subjugation of those governors who had either disregarded +his administration or given it a grudging obedience. The first to feel the +weight of his hand was the viceroy of Honan; but his measures were so well +taken, and the military force he employed so overwhelming, that he +succeeded in dispossessing him and in appointing his own lieutenant +without the loss of a single man. The governor of Szchuen, believing his +power to be greater than it was, or trusting to the remoteness of his +province, publicly defied Taitsou, and prepared to invade his dominions. +The emperor was too quick for him, and before his army was in the field +sixty thousand imperial troops had crossed the frontier and had occupied +the province. By these triumphs Taitsou acquired possession of some of the +richest provinces and forty millions of Chinese subjects. + +Having composed these internal troubles with enemies of Chinese race, +Taitsou resumed his military operations against his old opponents in +Leaoutung. Both sides had been making preparations for a renewal of the +struggle, and the fortress of Taiyuen, which had been specially equipped +to withstand a long siege, was the object of the emperor's first attack. +The place was valiantly defended by a brave governor and a large garrison, +and although Taitsou defeated two armies sent to relieve it, he was +compelled to give up the hope of capturing Taiyuen on this occasion. Some +consolation for this repulse was afforded by the capture of Canton and the +districts dependent on that city. He next proceeded against the governor +of Kiangnan, the dual province of Anhui and Kiangsu, who had taken the +title of Prince of Tang, and striven to propitiate the emperor at the same +time that he retained his own independence. The two things were, however, +incompatible. Taitsou refused to receive the envoys of the Prince of Tang, +and he ordered him to attend in person at the capital. With this the Tang +prince would not comply, and an army was at once sent to invade and +conquer Kiangnan. The campaign lasted one year, by which time the Tang +power was shattered, and his territory resumed its old form as a province +of China. With this considerable success Taitsou's career may be said to +have terminated, for although he succeeded in detaching the Leaoutung +ruler from the side of the Prince of Han, and was hastening at the head of +his forces to crush his old enemy at Taiyuen, death cut short his career +in a manner closely resembling that of Edward the First of England. +Taitsou died in his camp, in the midst of his soldiers; and, acting on the +advice of his mother, given on her death-bed a few years before, "that he +should leave the throne to a relation of mature age," he appointed his +brother his successor, and as his last exhortation to him said, "Bear +yourself as becomes a brave prince, and govern well." Many pages might be +filled with the recitation of Taitsou's great deeds and wise sayings; but +his work in uniting China and in giving the larger part of his country +tranquillity speaks for itself. His character as a ruler may be gathered +from the following selection, taken from among his many speeches: "Do you +think," he said, "that it is so easy for a sovereign to perform his +duties? He does nothing that is without consequence. This morning the +thought occurs to me that yesterday I decided a case in a wrong manner, +and this memory robs me of all my joy." + +The new emperor took the style of Taitsong, and during his reign of +twenty-three years the Sung dynasty may be fairly considered to have grown +consolidated. One of his first measures was to restore the privileges of +the descendant of Confucius, which included a hereditary title and +exemption from taxation, and which are enjoyed to the present day. After +three years' deliberation Taitsong determined to renew his brother's +enterprise against Taiyuen, and as he had not assured the neutrality of +the King of Leaoutung, his task was the more difficult. On the advance of +the Chinese army, that ruler sent to demand the reason of the attack on +his friend the Prince of Han, to which the only reply Taitsong gave was as +follows: "The country of the Hans was one of the provinces of the empire, +and the prince having refused to obey my orders I am determined to punish +him. If your prince stands aside, and does not meddle in this quarrel, I +am willing to continue to live at peace with him; if he does not care to +do this we will fight him." On this the Leaou king declared war, but his +troops were repulsed by the covering army sent forward by Taitsong, while +he prosecuted the siege of Taiyuen in person. The fortress was well +defended, but its doom was never in doubt. Taitsong, moved by a feeling of +humanity, offered the Prince of Han generous terms before delivering an +assault which was, practically speaking, certain to succeed, and he had +the good sense to accept them. The subjugation of Han completed the +pacification of the empire and the triumph of Taitsong; but when that +ruler thought to add to this success the speedy overthrow of the Khitan +power in Leaoutung he was destined to a rude awakening. His action was +certainly precipitate, and marked by overconfidence, for the army of +Leaoutung was composed of soldiers of a warlike race accustomed to +victory. He advanced against it as if it were an army which would fly at +the sight of his standard, but instead of this he discovered that it was +superior to his own forces on the banks of the Kaoleang River, where he +suffered a serious defeat. Taitsong was fortunate enough to retain his +conquests over the southern Han states and to find in his new subjects in +that quarter faithful and valiant soldiers. The success of the Leaou army +was also largely due to the tactical skill of its general, Yeliu Hiuco, +who took a prominent part in the history of this period. When Taitsong +endeavored, some years later, to recover what he had lost by the aid of +the Coreans, who, however, neglected to fulfill their part of the +contract, he only invited fresh misfortunes. Yeliu Hiuco defeated his army +in several pitched battles with immense loss; on one occasion it was said +that the corpses of the slain checked the course of a river. The capture +of Yangyeh, the old Han defender of Taiyuen, who died of his wounds, +completed the triumph of the Leaou general, for it was said, "If Yangyeh +cannot resist the Tartars they must be invincible." Taitsong's reign +closed under the cloud of these reverses; but, on the whole, it was +successful and creditable, marking an improvement in the condition of the +country and the people, and the triumph of the Sungs over at least one of +their natural enemies. + +His son and successor, Chintsong, must be pronounced fortunate in that the +first year of his reign witnessed the death of Yeliu Hiuco. The direct +consequence of his death was that the Chinese were, for the first time, +successful in their campaign against the Leaous. But this satisfactory +state of things did not long continue, and the Leaous became so aggressive +and successful that there was almost a panic among the Chinese, and the +removal of the capital to a place of greater security was suggested. The +firm counsel and the courageous demeanor of the minister Kaochun prevented +this course being adopted. He figuratively described the evil consequences +of retreat by saying, "Your majesty can, without serious consequences, +advance a foot further than is absolutely necessary, but you cannot +retire, even to the extent of an inch, without doing yourself much harm." +Chintsong, fortunately for himself and his state, adopted this course; and +the Tartars thought it best to come to terms, especially as the Chinese +emperor was willing to pay annually an allowance in silk and money as the +reward of their respecting his frontier. The arrangement could not have +been a bad one, as it gave the empire eighteen years of peace, The +country, no doubt, increased greatly in prosperity during this period; but +the reputation of Chintsong steadily declined. He seems to have been +naturally superstitious, and he gave himself up to fortune tellers and +soothsayers during the last years of his reign; and when he died, in A.D. +1022, he had impaired the position and power of the imperial office. Yet, +so far as can be judged, the people were contented, and the population +rose to over one hundred million. + +Chintsong was succeeded by his sixth son, Jintsong, a boy of thirteen, for +whom the government was carried on by his mother, a woman of capacity and +good sense. She took off objectionable taxes on tea and salt--prime +necessaries of life in China--and she instituted surer measures against +the spiritualists and magicians who had flourished under her husband and +acquired many administrative offices under his patronage. After ruling for +ten peaceful years she died and Jintsong assumed the personal direction of +affairs. During the tranquillity that had now prevailed for more than a +generation a new power had arisen on the Chinese frontier in the +principality of Tangut or Hia. This state occupied the modern province of +Kansuh, with some of the adjacent districts of Koko Nor and the Gobi +Desert. Chao Yuen, the prince of this territory, was an ambitious warrior, +who had drawn round his standard a force of one hundred and fifty thousand +fighting men. With this he waged successful war upon the Tibetans, and +began a course of encroachments on Chinese territory which was not to be +distinguished from open hostility. Chao Yuen was not content with the +appellation of prince, and "because he came of a family several of whose +members had in times past borne the imperial dignity," he adopted the +title of emperor. Having taken this step, Chao Yuen wrote to Jintsong +expressing "the hope that there would be a constant and solid peace +between the two empires." The reply of the Chinese ruler to this insult, +as he termed it, was to declare war and to offer a reward for the head of +Chao Yuen. + +It was soon made evident that Chao Yuen possessed the military power to +support an imperial dignity. He defeated the emperor's army in two pitched +battles at Sanchuen and Yang Moulong, and many years elapsed before the +Sung rulers can be held to have recovered from the loss of their best +armies. The Khitans of Leaoutung took advantage of these misfortunes to +encroach, and as Jintsong had no army with which to oppose them, they +captured ten cities with little or no resistance. The Chinese government +was compelled to purchase them back by increasing the annual allowance it +paid of gold and silk. A similar policy was resorted to in the case of +Chao Yuen, who consented to a peace on receiving every year one hundred +thousand pieces of silk and thirty thousand pounds of tea. Not content +with this payment, Chao Yuen subsequently exacted the right to build +fortresses along the Chinese frontier. Soon after this Chao Yuen was +murdered by one of his sons, whose betrothed he had taken from him. If +Jintsong was not fortunate in his wars he did much to promote education +and to encourage literature. He restored the colleges founded by the +Tangs, he built a school or academy in every town, he directed the public +examinations to be held impartially and frequently, and he gave special +prizes as a reward for elocution. Some of the greatest historians China +has produced lived in his reign, and wrote their works under his +patronage; of these Szemakwang was the most famous. His history of the +Tangs is a masterpiece, and his "Garden of Szemakwang" an idyll. He was +remarkable for his sound judgment as well as the elegance of his style, +and during the short time he held the post of prime minister his +administration was marked by ability and good sense. The character of +Jintsong was, it will be seen, not without its good points, which gained +for him the affection of his subjects despite his bad fortune against the +national enemies, and his reign of thirty years was, generally speaking, +prosperous and satisfactory. After the brief reign of his nephew, +Yngtsong, that prince's son, Chintsong the Second, became emperor. + +The career of Wanganchi, an eccentric and socialistic statesman, who +wished to pose as a great national reformer, and who long possessed the +ear and favor of his sovereign, lends an interest to the reign of the +second Chintsong. Wanganchi did not possess the confidence or the +admiration of his brother officials, and subsequent writers have generally +termed him an impostor and a charlatan. But he may only have been a +misguided enthusiast when he declared that "the State should take the +entire management of commerce, industry, and agriculture into its own +hands, with the view of succoring the working classes, and preventing +their being ground to the dust by the rich." The advocacy of such a scheme +is calculated to earn popularity, as few of those who are to benefit by it +stop to examine its feasibility, and Wanganchi might have been remembered +as an enlightened thinker and enthusiastic advocate of the rights of the +masses if he had not been called upon to carry out his theories. But the +proof of experience, like the touch of Ithuriel's spear, revealed the +practical value of his suggestions, and dissolved the attractive vision +raised by his perfervid eloquence and elevated enthusiasm. His honesty of +purpose cannot, however, be disputed. On being appointed to the post of +chief minister he took in hand the application of his own project. He +exempted the poor from all taxation. He allotted lands, and he supplied +the cultivators with seeds and implements. He also appointed local boards +to superintend the efforts of the agricultural classes, and to give them +assistance and advice. But this paternal government, this system of making +the state do what the individual ought to do for himself, did not work as +it was expected. Those who counted on the agricultural laborer working +with as much intelligence and energy for himself as he had done under the +direction of a master were doomed to disappointment. Want of skill, the +fitfulness of the small holder, aggravated perhaps by national calamities, +drought, flood, and pestilence, being felt more severely by laborers than +by capitalists, led to a gradual shrinkage in the area of cultivated land, +and at last to the suffering of the classes who were to specially benefit +from the scheme of Wanganchi. The failure of his scheme, which, to use his +own words, aimed at preventing there being any poor or over-rich persons +in the state, entailed his disgrace and fall from power. But his work and +his name have continued to excite interest and speculation among his +countrymen down to the present day. His memory has been aspersed by the +writers of China, who have generally denounced him as a free-thinker and a +nihilist, and although, twenty years after his death, a tablet bearing his +name was placed in the Hall of Confucius as the greatest Chinese thinker +since Mencius, it was removed after a brief period, and since then both +the name and the works of Wanganchi have been consigned to an oblivion +from which only the curiosity of European writers has rescued them. + +Chintsong's reign was peaceful, but he seems to have only avoided war by +yielding to all the demands of the Tartars, who encroached on the frontier +and seized several Chinese cities. His son Chetsong was only ten when he +became emperor, and the administration was carried on by his mother, the +Empress Tefei, another of the capable women of Chinese history. Her early +death left Chetsong to rule as he listed, and his first acts of +independent authority were not of happy augury for the future. He had not +been on the throne many months before he divorced his principal wife +without any apparent justification, and when remonstrated with he merely +replied that he was imitating several of his predecessors. The censor's +retort was, "You would do better to imitate their virtues, and not their +faults." Chetsong did not have any long opportunity of doing either, for +he died of grief at the loss of his favorite son, and it is recorded that, +as "he did not expect to die so soon," he omitted the precaution of +selecting an heir. Fortunately the mischief of a disputed successor was +avoided by the unanimous selection of his brother Hoeitsong as the new +emperor. He proved himself a vain and superstitious ruler, placing his +main faith in fortune tellers, and expecting his subjects to yield +implicit obedience to his opinions as "the master of the law and the +prince of doctrine." Among other fallacies, Hoeitsong cherished the belief +that he was a great soldier, and he aspired to rank as the conqueror of +the old successful enemy of China, the Khitans of Leaoutung. He had no +army worthy of the name, and the southern Chinese who formed the mass of +his subjects were averse to war, yet his personal vanity impelled him to +rush into hostilities which promised to be the more serious because a new +and formidable power had arisen on the northern frontier. + +The Niuche or Chorcha Tartars, who had assumed a distinct name and place +in the vicinity of the modern Kalgan, about the year 1000 A.D., had become +subservient to the great Khitan chief Apaoki, and their seven hordes had +remained faithful allies of his family and kingdom for many years after +his death. But some of the clan had preferred independence to the +maintenance of friendly relations with their greatest neighbor, and they +had withdrawn northward into Manchuria. For some unknown reason the Niuche +became dissatisfied with their Khitan allies, and about the year 1100 A.D. +they had all drawn their forces together as an independent confederacy +under the leadership of a great chief named Akouta. The Niuche could only +hope to establish their independence by offering a successful resistance +to the King of Leaoutung, who naturally resented the defection of a tribe +which had been his humble dependents. They succeeded in this task beyond +all expectation, as Akouta inflicted a succession of defeats on the +hitherto invincible army of Leaoutung. Then the Niuche conqueror resolved +to pose as one of the arbiters of the empire's destiny, and to found a +dynasty of his own. He collected his troops, and he addressed them in a +speech reciting their deeds and his pretensions. "The Khitans," he said, +"had in the earlier days of their success taken the name of Pintiei, +meaning the iron of Pinchow, but although that iron may be excellent, it +is liable to rust and can be eaten away. There is nothing save gold which +is unchangeable and which does not destroy itself. Moreover, the family of +Wangyen, with which I am connected through the chief Hanpou, had always a +great fancy for glittering colors such as that of gold, and I am now +resolved to take this name as that of my imperial family. I therefore give +it the name of Kin, which signifies gold." This speech was made in the +year 1115, and it was the historical introduction of the Kin dynasty, +which so long rivaled the Sung, and which, although it attained only a +brief lease of power on the occasion referred to, was remarkable as being +the first appearance of the ancestors of the present reigning Manchus. + +Like other conquerors who had appeared in the same quarter, the Kins, as +we must now call them, owed their rise to their military qualifications +and to their high spirit. Their tactics, although of a simpler kind, were +as superior to those of the Leaous as the latter's were to the Chinese. +Their army consisted exclusively of cavalry, and victory was generally +obtained by its furious attacks delivered from several sides +simultaneously. The following description, taken from Mailla's translation +of the Chinese official history, gives the best account of their army and +mode of fighting: + +"At first the Niuche had only cavalry. For their sole distinction they +made use of a small piece of braid on which they marked certain signs, and +they attached this to both man and horse. Their companies were usually +composed of only fifty men each, twenty of whom, clothed in strong +cuirasses, and armed with swords and short pikes, were placed in the +front, and behind those came the remaining thirty in less weighty armor, +and with bows and arrows or javelins for weapons. When they encountered an +enemy, two men from each company advanced as scouts, and then arranging +their troops so as to attack from four sides, they approached the foe at a +gentle trot until within a hundred yards of his line. Thereupon charging +at full speed, they discharged their arrows and javelins, again retiring +with the same celerity. This maneuver they repeated several times until +they threw the ranks into confusion, when they fell upon them with sword +and pike so impetuously that they generally gained the victory." + +The novelty, as well as the impetuosity, of their attack supplied the want +of numbers and of weapons, and when the Khitans raised what seemed an +overwhelming force to crush the new power that ventured to play the rival +to theirs in Northern China, Akouta, confident in himself and in his +people, was not dismayed, and accepted the offer of battle. In two +sanguinary battles he vanquished the Khitan armies, and threatened with +early extinction the once famous dynasty of Leaoutung. When the Sung +emperor heard of the defeats of his old opponents, he at once rushed to +the conclusion that the appearance of this new power on the flank of +Leaoutung must redound to his advantage, and, although warned by the King +of Corea that "the Kins were worse than wolves and tigers," he sent an +embassy to Akouta proposing a joint alliance against the Khitans. The +negotiations were not at first successful. Akouta concluded a truce with +Leaoutung, but took offense at the style of the emperor's letter. The +peace was soon broken by either the Kins or the Khitans, and Hoeitsong +consented to address Akouta as the Great Emperor of the Kins. Then Akouta +engaged to attack Leaoutung from the north, while the Chinese assailed it +on the south, and a war began which promised a speedy termination. But the +tardiness and inefficiency of the Chinese army prolonged the struggle, and +covered the reputation of Hoeitsong and his troops with ignominy. It was +compelled to beat a hasty and disastrous retreat, and the peasants of +Leaoutung sang ballads about its cowardice and insufficiency. + +But if it fared badly with the Chinese, the armies of Akouta continued to +be victorious, and the Khitans fled not less precipitately before him than +the Chinese did before them. Their best generals were unable to make the +least stand against the Kin forces. Their capital was occupied by the +conqueror, and the last descendant of the great Apaoki fled westward to +seek an asylum with the Prince of Hia or Tangut. He does not appear to +have received the protection he claimed, for after a brief stay at the +court of Hia, he made his way to the desert, where, after undergoing +incredible hardships, he fell into the hands of his Kin pursuers. With his +death soon afterward the Khitan dynasty came to an end, after enjoying its +power for two hundred years, but some members of this race escaped across +the Gobi Desert, and founded the brief-lived dynasty of the Kara Khitay in +Turkestan. Akouta died shortly before the final overthrow of the Leaoutung +power, and his brother Oukimai ruled in his place. + +The ill-success of Hoeitsong's army in its joint campaign against +Leaoutung cost the emperor his share in the spoil. The Kins retained the +whole of the conquered territory, and the Sung prince was the worse off, +because he had a more powerful and aggressive neighbor. The ease of their +conquest, and the evident weakness of the Chinese, raised the confidence +of the Kins to such a high point that they declared that the Sungs must +surrender to them the whole of the territory north of the Hoangho, and +they prepared to secure what they demanded by force of arms. The Chinese +would neither acquiesce in the transfer of this region to the Kins nor +take steps to defend it. They were driven out of that portion of the +empire like sheep, and they even failed to make any stand at the passage +of the Hoangho, where the Kin general declared that "there could not be a +man left in China, for if two thousand men had defended the passage of +this river we should never have succeeded in crossing it." Hoeitsong +quitted his capital Kaifong to seek shelter at Nankin, where he hoped to +enjoy greater safety, and shortly afterward he abdicated in favor of his +son Kintsong. The siege of Kaifong which followed ended in a convention +binding the Chinese to pay the Kins an enormous sum--ten millions of small +gold nuggets, twenty millions of small silver nuggets, and ten million +pieces of silk; but the Tartar soldiers soon realized that there was no +likelihood of their ever receiving this fabulous spoil, and in their +indignation they seized both Hoeitsong and Kintsong, as well as any other +members of the royal family on whom they could lay their hands, and +carried them off to Tartary, where both the unfortunate Sung princes died +as prisoners of the Kins. + +Although the Kins wished to sweep the Sungs from the throne, and their +general Walipou went so far as to proclaim the emperor of a new dynasty, +whose name is forgotten, another of the sons of Hoeitsong, Prince Kang +Wang, had no difficulty in establishing his own power and in preserving +the Sung dynasty. He even succeeded in imparting a new vigor to it, for on +the advice of his mother, who pointed out to him that "for nearly two +hundred years the nation appears to have forgotten the art of war," he +devoted all his attention to the improvement of his army and the +organization of his military resources. Prince Kang Wang, on becoming +emperor, took the name of Kaotsong, and finally removed the southern +capital to Nankin. He was also driven by his financial necessities to +largely increase the issue of paper money, which had been introduced under +the Tangs. As both the Kins and the Mongols had recourse to the same +expedient, it is not surprising that the Sungs should also have adopted +the simplest mode of compensating for a depleted treasury. Considering the +unexpected difficulties with which he had to cope, and the low ebb to +which the fortunes of China had fallen, much might be forgiven to +Kaotsong, who found a courageous counselor in the Empress Mongchi, who is +reported to have addressed him as follows: "Although the whole of your +august family has been led captive into the countries of the north, none +the less does China, which knows your wisdom and fine qualities, preserve +toward the Sungs the same affection, fidelity, and zeal as in the past. +She hopes and expects that you will prove for her what Kwang Vouti was for +the Hans." If Kaotsong did not attain the height of this success, he at +least showed himself a far more capable prince than any of his immediate +predecessors. + +The successful employment of cavalry by the Kins naturally led the Chinese +to think of employing the same arm against them, although the inhabitants +of the eighteen provinces have never been good horsemen. Kaotsong also +devoted his attention especially to the formation of a corps of +charioteers. The chariots, four-wheeled, carried twenty-four combatants, +and these vehicles drawn up in battle array not only presented a very +formidable appearance, but afforded a very material shelter for the rest +of the army. Kaotsong seems to have been better in imagining reforms than +in the task of carrying them out. After he had originated much good work +he allowed it to languish for want of definite support, and he quarreled +with and disgraced the minister chiefly responsible for these reforms. A +short time after this the Kins again advanced southward, but thanks to the +improvement effected in the Chinese army, and to the skill and valor of +Tsongtse, one of Kaotsong's lieutenants, they did not succeed in gaining +any material advantage. Their efforts to capture Kaifong failed, and their +general Niyamoho, recognizing the improvement in the Chinese army, was +content to withdraw his army with such spoil as it had been able to +collect. Tsongtse followed up this good service against the enemy by +bringing to their senses several rebellious officials who thought they saw +a good opportunity of shaking off the Sung authority. At this stage of the +war Tsongtse exhorted Kaotsong, who had quitted Nankin for Yangchow, to +return to Kaifong to encourage his troops with his presence, especially as +there never was such a favorable opportunity of delivering his august +family out of the hands of the Kins. Tsongtse is reported to have sent as +many as twenty formal petitions to his sovereign to do this, but Kaotsong +was deaf to them all, and it is said that his obtuseness and want of nerve +caused Tsongtse so much pain that he died of chagrin. + +The death of Tsongtse induced the Kins to make a more strenuous effort to +humiliate the Sungs, and a large army under the joint command of Akouta's +son, Olito, and the general Niyamoho, advanced on the capital and captured +Yangchow. Kaotsong, who saved his life by precipitate flight, then agreed +to sign any treaty drawn up by his conqueror. In his letter to Niyamoho he +said, "Why fatigue your troops with long and arduous marches when I will +grant you of my own will whatever you demand?" But the Kins were +inexorable, and refused to grant any terms short of the unconditional +surrender of Kaotsong, who fled to Canton, pursued both on land and sea. +The Kin conquerors soon found that they had advanced too far, and the +Chinese rallying their forces gained some advantage during their retreat. +Some return of confidence followed this turn in the fortune of the war, +and two Chinese generals, serving in the hard school of adversity, +acquired a military knowledge and skill which made them formidable to even +the best of the Kin commanders. The campaigns carried on between 1131 and +1134 differed from any that had preceded them in that the Kin forces +steadily retired before Oukiai and Changtsiun, and victory, which had so +long remained constant in their favor, finally deserted their arms. The +death of the Kin emperor, Oukimai, who had upheld with no decline of +luster the dignity of his father Akouta, completed the discomfiture of the +Kins, and contributed to the revival of Chinese power under the last +emperor of the Sung dynasty. The reign of Oukimai marks the pinnacle of +Kin power, which under his cousin and successor Hola began steadily to +decline. + +The possession of Honan formed the principal bone of contention between +the Kins and Sungs, but after considerable negotiation and some fighting, +Kaotsong agreed to leave it in the hands of the Kins, and also to pay them +a large annual subsidy in silk and money. He also agreed to hold the +remainder of his states as a gift at the hands of his northern neighbor. +Thus, notwithstanding the very considerable successes gained by several of +the Sung generals, Kaotsong had to undergo the mortification of signing a +humiliating peace and retaining his authority only on sufferance. +Fortunately for the independence of the Sungs, Hola was murdered by +Ticounai, a grandson of Akouta, whose ferocious character and ill-formed +projects for the subjugation of the whole of China furnished the Emperor +Kaotsong with the opportunity of shaking off the control asserted over his +actions and recovering his dignity. The extensive preparations of the Kin +government for war warned the Sungs to lose no time in placing every man +they could in the field, and when Ticounai rushed into the war, which was +all of his own making, he found that the Sungs were quite ready to receive +him and offer a strenuous resistance to his attack. A peace of twenty +years' duration had allowed of their organizing their forces and +recovering from an unreasoning terror of the Kins. Moreover, there was a +very general feeling among the inhabitants of both the north and the south +that the war was an unjust one, and that Ticounai had embarked upon a +course of lawless aggression which his tyrannical and cruel proceedings +toward his own subjects served to inflame. + +The war began in 1161 A. D., with an ominous defeat of the Kin navy, and +when Kaotsong nerved himself for the crisis in his life and placed himself +at the head of his troops, Ticounai must have felt less sanguine of the +result than his confident declaration that he would end the war in a +single campaign indicated. Before the two armies came into collision +Ticounai learned that a rebellion had broken out in his rear, and that his +cousin Oulo challenged both his legitimacy and his authority. He believed, +and perhaps wisely, that the only way to deal with this new danger was to +press on, and by gaining a signal victory over the Sungs annihilate all +his enemies at a blow. But the victory had to be gained, and he seems to +have underestimated his opponent. He reached the Yangtsekiang, and the +Sungs retired behind it. Ticounai had no means of crossing it, as his +fleet had been destroyed and the Sung navy stood in his path. Such river +junks as he possessed were annihilated in another encounter on the river. +He offered sacrifices to heaven in order to obtain a safe passage, but the +powers above were deaf to his prayers. Discontent and disorder broke out +in his camp. The army that was to have carried all before it was stopped +by a mere river, and Ticounai's reputation as a general was ruined before +he had crossed swords with the enemy. In this dilemma his cruelty +increased, and after he had sentenced many of his officers and soldiers to +death he was murdered by those who found that they would have to share the +same fate. After this tragic ending of a bad career, the Kin army +retreated. They concluded a friendly convention with the Sungs, and +Kaotsong, deeming his work done by the repulse of this grave peril, +abdicated the throne, which had proved to him no bed of roses, in favor of +his adopted heir Hiaotsong. Kaotsong ruled during the long period of +thirty-six years, and when we consider the troubled time through which he +passed, and the many vicissitudes of fortune he underwent, he probably +rejoiced at being able to spend the last twenty-five years of his life +without the responsibility of governing the empire and free from the cares +of sovereignty. + +The new Kin ruler Oulo wished for peace, but a section of his turbulent +subjects clamored for a renewal of the expeditions into China, and he was +compelled to bend to the storm. The Kin army, however, had no cause to +rejoice in its bellicoseness, for the Chinese general, Changtsiun, +defeated it in a battle the like of which had not been seen for ten years. +After this a peace was concluded which proved fairly durable, and the +remainder of the reigns of both Oulo and Hiaotsong were peaceful and +prosperous for northern and southern China. Both of these princes showed +an aversion to war and an appreciation of peace which was rare in their +day. The Kin ruler is stated to have made this noble retort when he was +solicited by a traitor from a neighboring state to seize it: "You deceive +yourself if you believe me to be capable of approving an act of treason +whatever the presumed advantage it might procure me. I love all peoples of +whatever nation they may be, and I wish to see them at peace with one +another." It is not surprising to learn that a prince who was so +thoroughly imbued with the spirit of civilization should have caused the +Chinese classics to be translated into the Kin language. Of all the Kin +rulers he was the most intellectual and the most anxious to elevate the +standard of his people, who were far ruder than the inhabitants of +southern China. + +Hiaotsong was succeeded by his son Kwangtsong, and Oulo by his grandson +Madacou, both of whom continued the policy of their predecessors. +Kwangtsong was saved the trouble of ruling by his wife, the Empress Lichi, +and after a very short space he resigned the empty title of emperor, which +brought him neither satisfaction nor pleasure. Ningtsong, the son and +successor of Kwangtsong, ventured on one war with the Kins in which he was +worsted. This the last of the Kin successes, for Madacou died soon +afterward, just on the eve of the advent of the Mongol peril, which +threatened to sweep all before it, and which eventually buried both Kin +and Sung in a common ruin. The long competition and the bitter contest +between the Kins and Sungs had not resulted in the decisive success of +either side. The Kins had been strong enough to found an administration in +the north but not to conquer China. The Sungs very naturally represent in +Chinese history the national dynasty, and their misfortunes rather than +their successes appeal to the sentiment of the reader. They showed +themselves greater in adversity than in prosperity, and when the Mongol +tempest broke over China they proved the more doughty opponent, and the +possessor of greater powers of resistance than their uniformly successful +adversary the Kin or Golden Dynasty. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA + + +While the Kins were absorbed in their contest with the Southern Chinese, +they were oblivious of the growth of a new and formidable power on their +own borders. The strength of the Mongols had acquired serious dimensions +before the Kins realized that they would have to fight, not only for +supremacy, but for their very existence. Before describing the long wars +that resulted in the subjection of China by this northern race, we must +consider the origin and the growth of the power of the Mongols, who were +certainly the most remarkable race of conquerors Asia, or perhaps the +whole world, ever produced. + +The home of the Mongols, whose name signifies "brave men," was in the +strip of territory between the Onon and Kerulon rivers, which are both +tributaries or upper courses of the Amour. They first appeared as a +separate clan or tribe in the ninth century, when they attracted special +attention for their physical strength and courage during one of China's +many wars with the children of the desert, and it was on that occasion +they gained the appellation under which they became famous. The earlier +history of the Mongol tribe is obscure, and baffles investigation, but +there seems no reason to doubt their affinity to the Hiongnou, with whose +royal house Genghis himself claimed blood relationship. If this claim be +admitted, Genghis and Attila, who were the two specially typical Scourges +of God, must be considered members of the same race, and the probability +is certainly strengthened by the close resemblance in their methods of +carrying on war. Budantsar is the first chief of the House of Genghis +whose person and achievements are more than mythical. He selected as the +abode of his race the territory between the Onon and the Kerulon, a region +fertile in itself, and well protected by those rivers against attack. It +was also so well placed as to be beyond the extreme limit of any +triumphant progress of the armies of the Chinese emperor. If Budantsar had +accomplished nothing more than this, he would still have done much to +justify his memory being preserved among a free and independent people. +But he seems to have incited his followers to pursue an active and +temperate life, to remain warriors rather than to become rich and lazy +citizens. He wrapped up this counsel in the exhortation, "What is the use +of embarrassing ourselves with wealth? Is not the fate of man decreed by +heaven?" He sowed the seed of future Mongol greatness, and the headship of +his clan remained vested in his family. + +In due order of succession the chief ship passed to Kabul Khan, who in the +year 1135 began to encroach on the dominion of Hola, the Kin emperor. He +seems to have been induced to commit this act of hostility by a prophecy, +to the effect that his children should be emperors, and also by +discourteous treatment received on the occasion of his visit to the court +of Oukimai. Whatever the cause of umbrage, Kabul Khan made the Kins pay +dearly for their arrogance or short-sighted policy. Hola sent an army +under one of his best generals, Hushahu, to bring the Mongol chief to +reason, but the inaccessibility of his home stood him in good stead. The +Kin army suffered greatly in its futile attempt to cross the desert, and +during its retreat it was harassed by the pursuing Mongols. When the Kin +army endeavored to make a stand against its pursuers, it suffered a +crushing overthrow in a battle at Hailing, and on the Kins sending a +larger force against the Mongols in 1139, it had no better fortune. Kabul +Khan, after this second success, caused himself to be proclaimed Great +Emperor of the Mongols. His success in war, and his ambition, which rested +satisfied with no secondary position, indicated the path on which the +Mongols proceeded to the acquisition of supreme power and a paramount +military influence whithersoever they carried their name and standards. +The work begun by Kabul was well continued by his son Kutula, or Kublai. +He, too, was a great warrior, whose deeds of prowess aroused as much +enthusiasm among the Mongols as those of Coeur de Lion evoked in the days +of the Plantagenets. The struggle with the Kins was rendered more bitter +by the execution of several Mongols of importance, who happened to fall +into the hands of the Kins. When Kutula died the chiefship passed to his +nephew, Yissugei, who greatly extended the influence and power of his +family among the tribes neighboring to the Mongol home. Many of these, and +even some Chinese, joined the military organization of the dominant tribe, +so that what was originally a small force of strictly limited numbers +became a vast and ever-increasing confederacy of the most warlike and +aggressive races of the Chinese northern frontier. Important as Yissugei's +work in the development of Mongol power undoubtedly was, his chief +historical interest is derived from the fact that he was the father of +Genghis Khan. + +There are several interesting fables in connection with the birth of +Genghis, which event may be safely assigned to the year 1162. One of these +reads as follows: "One day Yissugei was hunting in company with his +brothers, and was following the tracks of a white hare in the snow. They +struck upon the track of a wagon, and following it up came to a spot where +a woman's yart was pitched. Then said Yissugei, 'This woman will bear a +valiant son.' He discovered that she was the damsel Ogelen Eke (i.e., the +mother of nations), and that she was the wife of Yeke Yilatu, chief of a +Tartar tribe. Yissugei carried her off and made her his wife." Immediately +after his overthrow of Temujin, chief of one of the principal Tartar +tribes, Yissugei learned that the promised "valiant son" was about to be +born, and in honor of his victory he gave him the name of Temujin, which +was the proper name of the great Genghis. The village or encampment in +which the future conqueror first saw the light of day still bears the old +Mongol name, Dilun Boldak, on the banks of the Onon. When Yissugei died, +Temujin, or Genghis, was only thirteen, and his clan of forty thousand +families refused to recognize him as their leader. At a meeting of the +tribe Genghis entreated them with tears in his eyes to stand by the son of +their former chief, but the majority of them mocked at him, exclaiming, +"The deepest wells are sometimes dry, and the hardest stone is sometimes +broken, why should we cling to thee?" Genghis owed to the heroic attitude +of his mother, who flung abroad the cow-tailed banner of his race, the +acceptance of his authority by about half the warriors who had obeyed his +father. The great advantage of this step was that it gave Genghis time to +grow up to be a warrior as famous as any of his predecessors, and it +certainly averted what might have easily become the irretrievable +disintegration of the Mongol alliance. + +The youth of Genghis was passed in one ceaseless struggle to regain the +whole of his birthright. His most formidable enemy was Chamuka, chief of +the Juriats, and for a long time he had all the worst of the struggle, +being taken prisoner on one occasion, and undergoing the indignity of the +cangue. On making his escape he rallied his remaining followers round him +for a final effort, and on the advice of his mother, Ogelen Eke, who was +his principal adviser and stanchest supporter, he divided his forces into +thirteen regiments of one thousand men each, and confined his attention to +the defense of his own territory. Chamuka, led away by what he deemed the +weakness of his adversary, attacked him on the Onon with as he considered +the overwhelming force of thirty thousand men; but the result dispelled +his hopes of conquest, for Genghis gained a decisive victory. Then was +furnished a striking instance of the truth of the saying that "nothing +succeeds like success." The despised Temujin, who was thought to be +unworthy of the post of ruling the Mongols, was lauded to the skies, and +the tribes declared with one voice, "Temujin alone is generous and worthy +of ruling a great people." At this time also he began to show the +qualities of a statesman and diplomatist. He formed in 1194 a temporary +alliance with the Kin emperor, Madacou, and the richness of his reward +seems to have excited his cupidity, while his experience of the Kin army +went to prove that they were not so formidable as had been imagined. The +discomfiture of Chamuka has been referred to, but he had not abandoned the +hope of success, and when he succeeded in detaching the Kerait chief, Wang +Khan, from the Mongols, to whom he was bound by ties of gratitude, he +fancied that he again held victory in his grasp. But the intrigue did not +realize his expectations. Wang Khan deserted Genghis while engaged in a +joint campaign against the Naimans, but he was the principal sufferer by +his treachery, for the enemy pursued his force, and inflicted a heavy +defeat upon it. In fact, he was only rescued from destruction by the +timely aid of the man he had betrayed. + +But far from inspiring gratitude, this incident inflamed the resentment of +Wang Khan, who, throwing off the cloak of simulated friendship, declared +publicly that either the Kerait or the Mongol must be supreme on the great +steppe, as there was not room for both. Such was the superiority in +numbers of the Kerait, that in the first battle of this long and keenly- +contested struggle, Wang Khan defeated Temujin near Ourga, where the +mounds that cover the slain are still shown to the curious or skeptical +visitor. After this serious, and in some degree unexpected reverse, the +fortunes of Genghis sank to the lowest ebb. He was reduced to terrible +straits, and had to move his camp rapidly from one spot to another. A +small section of his followers, mindful of his past success and prowess, +still clung to him, and by a sudden and daring coup he changed the whole +aspect of the contest. He surprised Wang Khan in his camp at night, and +overwhelmed him and his forces. Wang Khan escaped to his old foes, the +Naimans, who, disregarding the laws of hospitality, put him to death. The +death of Wang Khan signified nothing less than the wholesale defection of +the Kerait tribe, which joined Genghis to the last man. Then Genghis +turned westward to settle the question of supremacy with the Naimans, who +were both hostile and defiant. The Naiman chief shared the opinion of Wang +Khan, that there could not be two masters on the Tian Shan, and with that +vigorous illustration which has never been wanting to these illiterate +tribes, he wrote, "There cannot be two suns in the sky, two swords in one +sheath, two eyes in one eyepit, or two kings in one empire." Both sides +made strenuous efforts for the fray, and brought every fighting man they +could into the field. The decisive battle of the war was fought in the +heart of Jungaria, and the star of Genghis rose in the ascendant. The +Naimans fought long and well, but they were borne down by the heavier +armed Mongols, and their desperate resistance only added to their loss. +Their chief died of his wounds, and the triumph of Genghis was rendered +complete by the capture of his old enemy, Chamuka. As Genghis had sworn +the oath of friendship with Chamuka, he would not slay him, but he handed +him over to a relative, who promptly exacted the rough revenge his past +hostility and treachery seemed to call for. On his way back from this +campaign the Mongol chief attacked the Prince of Hia, who reigned over +Kansuh and Tangut, and thus began the third war he waged for the extension +of his power. Before this assumed serious proportions he summoned a Grand +Council or Kuriltai, at his camp on the Onon, and then erected outside his +tent the royal Mongol banner of the nine white yak-tails. It was on this +occasion that Temujin took, and was proclaimed among the Mongol chiefs by, +the highly exalted name of Genghis Khan, which means Very Mighty Khan. The +Chinese character for the name signifies "Perfect Warrior," and the +earlier European writers affirm that it is supposed to represent the sound +of "the bird of heaven." At this assemblage, which was the first of a long +succession of Mongol councils summoned at the same place on critical +occasions, it was proposed and agreed that the war should be carried on +with the richer and less warlike races of the south. Among soldiers it is +necessary to preserve the spirit of pre-eminence and warlike zeal by +granting rewards and decorations. Genghis realized the importance of this +matter, and instituted the order of Baturu or Bahadur, meaning warrior. He +also made his two leading generals Muhula and Porshu princes, one to sit +on his right hand and the other on his left. He addressed them before the +council in the following words: "It is to you that I owe my empire. You +are and have been to me as the shafts of a carriage or the arms to a man's +body." Seals of office were also granted to all the officials, so that +their authority might be the more evident and the more honored. + +In 1207 Genghis began his war with the state of Hia, which he had +determined to crush as the preliminary to an invasion of China. In that +year he contented himself with the capture of Wuhlahai, one of the border +fortresses of that principality, and in the following year he established +his control over the tribes of the desert more fully, thus gaining many +Kirghiz and Naiman auxiliaries. In 1209 he resumed the war with Hia in a +determined spirit, and placed himself in person at the head of all his +forces. Although the Hia ruler prepared as well as he could for the +struggle, he was really unnerved by the magnitude of the danger he had to +face. His army was overthrown, his best generals were taken prisoners, and +he himself had no resource left but to throw himself on the consideration +of Genghis. For good reasons the Mongol conqueror was lenient. He married +one of the daughters of the king, and he took him into subsidiary alliance +with himself. Thus did Genghis absorb the Hia power, which was very +considerable, and prepared to enroll it with all his own resources against +the Kin empire. If the causes of Mongol success on this occasion and +afterward are inquired for, I cannot do better than repeat what I +previously wrote on this subject: "The Mongols owed their military success +to their admirable discipline and to their close study of the art of war. +Their military supremacy arose from their superiority in all essentials as +a fighting power to their neighbors. Much of their knowledge was borrowed +from China, where the art of disciplining a large army and maneuvering it +in the field had been brought to a high state of perfection many centuries +before the time of Genghis. But the Mongols carried the teaching of the +past to a further point than any of the former or contemporary Chinese +commanders, indeed, than any in the whole world, had done; and the +revolution which they effected in tactics was not less remarkable in +itself, and did not leave a smaller impression upon the age, than the +improvements made in military science by Frederick the Great and Napoleon +in their day. The Mongol played in a large way in Asia the part which the +Normans on a smaller scale played in Europe. Although the landmarks of +their triumph have now almost wholly vanished, they were for two centuries +the dominant caste in most of the states of Asia." + +Having thus prepared the way for the larger enterprise, it only remained +to find a plausible pretext for attacking the Kins. With or without a +pretext Genghis would no doubt have made war, but even the ruthless Mongol +sometimes showed a regard for appearances. Many years before the Kins had +sent as envoy to the Mongul encampment Chonghei, a member of their ruling +house, and his mission had been not only unsuccessful, but had led to a +personal antipathy between the two men. In the course of time Chonghei +succeeded Madacou as emperor of the Kins, and when a Kin messenger brought +intelligence of this event to Genghis, the Mongol ruler turned toward the +south, spat upon the ground, and said, "I thought that your sovereigns +were of the race of the gods, but do you suppose that I am going to do +homage to such an imbecile as that?" The affront rankled in the mind of +Chonghei, and while Genghis was engaged with Hia, he sent troops to attack +the Mongol outposts. Chonghei thus placed himself in the wrong, and gave +Genghis justification for declaring that the Kins and not he began the +war. The reputation of the Golden dynasty, although not as great as it +once was, still stood sufficiently high to make the most adventurous of +desert chiefs wary in attacking it. Genghis had already secured the co- +operation of the ruler of Hia in his enterprise, and he next concluded an +alliance with Yeliu Liuko, chief of the Khitans, who were again +manifesting discontent with the Kins. Genghis finally circulated a +proclamation among all the desert tribes, calling upon them to join him in +his attack on the common enemy. This appeal was heartily and generally +responded to, and it was at the head of an enormous force that Genghis set +out in March, 1211, to effect the conquest of China. The Mongol army was +led by Genghis in person, and under him his four sons and his most famous +general, Chepe Noyan, held commands. + +The plan of campaign of the Mongol ruler was as simple as it was bold. +From his camp at Karakoram, on the Kerulon, he marched in a straight line +through Kuku Khoten and the Ongut country to Taitong, securing an +unopposed passage through the Great Wall by the defection of the Ongut +tribe. The Kins were unprepared for this sudden and vigorous assault +directed on their weakest spot, and successfully executed before their +army could reach the scene. During the two years that the forces of +Genghis kept the field on this occasion, they devastated the greater +portion of the three northern provinces of Shensi, Shansi, and Pechihli. +But the border fortress of Taitong and the Kin capital, Tungking, +successfully resisted all the assaults of the Mongols, and when Genghis +received a serious wound at the former place, he reluctantly ordered the +retreat of his army, laden with an immense quantity of spoil, but still +little advanced in its main task of conquering China. The success of the +Khitan Yeliu Liuko had not been less considerable, and he was proclaimed +King of Leaou as a vassal of the Mongols. The planting of this ally on the +very threshold of Chinese power facilitated the subsequent enterprises of +the Mongols against the Kins, and represented the most important result of +this war. + +In 1213 Genghis again invaded the Kin dominions, but his success was not +very striking, and in several engagements of no very great importance the +Kin arms met with some success. The most important events of the year +were, however, the deposition and murder of Chonghei, the murder of a Kin +general, Hushahu, who had won a battle against the Mongols, and the +proclamation of Utubu as emperor. The change of sovereign brought no +change of fortune to the unlucky Kins. Utubu was only able to find safety +behind the walls of his capital, and he was delighted when Genghis wrote +him the following letter: "Seeing your wretched condition and my exalted +fortune, what may your opinion be now of the will of heaven with regard to +myself? At this moment I am desirous to return to Tartary, but could you +allow my soldiers to take their departure without appeasing their anger +with presents?" In reply Utubu sent Genghis a princess of his family as a +wife, and also "five hundred youths, the same number of girls, three +thousand horses, and a vast quantity of precious articles." Then Genghis +retired once more to Karakoram, but on his march he stained his reputation +by massacring all his prisoners--the first gross act of inhumanity he +committed during his Chinese wars. + +When Utubu saw the Mongols retreating, he thought to provide against the +most serious consequences of their return by removing his capital to a +greater distance from the frontier, and with this object he transferred +his residence to Kaifong. The majority of his advisers were against this +change, as a retirement could not but shake public confidence. It had +another consequence, which they may not have contemplated, and that was +its providing Genghis with an excuse for renewing his attack on China. The +Mongol at once complained that the action of the Kin emperor implied an +unwarrantable suspicion of his intentions, and he sent his army across the +frontier to recommence his humiliation. On this occasion a Kin general +deserted to them, and thenceforward large bodies of the Chinese of the +north attached themselves to the Mongols, who were steadily acquiring a +unique reputation for power as well as military prowess. The great event +of this war was the siege of Yenking--on the site of which now stands the +capital Pekin--the defense of which had been intrusted to the Prince +Imperial; but Utubu, more anxious for his son's safety than the interests +of the state, ordered him to return to Kaifong. The governor of Yenking +offered a stout resistance to the Mongols, and when he found that he could +not hold out, he retired to the temple of the city and poisoned himself. +His last act was to write a letter to Utubu begging him to listen no more +to the pernicious advice of the man who had induced him to murder Hushahu. + +The capture of Yenking, where Genghis obtained a large supply of war +materials, as well as vast booty, opened the road to Central China. The +Mongols advanced as far as the celebrated Tunkwan Pass, which connects +Shensi and Honan, but when their general, Samuka, saw how formidable it +was, and how strong were the Kin defenses and garrison, he declined to +attack it, and, making a detour through very difficult country, he marched +on Kaifong, where Utubu little expected him. The Mongols had to make their +own road, and they crossed several ravines by improvised "bridges made of +spears and the branches of trees bound together by strong chains." But the +Mongol force was too small to accomplish any great result, and the +impetuosity of Samuka nearly led to his destruction. A prompt retreat, and +the fact that the Hoangho was frozen over, enabled him to extricate his +army, after much fatigue and reduced in numbers, from its awkward +position. The retreat of the Mongols inspired Utubu with sufficient +confidence to induce him to attack Yeliu Liuko in Leaoutung, and the +success of this enterprise imparted a gleam of sunshine and credit to the +expiring cause of the Kins. Yeliu Liuko was driven from his newly-created +kingdom, but Genghis hastened to the assistance of his ally by sending +Muhula, the greatest of all his generals, at the head of a large army to +recover Leaoutung. His success was rapid and remarkable. The Kins were +speedily overthrown, Yeliu Liuko was restored to his authority, and the +neighboring King of Corea, impressed by the magnitude of the Mongol +success, hastened to acknowledge himself the vassal of Genghis. The most +important result of this campaign was that Genghis intrusted to Muhula the +control of all military arrangements for the conquest of China. He is +reported to have said to his lieutenant: "North of the Taihing Mountains I +am supreme, but all the regions to the south I commend to the care of +Muhula," and he "also presented him with a chariot and a banner with nine +scalops. As he handed him this last emblem of authority, he spoke to his +generals, saying, 'Let this banner be an emblem of sovereignty, and let +the orders issued from under it be obeyed as my own.'" The principal +reason for intrusting the conquest of China to a special force and +commander was that Genghis wished to devote the whole of his personal +attention to the prosecution of his new war with the King of Khwaresm and +the other great rulers of Western Asia. + +Muhula more than justified the selection and confidence of his sovereign. +In the year 1218-19 he invaded Honan, defeated the best of the Kin +commanders, and not merely overran, but retained possession of the places +he occupied in the Kin dominions. The difficulties of Utubu were +aggravated by an attack from Ningtsong, the Sung emperor, who refused any +longer to pay tribute to the Kins, as they were evidently unable to +enforce the claim, and the Kin armies were as equally unfortunate against +their southern opponents as their northern. Then Utubu endeavored to +negotiate terms with Muhula for the retreat of his army, but the only +conditions the Mongol general would accept were the surrender of the Kin +ruler and his resignation of the imperial title in exchange for the +principality of Honan. Utubu, low as he had sunk, declined to abase +himself further and to purchase life at the loss of his dignity. The +sudden death of Muhula gained a brief respite for the distressed Chinese +potentate, but the advantage was not of any permanent significance; first +of all because the Kins were too exhausted by their long struggle, and, +secondly, because Genghis hastened to place himself at the head of his +army. The news of the death of Muhula reached him when he was encamped on +the frontier of India and preparing to add the conquest of that country to +his many other triumphs in Central and Western Asia. He at once came to +the conclusion that he must return to set his house in order at home, and +to prevent all the results of Muhula's remarkable triumphs being lost. +What was a disadvantage for China proved a benefit for India, and possibly +for Europe, as there is no saying how much further the Mongol encroachment +might have extended westward, if the direction of Genghis had not been +withdrawn. While Genghis was hastening from the Cabul River to the +Kerulon, across the Hindoo Koosh and Tian Shan ranges, Utubu died and +Ninkiassu reigned in his stead. + +One of the first consequences of the death of Muhula was that the young +king of Hia, believing that the fortunes of the Mongols would then wane, +and that he might obtain a position of greater power and independence, +threw off his allegiance, and adopted hostile measures against them. The +prompt return of Genghis nipped this plan in the bud, but it was made +quite evident that the conquest of Hia was essential to the success of any +permanent annexation of Chinese territory, and as its prince could dispose +of an army which he boasted numbered half a million of men, it is not +surprising to find that he took a whole year in perfecting his +arrangements for so grave a contest. The war began in 1225 and continued +for two years. The success of the Mongol army was decisive and +unqualified. The Hias were defeated in several battles, and in one of them +fought upon the frozen waters of the Hoangho. Genghis broke the ice by +means of his engines, and the Hia army was almost annihilated. The king +Leseen was deposed, and Hia became a Mongol province. + +[Illustration: HONG KONG +_China_] + +It was immediately after this successful war that Genghis was seized with +his fatal illness. Signs had been seen in the heavens which the Mongol +astrologers said indicated the near approach of his death. The five +planets had appeared together in the southwest, and so much impressed was +Genghis by this phenomenon that on his death-bed he expressed "the earnest +desire that henceforth the lives of our enemies shall not be unnecessarily +sacrificed." The expression of this wish undoubtedly tended to mitigate +the terrors of war as carried on by the Mongols. The immediate successors +of Genghis conducted their campaigns after a more humane fashion, and it +was not until Timour revived the early Mongol massacres that their +opponents felt there was no chance in appealing to the humanity of the +Mongols. Various accounts have been published of the cause of his death; +some authorities ascribing it to violence, either by an arrow, lightning, +or drowning, and others to natural causes. The event seems to have +unquestionably happened in his camp on the borders of Shansi, August 27, +1227, when he was about sixty-five years of age, during more than fifty of +which he had enjoyed supreme command of his own tribe. + +The area of the undertakings conducted under his eye was more vast and +included a greater number of countries than was the case with any other +conqueror. Not a country from the Euxine to the China Sea escaped the +tramp of the Mongol horsemen, and if we include the achievements of his +immediate successors, the conquest of Russia, Poland, and Hungary, the +plundering of Bulgaria, Roumania, and Bosnia, the final subjection of +China and its southern tributaries must be added to complete the tale of +Mongol triumph. The sphere of Mongol influence extended beyond this large +portion of the earth's surface, just as the consequence of an explosion +cannot be restricted to the immediate scene of the disaster. If we may +include the remarkable achievements of his descendant Baber, and of that +prince's grandson Akbar, in India three centuries later, not a country in +Asia enjoyed immunity from the effect of their successes. Perhaps the most +important result of their great outpouring into Western Asia--which +certainly was the arrest of the Mohammedan career in Central Asia, and the +diversion of the current of the fanatical propagators of the Prophet's +creed against Europe--is not yet as fully recognized as it should be. The +doubt has been already expressed whether the Mongols would ever have risen +to higher rank than that of a nomad tribe but for the appearance of +Genghis. Leaving that supposition in the category of other interesting but +problematical conjectures, it may be asserted that Genghis represented in +their highest forms all the qualities which entitled his race to exercise +governing authority. He was, moreover, a military genius of the very first +order, and it may be questioned whether either Caesar or Napoleon can as +commanders be placed on a par with him. Even the Chinese said that he led +his armies like a god. The manner in which he moved large bodies of men +over vast distances without an apparent effort, the judgment he showed in +the conduct of several wars in countries far apart from each other, his +strategy in unknown regions, always on the alert, yet never allowing +hesitation or overcaution to interfere with his enterprise, the sieges +which he brought to a successful termination, his brilliant victories, a +succession of "suns of Austerlitz," all combined make up the picture of a +career to which Europe can offer nothing that will surpass, if indeed she +has anything to bear comparison with it. After the lapse of centuries, and +in spite of the indifference with which the great figures of Asiatic +history have been treated, the name of Genghis preserves its magic spell. +It is still a name to conjure with when recording the great revolutions of +a period which beheld the death of the old system in China, and the advent +in that country of a newer and more vigorous government which, slowly +acquiring shape in the hands of Kublai and a more national form under the +Mings, has attained the pinnacle of its utility and strength under the +influence of the great emperors of the Manchu dynasty. But great as is the +reputation Genghis has acquired it is probably short of his merits. He is +remembered as a relentless and irresistible conqueror, a human scourge; +but he was much more. He was one of the greatest instruments of destiny, +one of the most remarkable molders of the fate of nations to be met with +in the history of the world. His name still overshadows Asia with its +fame, and the tribute of our admiration cannot be denied. + +The death of Genghis did not seriously retard the progress of the war +against the Kins. He expressed the wish that war should be carried on in a +more humane and less vindictive manner, but he did not advocate there +being no war or the abandonment of any of his enterprises. His son and +successor Ogotai was indeed specially charged to bring the conquest of +China to a speedy and victorious conclusion. The weakness of the Mongol +confederacy was the delay connected with the proclamation of a new Khan +and the necessity of summoning to a Grand Council all the princes and +generals of the race, although it entailed the suspension and often the +abandonment of great enterprises. The death of Genghis saved India but not +China. Almost his last instructions were to draw up the plan for attacking +and turning the great fortress of Tunkwan, which had provided such an +efficient defense for Honan on the north, and in 1230, Ogotai, who had +already partitioned the territory taken from the Kins into ten +departments, took the field in person, giving a joint command to his +brother Tuli, under whom served the experienced generals Yeliu Chutsia, +Antchar, and Subutai. At first the Mongols met with no great success, and +the Kins, encouraged by a momentary gleam of victory, ventured to reject +the terms offered by Ogotai and to insult his envoy. The only important +fighting during the years 1230-31 occurred round Fongsian, which after a +long siege surrendered to Antchar, and when the campaign closed the Kins +presented a bold front to the Mongols and still hoped to retain their +power and dominions. + +In 1232 the Mongols increased their armies in the field, and attacked the +Kins from two sides. Ogotai led the main force against Honan, while Tuli, +marching through Shensi into Szchuen, assailed them on their western +flank. The difficulties encountered by Tuli on this march, when he had to +make his own roads, were such that he entered the Kin territories with a +much reduced and exhausted army. The Kin forces gained some advantage over +it, but by either a feigned or a forced retreat, Tuli succeeded in +baffling their pursuit, and in effecting a junction with his brother +Ogotai, who had met with better fortune. Tuli destroyed everything along +his line of march, and his massacres and sacks revived the worst +traditions of Mongol ferocity. In these straits the Kins endeavored to +flood the country round their capital, to which the Mongols had now +advanced, but the Mongols fell upon the workmen while engaged in the task, +and slew ten thousand of them. When the main Kin army accepted battle +before the town of Yuchow, it was signally defeated, with the loss of +three of its principal generals, and Ninkiassu fled from Kaifong to a +place more removed from the scene of war. The garrison and townspeople of +Kaifong--an immense city with walls thirty-six miles in circumference, and +a population during the siege, it is said, of one million four hundred +thousand families, or nearly seven million people--offered a stubborn +resistance to the Mongols, who intrusted the conduct of the attack to +Subutai, the most daring of all their commanders. The Mongols employed +their most formidable engines, catapults hurling immense stones, and +mortars ejecting explosives and combustibles, but twelve months elapsed +before the walls were shattered and the courage and provisions of the +defenders exhausted. Then Kaifong surrendered at discretion, and Subutai +wished to massacre the whole of the population. But fortunately for the +Chinese, Yeliu Chutsai was a more humane and a more influential general, +and under his advice Ogotai rejected the cruel proposal. + +At this moment, when it seemed impossible for fate to have any worse +experience in store for the unfortunate Kins, their old enemies, the +Sungs, wishing to give them the _coup de grace_, declared war upon +them, and placed a large army in the field under their best general, +Mongkong, of whom more will be heard. The relics of the Kin army, under +their sovereign Ninkiassu, took shelter in Tsaichau, where they were +closely besieged by the Mongols on one side and the Sungs on the other. +Driven thus into a corner, the Kins fought with the courage of despair and +long held out against the combined efforts of their enemies. At last +Ninkiassu saw that the struggle could not be prolonged, and he prepared +himself to end his life and career in a manner worthy of the race from +which he sprang. When the enemy broke into the city, and he heard the +stormers at the gate of his palace, he retired to an upper chamber and set +fire to the building. Many of his generals, and even of his soldiers, +followed his example, preferring to end their existence rather than to add +to the triumph of their Mongol and Sung opponents. Thus came to an end in +1234 the famous dynasty of the Kins, who under nine emperors had ruled +Northern China for one hundred and eighteen years, and whose power and +military capacity may best be gauged by the fact that without a single +ally they held out against the all-powerful Mongols for more than a +quarter of a century. Ninkiassu, the last of their rulers, was not able to +sustain the burden of their authority, but he at least showed himself +equal to ending it in a worthy and appropriately dramatic manner. + +The folly of the Sungs had completed the discomfiture of the Kins, and had +brought to their own borders the terrible peril which had beset every +other state in Asia, and which had in almost every case entailed +destruction. How could the Sungs expect to avoid the same fate, or to +propitiate the most implacable and insatiable of conquering races? They +had done this to a large extent with their eyes open. More than once in +the early stages of the struggle the Kin rulers had sent envoys to beg +their alliance, and to warn them that if they did not help in keeping out +the Mongols, their time would come to be assailed and to share in the +common ruin. But Ningtsong did not pay heed to the warning, and scarcely +concealed his gratification at the misfortunes of his old opponents. The +nearer the Mongols came, and the worse the plight to which the Kins were +reduced, the more did he rejoice. He forgave Tuli the violation of Sung +territory, necessary for his flank attack on Honan, and when the knell of +the Kins sounded at the fall of Kaifong, he hastened to help in striking +the final blow at them, and to participate, as he hoped, in the +distribution of the plunder. By this time Litsong had succeeded his cousin +Ningtsong as ruler of the Sungs, and it is said that he received from +Tsaichau the armor and personal spoils of Ninkiassu, which he had the +satisfaction of offering up in the temple of his ancestors. But when he +requested the Mongols to comply with the more important part of the +convention, by which the Sung forces had joined the Mongols before +Tsaichau, and to evacuate the province of Honan, he experienced a rude +awakening from his dream that the overthrow of the Kins would redound to +his advantage, and he soon realized what value the Mongols attached to his +alliance. The military capacity of Mongkong inspired the Sung ruler with +confidence, and he called upon the Mongols to execute their promises, or +to prepare for war. The Mongol garrisons made no movement of retreat, and +the utmost that Litsong was offered was a portion of Honan, if it could be +practically divided. The proposition was probably meant ironically, but at +all events Litsong rejected it, and sent Mongkong to take by force +possession of the disputed province. The Mongol forces on the spot were +fewer than the Chinese, and they met with some reverses. But the hope of +the Sungs that the fortune of war would declare in their favor was soon +destroyed by the vast preparations of the Mongols, who, at a special +kuriltai, held at Karakoram, declared that the conquest of China was to be +completed. Then Litsong's confidence left him, and he sent an appeal for +peace to the Mongols, giving up all claim to Honan, and only asking to be +left in undisturbed possession of his original dominions. It was too late. +The Mongols had passed their decree that the Sungs were to be treated like +the Kins, and that the last Chinese government was to be destroyed. + +In 1235, the year following the immolation of Ninkiassu, the Mongols +placed half a million men in the field for the purpose of destroying the +Sung power, and Ogotai divided them into three armies, which were to +attack Litsong's kingdom from as many sides. The Mongol ruler intrusted +the most difficult task to his son Kutan, who invaded the inaccessible and +vast province of Szchuen, at the head of one of these armies. +Notwithstanding its natural capacity for offering an advantageous defense, +the Chinese turned their opportunities to poor account, and the Mongols +succeeded in capturing all its frontier fortresses, with little or no +resistance. The shortcomings of the defense can be inferred from the +circumstances of the Chinese annalists making special mention of one +governor having had the courage to die at his post. For some reason not +clearly stated the Mongols did not attempt to retain possession of Szchuen +on this occasion. They withdrew when they were in successful occupation of +the northern half of the province, and when it seemed as if the other lay +at their mercy. In the two dual provinces of Kiangnan and Houkwang, the +other Mongol armies met with considerable success, which was dimmed, +however, by the death of Kuchu, the son and proclaimed heir of Ogotai. +This event, entailing no inconsiderable doubt and long-continued disputes +as to the succession, was followed by the withdrawal of the Mongol forces +from Sung territory, and during the last six years of his life Ogotai +abstained from war, and gave himself up to the indulgence of his gluttony. +He built a great palace at Karakoram, where his ancestors had been content +to live in a tent, and he intrusted the government of the old Kin +dominions to Yeliu Chutsai, who acquired great popularity among the +Chinese for his clemency and regard for their customs. Yeliu Chutsai +adopted the Chinese mode of taxation, and when Ogotai's widow, Turakina, +who acted as regent after her husband's death, ordered him to alter his +system and to farm out the revenues, he sent in his resignation, and, it +is said, died of grief shortly afterward. Ogotai was one of the most +humane and amiable of all the Mongol rulers, and Yeliu Chutsai imitated +his master. Of the latter the Chinese contemporary writers said "he was +distinguished by a rare disinterestedness. Of a very broad intellect, he +was able, without injustice and without wronging a single person, to amass +vast treasures (D'Ohsson says only of books, maps, and pictures), and to +enrich his family, but all his care and labors had for their sole object +the advantage and glory of his masters. Wise and calculating in his plans, +he did little of which he had any reason to repent." + +During the five years following the death of Ogotai, the Mongols were +absorbed in the question who should be their next Great Khan, and it was +only after a warm and protracted discussion, which threatened to entail +the disruption of Mongol power, and the revelation of many rivalries among +the descendants of Genghis, that Kuyuk, the eldest son of Ogotai, was +proclaimed emperor. At the kuriltai held for this purpose, all the great +Mongol leaders were present, including Batu, the conqueror of Hungary, and +after the Mongol chiefs had agreed as to their chief, the captive kings, +Yaroslaf of Russia and David of Georgia, paid homage to their conqueror. +We owe to the monk Carpino, who was sent by the Pope to convert the +Mongol, a graphic account of one of the most brilliant ceremonies to be +met with in the whole course of Mongol history. The delay in selecting +Kuyuk, whose principal act of sovereignty was to issue a seal having this +inscription: "God in Heaven and Kuyuk on earth; by the power of God the +ruler of all men," had given the Sungs one respite, and his early death +procured them another. Kuyuk died in 1248, and his cousin, Mangu, the son +of Tuli, was appointed his successor. By this time the Mongol chiefs of +the family of Genghis in Western Asia were practically independent of the +nominal Great Khan, and governed their states in complete sovereignty, and +waged war without reference to Karakoram. This change left the Mongols in +their original home of the Amour absolutely free to devote all their +attention to the final overthrow of the Sungs, and Mangu declared that he +would know no rest until he had finally subjected the last of the Chinese +ruling families. In this resolution Mangu received the hearty support of +his younger but more able brother, Kublai, to whom was intrusted the +direction in the field of the armies sent to complete the conquest of +China. + +Kublai received this charge in 1251, so that the Sungs had enjoyed, first +through the pacific disposition of Ogotai, and, secondly, from the family +disputes following his death, peace for more than fifteen years. The +advantage of this tranquillity was almost nullified by the death of +Mongkong, a general whose reputation may have been easily gained, but who +certainly enjoyed the confidence of his soldiers, and who was thought by +his countrymen to be the best commander of his day. When the Chinese +emperor, Litsong, saw the storm again approaching his northern frontier, +he found that he had lost the main support of his power, and that his +military resources were inferior to those of his enemy. He had allowed +himself to be lulled into a false sense of security by the long inaction +of the Mongols, and although he seems to have been an amiable prince, and +a typical Chinese ruler, honoring the descendants of Confucius with the +hereditary title of duke, which still remains in that family, and is the +only title of its kind in China, and encouraging the literary classes of +his country, he was a bad sovereign to be intrusted with the task of +defending his realm and people against a bold and determined enemy. + +Kublai prepared the way for his campaigns in Southern China by following a +very wise and moderate policy in Northern China similar to that begun by +Muhula, and carried out with greater effect by Yeliu Chutsai. He had +enjoyed the advantage of a Chinese education, imparted by an able tutor +named Yaochu, who became the prince's private secretary and mentor in all +Chinese matters. At his instigation, or, at least, with his co-operation, +Kublai took in hand the restoration of the southern portion of Honan, +which had been devastated during the wars, and he succeeded in bringing +back its population and prosperity to that great province of Central +China. He thus secured a base for his operations close to the Sung +frontier, while he attached to his person a large section of the Chinese +nation. There never was any concealment that this patronage of Chinese +officials, and these measures for the amelioration of many millions of +Chinese subjects, were the well calculated preliminaries to the invasion +of Southern China and the extinction of the Sung dynasty. + +If Kublai had succeeded in obtaining a wise adviser in Yaochu, he was not +less fortunate in procuring a great general in the person of Uriangkadai, +the son of Subutai, and his remarkable and unvarying successes were +largely due to the efforts of those two men in the cabinet and the field. +The plan of campaign, drawn up with great care and forethought by the +prince and his lieutenant, had the double merit of being both bold and +original. Its main purpose was not one that the Sung generals would be +likely to divine. It was determined to make a flank march round the Sung +dominions, and to occupy what is now the province of Yunnan; and, by +placing an army in the rear of their kingdom, to attack them eventually +from two sides. At this time Yunnan formed an independent state, and its +ruler, from his position behind the Sung territory, must have fancied +himself secure against any attack by the Mongols. He was destined to a +rude awakening. Kublai and Uriangkadai, marching across Szchuen and +crossing the Kinchakiang, or "river of golden sand," which forms the upper +course of the Great River, on rafts, burst into Yunnan, speedily +vanquished the frontier garrisons, and laid siege to the capital, Talifoo. +That town did not hold out long, and soon Kublai was in a position to +return to his own state, leaving Uriangkadai with a considerable garrison +in charge of Yunnan. That general, believing that his position would be +improved by his resorting to an active offensive, carried the standard of +his race against the many turbulent tribes in his neighborhood, and +invaded Burma whose king, after one campaign, was glad to recognize the +supremacy of the Mongols. The success and the boldness, which may have +been considered temerity, of this campaign, raised up enemies to Kublai at +the court of Karakoram, and the mind of his brother Mangu was poisoned +against him by many who declared that Kublai aspired to complete +independence. These designs so far succeeded, that in 1257 Mangu finally +deprived Kublai of all his commands, and ordered him to proceed to +Karakoram. At this harsh and unmerited treatment Kublai showed himself +inclined to rebel and dispute his brother's authority. If he had done +this, although the provocation was great, he would have confirmed the +charges of his accusers, and a war would have broken out among the Mongols +which would probably have rent their power in twain in Eastern Asia. But +fortunately Yaochu was at hand to give prudent advice, and after much +hesitation Kublai yielded to the impressive exhortations of his +experienced and sagacious minister. He is reported to have addressed +Kublai in the following terms: "Prince! You are the brother of the +emperor, but you are not the less his subject. You cannot, without +committing a crime, question his decisions, and, moreover, if you were to +do so, it would only result in placing you in a more dangerous +predicament, out of which you could hardly succeed in extricating +yourself, as you are so far distant from the capital where your enemies +seek to injure you. My advice is that you should send your family to +Mangu, and by this step you will justify yourself and remove any +suspicions there may be." + +Kublai adopted this wise course, and proceeded in person to Karakoram, +where he succeeded in proving his innocence and in discomfiting his +enemies. It is said that Mangu was so affected at the mere sight of his +brother that he at once forgave him without waiting for an explanation and +reinstated him in all his offices. To ratify this reconciliation Mangu +proclaimed that he would take the field in person, and that Kublai should +hold joint command with himself. When he formed this resolution to proceed +to China in person, he appointed his next brother, Arikbuka, to act as his +lieutenant in Mongolia. It is necessary to recollect this arrangement, as +Mangu died during the campaign, and it led to the separation of the +Chinese empire and the Mongolian, which were divided after that event +between Kublai and Arikbuka. + +Mangu did not come to his resolution to prosecute the war with the Sungs +any too soon, for Uriangkadai was beginning to find his isolated position +not free from danger. Large as the army of that general was, and +skillfully as he had endeavored to improve his position by strengthening +the fortresses and recruiting from the warlike tribes of Yunnan, +Uriangkadai found himself threatened by the collected armies of the Sungs, +who occupied Szchuen with a large garrison and menaced the daring Mongol +general with the whole of their power. There seems every reason to believe +that if the Sungs had acted with only ordinary promptitude they might have +destroyed this Mongol army long before any aid could have reached it from +the north. Once Mangu had formed his resolution the rapidity of his +movements left the Sungs little or no chance of attacking Uriangkadai. +This campaign began in the winter of 1257, when the troops were able to +cross the frozen waters of the Hoangho, and the immense Mongol army was +divided into three bodies, while Uriangkadai was ordered to march north +and effect a junction with his old chief Kublai in Szchuen. The principal +fighting of the first year occurred in this part of China, and Mangu +hastened there with another of his armies. The Sung garrison was large, +and showed great courage and fortitude. The difficulty of the country and +the strength of several of their fortresses seconded their efforts, and +after two years' fighting the Mongols felt so doubtful of success that +they held a council of war to decide whether they should retreat or +continue to prosecute the struggle. It has been said that councils of war +do not come to bold resolutions, but this must have been an exception, as +it decided not to retreat, and to make one more determined effort to +overcome the Chinese. The campaign of 1259 began with the siege of Hochau, +a strong fortress, held by a valiant garrison and commander, and to whose +aid a Chinese army under Luwenti was hastening. The governor, Wangkien, +offered a stout resistance, and Luwenti succeeded in harassing the +besiegers; but the fall of the fortress appeared assured, when a new and +more formidable defender arrived in the form of dysentery. The Mongol camp +was ravaged by this foe, Mangu himself died of the disease, and those of +the Mongols who escaped beat a hasty and disorderly retreat back to the +north. Once more the Sungs obtained a brief respite. + +The death of Mangu threatened fresh disputes and strife among the Mongol +royal family. Kublai was his brother's lawful heir, but Arikbuka, the +youngest of the brothers was in possession of Karakoram, and supreme +throughout Mongolia. He was hostile to Kublai, and disposed to assert all +his rights and to make the most of his opportunities. No Great Khan could +be proclaimed anywhere save at Karakoram, and Arikbuka would not allow his +brother to gain that place, the cradle of their race and dynasty, unless +he could do so by force of arms. Kublai attempted to solve the difficulty +by holding a grand council near his favorite city of Cambaluc, the modern +Pekin, and he sent forth his proclamation to the Mongols as their Khan. +But they refused to recognize one who was not elected in the orthodox +fashion at Karakoram; and Arikbuka not merely defied Kublai, but summoned +his own kuriltai at Karakoram, where he was proclaimed Khakhan in the most +formal manner and with all the accustomed ceremonies. Arikbuka was +undoubtedly popular among the Mongols, while Kublai, who was regarded as +half a Chinese on account of his education, had a far greater reputation +south of the wall than north of it. Kublai could not tolerate the open +defiance of his authority, and the contempt shown for what was his +birthright, by Arikbuka; and in 1261 he advanced upon Karakoram at the +head of a large army. A single battle sufficed to dispose of Arikbuka's +pretensions, and that prince was glad to find a place of refuge among the +Kirghiz. Kublai proved himself a generous enemy. He sent Arikbuka his full +pardon, he reinstated him in his rank of prince, and he left him virtually +supreme among the Mongol tribes. He retraced his steps to Pekin, fully +resolved to become Chinese emperor in reality, but prepared to waive his +rights as Mongol Khan. Mangu Khan was the last of the Mongol rulers whose +authority was recognized in both the east and the west, and his successor, +Kublai, seeing that its old significance had departed, was fain to +establish his on a new basis in the fertile, ancient and wide-stretching +dominions of China. + +Before Kublai composed the difficulty with Arikbuka he had resumed his +operations against the Sungs, and even before Mangu's death he had +succeeded in establishing some posts south of the Yangtsekiang, in the +impassability of which the Chinese fondly believed. During the year 1260 +he laid siege to Wochow, the modern Wouchang, but he failed to make any +impression on the fortress on this occasion, and he agreed to the truce +which Litsong proposed. By the terms of this agreement Litsong +acknowledged himself a Mongol vassal, just as his ancestors had subjected +themselves to the Kins, paid a large tribute, and forbade his generals +anywhere to attack the Mongols. The last stipulation was partly broken by +an attack on the rear of Uriangkadai's corps, but no serious results +followed, for Kublai was well satisfied with the manner in which the +campaign terminated, as there is no doubt that his advance across the +Yangtsekiang had been precipitate, and he may have thought himself lucky +to escape with the appearance of success and the conclusion of a +gratifying treaty. It was with the reputation gained by this nominal +success, and by having made the Sungs his tributaries, that Kublai +hastened northward to settle his rivalry with Arikbuka. Having +accomplished that object with complete success, he decided to put an end +to the Sung dynasty. The Chinese emperor, acting with strange fatuity, had +given fresh cause of umbrage, and had provoked a war by many petty acts of +discourtesy, culminating in the murder of the envoys of Kublai, sent to +notify him of his proclamation as Great Khan of the Mongols. Probably the +Sung ruler could not have averted war if he had shown the greatest +forbearance and humility, but this cruel and inexcusable act precipitated +the crisis and the extinction of his attenuated authority. If there was +any delay in the movements of Kublai for the purpose of exacting +reparation for this outrage, it was due to his first having to arrange a +difficulty that had arisen in his relations with the King of Corea. That +potentate had long preserved the peace with his Mongol neighbors, and +perhaps he would have remained a friend without any interruption, had not +the Mongols done something which was construed as an infraction of Corean +liberty. The Corean love of independence took fire at the threatened +diminution of their rights, they rose en masse in defense of their +country, and even the king, Wangtien, who had been, well disposed to the +Mongol rulers, declared that he could not continue the alliance, and +placed himself at the head of his people. Seeing himself thus menaced with +a costly war in a difficult country on the eve of a more necessary and +hopeful contest, Kublai resorted to diplomacy. He addressed Wangtien in +complimentary terms and disclaimed all intention of injuring the Coreans, +with whom he wished to maintain friendly relations, but at the same time +he pointed out the magnitude of his power and dilated on the extent of the +Mongol conquests. Half by flattery and half by menace Kublai brought the +Corean court to reason, and Wangtien again entered into bonds of alliance +with Cambaluc and renewed his old oaths of friendship. + +At this point of the long struggle with the Sungs it will be appropriate +to consider what was the exact position of Kublai with regard to his own +Chinese subjects, who now formed the backbone of his power. By this time +Kublai had become to all practical intents and purposes a Chinese emperor. +He had accepted all the traditional functions of the typical Hwangti, and +the etiquette and splendor of his court rivaled that of the Sungs. He had +not merely adopted the Chinese system of taxation and the form of +administration to which the larger portion of his officials, being of +Chinese race, had been accustomed, but he declared himself the patron of +learning and of Buddhism, which had gained a hold on the minds of the +Mongols that it has not lost to the present day. One of the most popular +of his early measures had been the order to liberate all the literate +class among his Chinese prisoners, and they had formed the nucleus of the +civil service Kublai attached to his interests and utilized as his empire +expanded. In his relations with Buddhism Kublai showed not less +astuteness, and in realizing that to attain durable success he must appeal +to the religious side of human character, he showed that he had the true +instincts of a statesman. + +At this time two facts were clearly apparent. The Chinese were sunk in a +low state of religious disbelief, and the Sung rulers were not disposed to +play the part of regenerators of their country. The second fact was that +the only vigorous religion in China, or, indeed, in Eastern Asia, was +Buddhism, which, since the establishment of Brahmanism in India, had taken +up its headquarters in Tibet, where, however, the supreme authority was +still secular--that is to say, it was invested in the hands of a prince or +king, and not in those of a priest or Grand Lama. It so happened that +there was resident at Kublai's court a Tibetan priest, of the family which +had always supplied the Sanpou with his minister, who gained the ear of +Kublai, and convinced him how politic and advantageous to him personally +it would be if he were to secure the co-operation and sympathy of his +priestly order. Kublai fell in with his plans, and proclaimed his friend +Pakba Lama, and sent him back to Tibet, there to establish the +ecclesiastical authority, which still exists in that country, in intimate +alliance and sympathy with the Chinese rulers. By this and other similar +proceedings Kublai gained over to his side several influential classes +among the Chinese people, and many reflecting persons thought they saw in +him a true regenerator of the empire, and a worthy successor of their +greatest rulers. It was, therefore, with a thoroughly pacified country, +and to a great extent a contented people, that Kublai began his last war +with the rulers of Southern China. + +In 1263 Kublai issued his proclamation of war, calling on his generals "to +assemble their troops, to sharpen their swords and their pikes, and to +prepare their bows and arrows," for he intended to attack the Sungs by +land and sea. The treason of a Chinese general in his service named Litan +served to delay the opening of the campaign for a few weeks, but this +incident was of no importance, as Litan was soon overthrown and executed. +Brief as was the interval, it was marked by one striking and important +event--the death of Litsong, who was succeeded by his nephew, Chowki, +called the Emperor Toutsong. Litsong was not a wise ruler, but, compared +with many of his successors, he might be more accurately styled +unfortunate than incompetent. Toutsong, and his weak and arrogant +minister, Kiassetao, hastened to show that there were greater heights of +folly than any to which he had attained. Acting on the advice of a +renegade Sung general, well acquainted with the defenses of Southern +China, Kublai altered his proposed attack, and prepared for crossing the +Yangtsekiang by first making himself supreme on its tributary, the Han +River. His earlier attack on Wouchang has been described, and his +compulsory retirement from that place had taught him the evil of making a +premature attack. His object remained the same, but instead of marching +direct to it across the Yangtsekiang he took the advice of the Sung +general, arid attacked the fortress of Sianyang on the Han River, with the +object of making himself supreme on that stream, and wresting from the +Sungs the last first-class fortress they possessed in the northwest. By +the time all these preliminaries were completed and the Mongol army had +fairly taken the field it was 1268, and Kublai sent sixty thousand of his +best troops, with a large number of auxiliaries, to lay siege to Sianyang, +which was held by a large garrison and a resolute governor. The Mongol +lines were drawn up round the town, and also its neighbor of Fanching, +situated on the opposite bank of the river, with which communication was +maintained by several bridges, and the Mongols built a large fleet of +fifty war junks, with which they closed the Han River and effectually +prevented any aid being sent up it from Hankow or Wouchang. Liuwen Hoan, +the commandant of Sianyang, was a brave man, and he commanded a numerous +garrison and possessed supplies, as he said, to stand a ten years' siege. +He repulsed all the assaults of the enemy, and, undaunted by his +isolation, replied to the threats of the Mongols, to give him no quarter +if he persisted in holding out, by boasting that he would hang their +traitor general in chains before his sovereign. The threats and vaunts of +the combatants did not bring the siege any nearer to an end. The utmost +that the Mongols could achieve was to prevent any provisions or re- +enforcements being thrown into the town. But on the fortress itself they +made no impression. Things had gone on like this for three years, and the +interest in the siege had begun to languish, when Kublai determined to +make a supreme effort to carry the place, and at the same moment the Sung +minister came to the conclusion to relieve it at all hazards. + +The campaign of 1270 began with a heroic episode--the successful dispatch +of provisions into the besieged town, under the direction of two Chinese +officers named Changkoua and Changchun, whose names deserve to be long +remembered for their heroism. The flotilla was divided into two bodies, +one composed of the fighting, the other of the store-ships. The Mongols +had made every preparation to blockade the river, but the suddenness and +vigor of the Chinese attack surprised them, and, at first, the Chinese had +the best of the day. But soon the Mongols recovered, and from their +superior position threatened to overwhelm the assailing Chinese squadron. +In this perilous moment Changchun, devoting himself to death in the +interest of his country collected all his war-junks, and making a +desperate attack on the Mongols, succeeded in obtaining sufficient time to +enable the storeships under Changkoua to pass safely up to Sianyang. The +life of so great a hero as Changchun was, however, a heavy price to pay +for the temporary relief of Sianyang, which was more closely besieged than +ever after the arrival of Kublai in person. + +After this affair the Mongols pushed the siege with greater vigor, and +instead of concentrating their efforts on Sianyang they attacked both that +fortress and Fanching from all sides. The Mongol commander, Alihaya, sent +to Persia, where the Mongols were also supreme, for engineers trained in +the working of mangonels or catapults, engines capable of throwing stones +of 160-pounds' weight with precision for a considerable distance. By their +aid the bridges across the river were first destroyed, and then the walls +of Sianyang were so severely damaged that an assault appeared to be +feasible. But Fanching had suffered still more from the Mongol +bombardment, and Alihaya therefore attacked it first. The garrison offered +a determined resistance, and the fighting was continued in the streets. +Not a man of the garrison escaped, and when the slaughter was over the +Mongols found that they had only acquired possession of a mass of ruins. +But they had obtained the key to Sianyang, the weakest flank of which had +been protected by Fanching, and the Chinese garrison was so discouraged +that Liuwen Hoan, despairing of relief, agreed to accept the terms offered +by Kublai. Those terms were expressed in the following noble letter from +the Mongol emperor: "The generous defense you have made during five years +covers you with glory. It is the duty of every faithful subject to serve +his prince at the expense of his life, but in the straits to which you are +reduced, your strength exhausted, deprived of succor and without hope of +receiving any, would it be reasonable to sacrifice the lives of so many +brave men out of sheer obstinacy? Submit in good faith to us and no harm +shall come to you. We promise you still more; and that is to provide each +and all of you with honorable employment. You shall have no grounds of +discontent, for that we pledge you our imperial word." + +It will not excite surprise that Liuwen Hoan, who had been, practically +speaking, deserted by his own sovereign, should have accepted the +magnanimous terms of his conqueror, and become as loyal a lieutenant of +Kublai as he had shown himself to be of the Sung Toutsong. The death of +that ruler followed soon afterward, but as the real power had been in the +hands of the Minister Kiassetao, no change took place in the policy or +fortunes of the Sung kingdom. At this moment Kublai succeeded in obtaining +the services of Bay an, a Mongol general who had acquired a great +reputation under Khulagu in Persia. Bayan, whose name signifies the noble +or the brave, and who was popularly known as Bayan of the Hundred Eyes, +because he was supposed to see everything, was one of the greatest +military leaders of his age and race. He was intrusted with the command of +the main army, and under him served, it is interesting to state, Liuwen +Hoan. Several towns were captured after more or less resistance, and Bayan +bore down with all his force on the triple cities of Hankow, Wouchang, and +Hanyang. Bayan concentrated all his efforts on the capture of Hanyang, +while the Mongol navy under Artchu compelled the Chinese fleet to take +refuge under the walls of Wouchang. None of these towns offered a very +stubborn resistance, and Bayan had the satisfaction of receiving their +surrender one after another. Leaving Alihaya with 40,000 men to guard +these places, Bayan marched with the rest of his forces on the Sung +capital, Lingan or Hangchow, the celebrated Kincsay of medieval travelers. +The retreating fleet and army of the Sungs carried with them fear of the +Mongols, and the ever-increasing representation of their extraordinary +power and irresistible arms. In this juncture public opinion compelled +Kiassetao to take the lead, and he called upon all the subjects of the +Sung to contribute arms and money for the purpose of national defense. But +his own incompetence in directing this national movement deprived it of +half its force and of its natural chances of success. Bayan's advance was +rapid. Many towns opened their gates in terror or admiration of his name, +and Liuwen Hoan was frequently present to assure them that Kublai was the +most generous of masters, and that there was no wiser course than to +surrender to his generals. + +The Mongol forces at last reached the neighborhood of the Sung capital, +where Kiassetao had succeeded in collecting an army of 130,000 men; but +many of them were ill-trained, and the splendor of the camp provided a +poor equivalent for the want of arms and discipline among the men. +Kiassetao seems to have been ignorant of the danger of his position, for +he sent an arrogant summons to the Mongols to retire, stating also that he +would grant a peace based on the Yangtsekiang as a boundary. Bayan's +simple reply to this notice was, "If you had really aimed at peace you +would have made this proposition before we crossed the Kiang. Now that we +are the masters of it, it is a little too late. Still if you sincerely +desire it, come and see me in person, and we will discuss the necessary +conditions." Very few of the Sung lieutenants offered a protracted +resistance, and even the isolated cases of devotion were confined to the +official class, who were more loyal than the mass of the people. Chao +Maofa and his wife Yongchi put an end to their existence sooner than give +up their charge at Chichow, but the garrison accepted the terms of the +Mongols without compunction, and without thinking of their duty. Kiassetao +attempted to resist the Mongol advance at Kien Kang, the modern Nankin, +but after an engagement on land and water the Sungs were driven back, and +their fleet only escaped destruction by retiring precipitately to the sea. +After this success Nankin, surrendered without resistance, although its +governor was a valiant and apparently a capable man. He committed suicide +sooner than surrender, and among his papers was found a plan of campaign, +after perusing which Bay an exclaimed, "Is it possible that the Sungs +possessed a man capable of giving such prudent counsel? If they had paid +heed to it, should we ever have reached this spot?" After this success +Bayan pressed on with increased rather than diminished energy, and the +Sung emperor and his court fled from the capital. Kublai showed an +inclination to temporize and to negotiate, but Bayan would not brook any +delay. "To relax your grip even for a moment on an enemy whom you have +held by the throat for a hundred years would only be to give him time to +recover his breath, to restore his forces, and in the end to cause us an +infinity of trouble." + +The Sung fortunes showed some slight symptoms of improving when Kiassetao +was disgraced, and a more competent general was found in the person of +Chang Chikia. But the Mongols never abated the vigor of their attack or +relaxed in their efforts to cut off all possibility of succor from the +Sung capital. When Chang Chikia hoped to improve the position of his side +by resuming the offensive he was destined to rude disappointment. Making +an attack on the strong position of the Mongols at Nankin he was repulsed +with heavy loss. The Sung fleet was almost annihilated and 700 war-junks +were taken by the victors. After this the Chinese never dared to face the +Mongols again on the water. This victory was due to the courage and +capacity of Artchu. Bayan now returned from a campaign in Mongolia to +resume the chief conduct of the war, and he signalized his return by the +capture of Changchow. At this town he is said to have sanctioned a +massacre of the Chinese troops, but the facts are enwrapped in +uncertainty; and Marco Polo declares that this was only done after the +Chinese had treacherously cut up the Mongol garrison. Alarmed by the fall +of Changchow, the Sung ministers again sued for peace, sending an +imploring letter to this effect: "Our ruler is young and cannot be held +responsible for the differences that have arisen between the peoples. +Kiassetao the guilty one has been punished; give us peace and we shall be +better friends in the future." Bayan's reply was severe and +uncompromising. "The age of your prince has nothing to do with the +question between us. The war must go on to its legitimate end. Further +argument is useless." The defenses of the Sung capital were by this time +removed, and the unfortunate upholders of that dynasty had no option save +to come to terms with the Mongols. Marco Polo describes Kincsay as the +most opulent city of the world, but it was in no position to stand a +siege. The empress-regent, acting for her son, sent in her submission to +Bayan, and agreed to proceed to the court of the conqueror. She abdicated +for herself and family all the pretensions of their rank, and she accepted +the favors of the Mongol with due humility, saying, "The Son of Heaven +(thus giving Kublai the correct imperial style) grants you the favor of +sparing your life; it is just to thank him for it and to pay him homage." +Bayan made a triumphal entry into the city, while the Emperor Kongtsong +was sent off to Pekin. The majority of the Sung courtiers and soldiers +came to terms with Bayan, but a few of the more desperate or faithful +endeavored to uphold the Sung cause in Southern China under the general, +Chang Chikia. Two of the Sung princes were supported by this commander, +and one was proclaimed by the empty title of emperor. Capricious fortune +rallied to their side for a brief space, and some of the Mongol +detachments which had advanced too far or with undue precipitancy were cut +up and destroyed. + +The Mongols seem to have thought that the war was over, and the success of +Chang Chikia's efforts may have been due to their negligence rather than +to his vigor. As soon as they realized that there remained a flickering +flame of opposition among the supporters of the Sungs they sent two +armies, one into Kwantung and the other into Fuhkien, and their fleet +against Chang Chikia. Desperate as was his position, that officer still +exclaimed, "If heaven has not resolved to overthrow the Sungs, do you +think that even now it cannot restore their ruined throne?" but his hopes +were dashed to the ground by the capture of Canton, and the expulsion of +all his forces from the mainland. One puppet emperor died, and then Chang +proclaimed another as Tiping. The last supporters of the cause took refuge +on the island of Tai in the Canton estuary, where they hoped to maintain +their position. The position was strong and the garrison was numerous; but +the Mongols were not to be frightened by appearances. Their fleet bore +down on the last Sung stronghold with absolute confidence, and, although +the Chinese resisted for three days and showed great gallantry, they were +overwhelmed by the superior engines as well as the numbers of the Mongols. +Chang Chikia with a few ships succeeded in escaping from the fray, but the +emperor's vessel was less fortunate, and finding that escape was +impossible, Lousionfoo, one of the last Sung ministers, seized the emperor +in his arms and jumped overboard with him. Thus died Tiping, the last +Chinese emperor of the Sungs, and with him expired that ill-fated dynasty. +Chang Chikia renewed the struggle with aid received from Tonquin, but when +he was leading a forlorn hope against Canton he was caught in a typhoon +and he and his ships were wrecked. His invocation to heaven, "I have done +everything I could to sustain on the throne the Sung dynasty. When one +prince died I caused another to be proclaimed emperor. He also has +perished, and I still live! Oh, heaven, shall I be acting against thy +desires if I sought to place a new prince of this family on the throne?" +sounded the dirge of the race he had served so well. + +Thus was the conquest of China by the Mongols completed. After half a +century of warfare the kingdom of the Sungs shared the same fate as its +old rival the Kin, and Kublai had the personal satisfaction of completing +the work begun by his grandfather Genghis seventy years before. Of all the +Mongol triumphs it was the longest in being attained. The Chinese of the +north and of the south resisted with extraordinary powers of endurance the +whole force of the greatest conquering race Asia had ever seen. They were +not skilled in war and their generals were generally incompetent, but they +held out with desperate courage and obstinacy long after other races would +have given in. The student of history will not fail to see in these facts +striking testimony of the extraordinary resources of China, and of the +capacity of resistance to even a vigorous conqueror possessed by its inert +masses. Even the Mongols did not conquer until they had obtained the aid +of a large section of the Chinese nation, or before Kublai had shown that +he intended to prove himself a worthy Emperor of China and not merely a +great Khan of the Mongol Hordes. + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +KUBLAI AND THE MONGOL DYNASTY + + +While Bayan was winning victories for his master and driving the Chinese +armies from the field, Kublai was engaged at Pekin in the difficult and +necessary task of consolidating his authority. In 1271 he gave his dynasty +the name of Yuen or Original, and he took for himself the Chinese title of +Chitsou, although it will never supersede his Mongol name of Kublai. +Summoning to his court the most experienced Chinese ministers, and aided +by many foreigners, he succeeded in founding a government which was +imposing by reason of its many-sidedness as well as its inherent strength. +It satisfied the Chinese and it was gratifying to the Mongols, because +they formed the buttress of one of the most imposing administrations in +the world. All this was the distinct work of Kublai, who had enjoyed the +special favor of Genghis, who had predicted of him that "one day he will +sit in my seat and bring you good fortune such as you have had in my +time." He resolved to make his court the most splendid in the world. His +capital Cambaluc or Khanbalig--"the city of the Khan"--stood on or near +the present site of Pekin, and was made for the first time capital of +China by the Mongols. There were, according to Marco Polo, twelve gates, +at each of which was stationed a guard of 1,000 men, and the streets were +so straight and wide that you could see from one end to the other, or from +gate to gate. The extent given of the walls varies: according to the +highest estimate they were twenty-seven miles round, according to the +lowest eighteen. The khan's palace at Chandu or Kaipingfoo, north of +Pekin, where he built a magnificent summer palace, kept his stud of +horses, and carried out his love of the chase in the immense park and +preserves attached, may be considered the Windsor of this Chinese monarch. +The position of Pekin had, and still has, much to recommend it as the site +of a capital. The Mings, after proclaiming Nankin the capital, made +scarcely less use of it, and Chuntche, the first of the Manchus, adopted +it as his. It has since remained the sole metropolis of the empire. + +When Kublai permanently established himself at Pekin he drew up consistent +lines of policy on all the great questions with which it was likely he +would have to deal, and he always endeavored to act upon these set +principles. In framing this system of government he was greatly assisted +by his old friend and tutor Yaochu, as well as by other Chinese ministers. +He was thus able to deal wisely and also vigorously with a society with +which he was only imperfectly acquainted; and the impartiality and insight +into human character, which were his main characteristics, greatly +simplified the difficult task before him. His impartiality was shown most +clearly in his attitude on the question of religion; but it partook very +largely of a hard materialism which concealed itself under a nominal +indifference. At first he treated with equal consideration Buddhism, +Mohammedanism, Christianity, and even Judaism, and he said that he treated +them all with equal consideration because he hoped that the greatest among +them would help him in heaven. If some doubt may be felt as to the +sincerity of this statement, there can be none as to Kublai's effort to +turn all religions to a political use, and to make them serve his turn. +Some persons have thought he showed a predilection for Christianity, but +his measures in support of Buddhism, and of his friend the Pakba Lama, are +a truer indication of his feelings. But none were admitted into his +private confidence, and his acts evinced a politic tolerance toward all +creeds. But his religious tolerance or indifference did not extend to +personal matters. He insisted on the proper prayers being offered to +himself and the extreme reverence of the kow-tow. Priests were appointed +and specially enjoined to offer up prayers on his behalf before the +people, who were required to attend these services and to join in the +responses. Images of himself were also sent to all the provincial towns +for reverence to be offered. He also followed the Chinese custom of +erecting a temple to his ancestors, and the coins that passed current bore +his effigy. Thus did Kublai more and more identify himself with his +Chinese subjects, and as he found his measures crowned with success he +became himself more wedded to Chinese views, less tolerant of adverse +opinions, and more disposed to assert his sovereign majesty. + +Having embellished his capital, it is not surprising to find that he drew +up a strict court ceremonial, and that he proscribed gorgeous dresses for +those who were to be allowed to approach him. His banquets were of the +most sumptuous description. Strangers from foreign states were admitted to +the presence, and dined at a table set apart for travelers, while the +great king himself feasted in the full gaze of his people. His courtiers, +guard, and ministers attended by a host of servitors, and protected from +enemies by 20,000 guards, the flower of the Mongol army; the countless +wealth seized in the capitals of numerous kingdoms; the brilliance of +intellect among his chief adherents and supporters; the martial character +of the race that lent itself almost as well to the pageantry of a court as +to the stern reality of battle; and finally the majesty of the great king +himself--all combined to make Kublai's court and capital the most +splendid, at that time, in the world. Although Kublai's instincts were +martial, he gave up all idea of accompanying his armies in the field after +his war with Arikbuka. As he was only forty-four when he formed this +decision, it must be assumed that he came to it mainly because he had so +many other matters to attend to, and also, no doubt, because he felt that +he possessed in Bayan a worthy substitute. + +The most fortunate and successful monarch rarely escapes without some +misfortune, and Kublai was not destined to be an exception to the rule. +The successes of the Mongol navy undoubtedly led Kublai to believe that +his arms might be carried beyond the sea, and he formed the definite plan +of subjecting Japan to his power. The ruling family in that kingdom was of +Chinese descent, tracing back its origin to Taipe, a fugitive Chinese +prince of the twelfth century before our era. The Chinese in their usual +way had asserted the superior position of a Suzerain, and the Japanese had +as consistently refused to recognize the claim, and had maintained their +independence. As a rule the Japanese abstained from all interference in +the affairs of the continent, and the only occasion on which they departed +from this rule was when they aided Corea against China. In 1266 Kublai +sent two embassadors by way of Corea to Japan with a letter from himself +complaining that the Japanese court had taken no notice of his accession +to power, and treated him with indifference. The mission never had a +chance of success, for the Coreans succeeded in frightening the Mongol +envoys with the terrors of the sea, and by withholding their assistance +prevented them reaching their destination. The envoys returned without +having been able to deliver their letter. Kublai decided that the Japanese +were hostile to him, and he resolved to humble them. He called upon the +King of Corea to raise an auxiliary force, and that prince promised to +supply 1,000 ships and 10,000 men. In 1274 he sent a small force of 300 +ships and 15,000 men to begin operations in the direction of Japan; but +the Japanese navy came out to meet it, and attacking it off the island of +Tsiusima, inflicted a crushing defeat. As this expedition was largely +composed of the Corean contingent Kublai easily persuaded himself that +this defeat did not indicate what would happen when he employed his own +Mongol troops. He also succeeded in sending several envoys to Japan after +his first abortive attempt, and they brought back consistent reports as to +the hostility and defiance of the Japanese, who at last, to leave no +further doubt on the subject, executed his envoy in 1280. For this outrage +the haughty monarch swore he would exact a terrible revenge, and in +1280-81, when the last of his campaigns with the Sungs had been brought +to a triumphant conclusion, he collected all his forces in the eastern +part of the kingdom, and prepared to attack Japan with all his power. + +For the purposes of this war he raised an army of over 100,000 men, of +whom about one-third were Mongols; and a fleet large enough to carry this +host and its supplies was gathered together with great difficulty in the +harbors of Chekiang and Fuhkien. It would have been wiser if the +expedition had started from Corea, as the sea voyage would have been +greatly reduced; but the difficulty of getting his army to that country, +and the greater difficulty of feeding it when it got there, induced him to +make his own maritime possessions the base of his operations. From the +beginning misfortunes fell thick upon it, and the Japanese, not less than +the English when assailed by the Spanish armada and Boulogne invasions, +owed much to the alliance of the sea. Kublai had felt bound to appoint a +Chinese generalissimo as well as a Mongol to this host, but it did not +work well. One general fell ill and was superseded, another was lost in a +storm, and there was a general want of harmony in the Mongol camp and +fleet. Still the fleet set sail, but the elements declared themselves +against Kublai. His shattered fleet was compelled to take refuge off the +islets to the north of Japan, where it attempted to refit, but the +Japanese granted no respite, and assailed them both by land and sea. After +protracted but unequal fighting the Mongol commander had no choice left +but to surrender. The conquerors spared the Chinese and Coreans among +their prisoners, but they put every Mongol to the sword. Only a stray junk +or two escaped to tell Kublai the tale of the greatest defeat the Mongols +had ever experienced. Thirty thousand of their best troops were +slaughtered, and their newly-created fleet, on which they were founding +such great expectations, was annihilated, while 70,000 Chinese and Coreans +remained as prisoners in the hands of the victor. Kublai executed two of +his generals who escaped, but it is clear no one was to blame. The Mongols +were vanquished because they undertook a task beyond their power, and one +with which their military experience did not fit them to cope. The most +formidable portion of their army was cavalry, and they had no knowledge of +the sea. Nor could their Chinese auxiliaries supply this deficiency; for, +strange as it may appear, the Chinese, although many of them are good +fishermen and sailors, have never been a powerful nation at sea. On the +other hand, the Japanese have always been a bold and capable race of +mariners. They have frequently proved that the sea is their natural +element, and all the power and resources of Kublai availed not against the +skill and courage of these hardy islanders. Kublai was reluctant to +acquiesce in his defeat, and he endeavored to form another expedition, but +the Chinese sailors mutinied and refused to embark. They were supported by +all the Chinese ministers at Pekin, and Kublai felt himself compelled to +yield and abandon all designs of conquest beyond the sea. + +The old success of the Mongols did not desert them on land, and Kublai +received some consolation for his rude repulse by the Japanese in the +triumph of his arms in Burmah. The momentary submission of the King of +Burmah, or Mien, as it was, and is still, called by the Chinese, had been +followed by a fit of truculence and open hostility. This monarch had +crossed over into Indian territory, and had assumed the title of King of +Bengala in addition to his own. Emboldened by his success, he did not +conceal his hostility to the Mongols, sent a defiant reply to all their +representations, and even assumed the offensive with his frontier +garrisons. He then declared open war. The Mongol general, Nasiuddin, +collected all the forces he could, and when the Burmese ruler crossed the +frontier at the head of an immense host of horse, foot, and elephants, he +found the Mongol army drawn up on the plain of Yungchang. The Mongols +numbered only 12,000 select troops, whereas the Burmese exceeded 80,000 +men with a corps of elephants, estimated between 800 and 2,000, and an +artillery force of sixteen guns. Notwithstanding this numerical +disadvantage the Mongols were in no way dismayed by their opponents' +manifest superiority; but seldom has the struggle between disciplined and +brute force proved closer or more keenly contested. At first the charge of +the Burmese cavalry, aided by the elephants and artillery, carried all +before it. But Nasiuddin had provided for this contingency. He had +dismounted all his cavalry, and had ordered them to fire their arrows +exclusively against the elephant corps; and as the Mongols were then not +only the best archers in the world, but used the strongest bows, the +destruction they wrought was considerable, and soon threw the elephants +into hopeless confusion. The crowd of elephants turned tail before this +discharge of arrows, as did the elephants of Pyrrhus, and threw the whole +Burmese army into confusion. The Mongols then mounting their horses, +charged and completed the discomfiture of the Burmese, who were driven +from the field with heavy loss and tarnished reputation. On this occasion +the Mongols did not pursue the Burmese very far, and the King of Burmah +lost little or no part of his dominions, but Nasiuddin reported to Pekin +that it would be an easy matter to add the kingdom of Mien to the Mongol +empire. Kublai did not act on this advice until six years later, when he +sent his kinsman Singtur with a large force to subdue Burmah. The king +took shelter in Pegu, leaving his capital Amien at the mercy of the +conqueror. The Mongol conquests were thus brought down to the very border +of Assam. In Tonquin and Annam the arms of Kublai were not so successful. +Kublai's son Togan made an abortive campaign in these regions. Whenever an +open force had to be overcome, the Mongol army was successful, but when +the Mongols encountered the difficulties of a damp and inclement climate, +of the absence of roads, and other disadvantages, they were disheartened, +and suffered heavily in men and morale. With the loss of his two generals, +and the main portion of his army, Togan was lucky in himself escaping to +China. Kublai wished to make another effort to subdue these inhospitable +regions and their savage inhabitants, but Chinese public opinion proved +too strong, and he had to yield to the representations of his ministers. + +Kublai was the more compelled to sacrifice his feelings on this point, +because there were not wanting indications that if he did not do so he +would find a Chinese rebellion on his hands. Notwithstanding his many +successes, and his evident desire to stand well with his Chinese subjects, +it was already clear that they bore their new leader little love. Several +of the principal provinces were in a state of veiled rebellion, showing +that the first opportunity would be taken to shake off the Mongol yoke, +and that Kublai's authority really rested on a quicksand. The predictions +of a fanatic were sufficient to shake the emperor on his throne, and such +was Kublai's apprehension that he banished all the remaining Sung +prisoners to Mongolia, and executed their last faithful minister, who went +to the scaffold with a smile on his face, exclaiming, "I am content; my +wishes are about to be realized." It must not be supposed from this that +Kublai's authority had vanished or become effete. It was absolutely +supreme over all declared enemies, but below the surface was seething an +amount of popular hostility and discontent ominous to the longevity of the +Mongol dynasty. The restless ambition of Kublai would not be satisfied +with anything short of recognition, in some form or other, of his power by +his neighbors, and he consequently sent envoys to ail the kingdoms of +Southern Asia to obtain, by lavish presents or persuasive language, that +recognition of his authority on which he had set his heart. In most cases +he was gratified, for there was not a power in Eastern Asia to compare +with that of the Mongol prince seated on the Dragon Throne of China, and +all were flattered to be brought into connection with it on any terms. + +These successful and gratifying embassies had only one untoward result: +they induced Kublai to revert to his idea of repairing the overthrow of +his son Togan in Annam, and of finally subjugating that troublesome +country. The intention was not wise, and it was rendered more imprudent by +its execution being intrusted to Togan again. Another commander might have +fared better, but great as was his initial success, he could not hope to +permanently succeed. Togan began as he formerly commenced by carrying all +before him. He won seventeen separate engagements, but the further he +advanced into the country the more evident did it appear that he only +controlled the ground on which he stood. The King of Annam was a fugitive; +his capital was in the hands of the Mongols, and apparently nothing more +remained to be done. Apachi, the most experienced of the Mongol +commanders, then counseled a prompt retreat. Unfortunately the Mongol +prince Togan would not take his advice, and the Annamites, gathering fresh +forces on all sides, attacked the exhausted Mongols, and compelled them to +beat a precipitate retreat from their country. All the fruits of early +victory were lost, and Togan's disgrace was a poor consolation for the +culminating discomfiture of Kublai's reign. The people of Annam then made +good their independence, and they still enjoy it, so far as China is +concerned; though Annam is now a dependency of the French republic. + +We cannot doubt that the failure of the emperor's endeavor to popularize +his rule was as largely due to the tyrannical acts and oppressive measures +of some of his principal ministers as to unpopular and unsuccessful +expeditions. Notwithstanding the popular dislike of the system, and +Kublai's efforts to put it down, the Mongols resorted to the old plan of +farming the revenue, and the extortion of those who purchased the right +drove the Chinese to the verge of rebellion, and made the whole Mongol +regime hateful. Several tax farmers were removed from their posts, and +punished with death, but their successors carried on the same system. The +declining years of Kublai's reign were therefore marred by the growing +discontent of his Chinese subjects, and by his inability or unwillingness +to put down official extortion and mismanagement. But he had to cope with +a still greater danger in the hostility of some members of his own family. +The rivalry between himself and his brother Arikbuka formed one incident +of his earlier career, the hostility of his cousin Kaidu proved a more +serious peril when Kublai was stricken in years, and approaching the end +of his long reign. + +Kaidu was one of the sons of Ogotai, and consequently first cousin to +Kublai. He held some high post in Mongolia, and he represented a +reactionary party among the Mongols, who wished the administration to be +less Chinese, and who, perhaps, sighed for more worlds to conquer. But he +hated Kublai, and was jealous of his pre-eminence, which was, perhaps, the +only cause of his revolt. The hostility of Kaidu might have remained a +personal grievance if he had not obtained the alliance of Nayan, a Mongol +general of experience and ability, who had long been jealous of the +superior reputation of Bayan. He was long engaged in raising an army, with +which he might hope to make a bid for empire, but at last his preparations +reached the ear of Kublai, who determined to crush him before his power +had grown too great. Kublai marched against him at the head of 100,000 +men, and all the troops Nayan could bring into the field were 40,000, +while Kaidu, although hastily gathering his forces, was too far off to +render any timely aid. Kublai commanded in person, and arranged his order +of battle from a tower supported on the backs of four elephants chained +together. Both armies showed great heroism and ferocity, but numbers +carried the day, and Nayan's army was almost destroyed, while he himself +fell into the hands of the victor. It was contrary to the practice of the +Mongols to shed the blood of their own princes, so Kublai ordered Nayan to +be sewn up in a sack, and then beaten to death. The war with Kaidu dragged +on for many years, and there is no doubt that Kublai did not desire to +push matters to an extremity with his cousin. Having restored the fortunes +of the war by assuming the command in person, Kublai returned in a short +time to Pekin, leaving his opponent, as he hoped, the proverbial golden +bridge by which to retreat. But his lieutenant, Bayan, to whom he +intrusted the conduct of the campaign, favored more vigorous action, and +was anxious to bring the struggle to a speedy and decisive termination. He +had gained one remarkable victory under considerable disadvantage, when +Kublai, either listening to his detractors or desirous of restraining his +activity, dismissed him from his military posts and, summoning him to +Pekin, gave him the uncongenial office of a minister of State. This +happened in 1293, and in the following year Kublai, who was nearly eighty, +and who had occupied the throne of China for thirty-five years, sickened +and died, leaving behind him a great reputation which has survived the +criticism of six centuries in both Europe and China. + +Kublai's long reign marked the climax of the Mongol triumph which he had +all the personal satisfaction of extending to China. Where Genghis failed, +or attained only partial success, he succeeded to the fullest extent, thus +verifying the prophecy of his grandfather. But although he conquered their +country, he never vanquished the prejudices of the Chinese, and the +Mongols, unlike the Manchus, failed completely to propitiate the good will +of the historiographers of the Hanlin. Of Kublai they take some +recognition, as an enlightened and well-meaning prince, but for all the +other emperors of the Yuen line they have nothing good to say. Even Kublai +himself could not assure the stability of his throne, and when he died it +was at once clear that the Mongols could not long retain the supreme +position in China. + +But Kublai's authority was sufficiently established for it to be +transmitted, without popular disturbance or any insurrection on the part +of the Chinese, to his legal heir, who was his grandson. Such risk as +presented itself to the succession arose from the dissensions among the +Mongol princes themselves, but the prompt measures of Bayan arrested any +trouble, and Prince Timour was proclaimed emperor under the Chinese style +of Chingtsong. A few months after this signal service to the ruling +family, Bayan died, leaving behind him the reputation of being one of the +most capable of all the Mongol commanders. Whether because he could find +no general worthy to fill Bayan's place, or because his temperament was +naturally pacific, Timour carried on no military operations, and the +thirteen years of his reign were marked by almost unbroken peace. But +peace did not bring prosperity in its train, for a considerable part of +China suffered from the ravages of famine, and the cravings of hunger +drove many to become brigands. Timour's anxiety to alleviate the public +suffering gained him some small measure of popularity, and he also +endeavored to limit the opportunities of the Mongol governors to be +tyrannical by taking away from them the power of life and death. Timour +was compelled by the sustained hostility of Kaidu to continue the struggle +with that prince, but he confined himself to the defensive, and the death +of Kaidu, in 1301, deprived the contest of its extreme bitterness although +it still continued. + +Timour was, however, unfortunate in the one foreign enterprise which he +undertook. The ease with which Burmah had been vanquished and reduced to a +tributary state emboldened some of his officers on the southern frontier +to attempt the conquest of Papesifu--a state which may be identified with +the modern Laos. The enterprise, commenced in a thoughtless and light- +hearted manner, revealed unexpected peril and proved disastrous. A large +part of the Mongol army perished from the heat, and the survivors were +only rescued from their perilous position, surrounded by the numerous +enemies they had irritated, by a supreme effort on the part of Koko, the +viceroy of Yunnan, who was also Timour's uncle. The insurrectionary +movement was not confined to the outlying districts of Annam and Burmah, +but extended within the Chinese border, and several years elapsed before +tranquillity was restored to the frontier provinces. + +Timour died in 1306 without leaving a direct legitimate heir, and his two +nephews Haichan and Aiyuli Palipata were held to possess an equal claim to +the throne. Haichan was absent in Mongolia when his uncle died, and a +faction put forward the pretensions of Honanta, prince of Gansi, who seems +to have been Timour's natural son, but Aiyuli Palipata, acting with great +energy, arrested the pretender and proclaimed Haichan as emperor. Haichan +reigned five years, during which the chief reputation he gained was as a +glutton. When he died, in 1311, his brother Palipata was proclaimed +emperor, although Haichan left two sons. Palipata's reign of nine years +was peaceful and uneventful, and his son Chutepala succeeded him. +Chutepala was a young and inexperienced prince who owed such authority as +he enjoyed to the courage of Baiju, a brave soldier, who was specially +distinguished as the lineal descendant of the great general, Muhula. The +plots and intrigues which compassed the ruin of the Yuen dynasty began +during this reign, and both Chutepala and Baiju were murdered by +conspirators. The next emperor, Yesun Timour, was fortunate in a peaceful +reign, but on his death, in 1328, the troubles of the dynasty accumulated, +and its end came clearly into view. In little more than a year, three +emperors were proclaimed and died. Tou Timour, one of the sons of Haichan, +who ruled before Palipata, was so far fortunate in reigning for a longer +period, but the most interesting episode in his barren reign was the visit +of the Grand Lama of Tibet to Pekin, where he was received with +exceptional honor; but when Tou Timour attempted to compel his courtiers +to pay the representative of Buddhism special obeisance he encountered the +opposition of both Chinese and Mongols. + +After Tou Timour's death the imperial title passed to Tohan Timour, who is +best known by his Chinese title of Chunti. He found a champion in Bayan, a +descendant of the general of that name, who successfully defended the +palace against the attack of a band of conspirators. In 1337 the first +distinct rebellion on the part of the Chinese took place in the +neighborhood of Canton, and an order for the disarmament of the Chinese +population aggravated the situation because it could not be effectually +carried out. Bayan, after his defense of the palace, became the most +powerful personage in the state, and to his arrogance was largely due the +aggravation of the Mongol difficulties and the imbittering of Chinese +opinion. He murdered an empress, tyrannized over the Chinese, and outshone +the emperor in his apparel and equipages, as if he were a Wolsey or a +Buckingham. For the last offense Chunti could not forgive him, and Bayan +was deposed and disgraced. While these dissensions were in progress at +Pekin the Chinese were growing more daring and confident in their efforts +to liberate themselves from the foreign yoke. They had adopted red bonnets +as the mark of their patriotic league, and on the sea the piratical +confederacy of Fangkue Chin vanquished and destroyed such navy as the +Mongols ever possessed. But in open and regular fighting on land the +supremacy of the Mongols was still incontestable, and a minister, named +Toto, restored the sinking fortunes of Chunti until he fell the victim of +a court intrigue--being poisoned by a rival named Hamar. With Toto +disappeared the last possible champion of the Mongols, and the only thing +needed to insure their overthrow was the advent of a capable leader who +could give coherence to the national cause, and such a leader was not long +in making his appearance. + +The deliverer of the Chinese from the Mongols was an individual named Choo +Yuen Chang, who, being left an orphan, entered a monastery as the easiest +way of gaining a livelihood. In the year 1345, when Chunti had been on the +throne twelve years, Choo quitted his retreat and joined one of the bands +of Chinese who had thrown off the authority of the Mongols. His physique +and fine presence soon gained for him a place of authority, and when the +chief of the band died he was chosen unanimously as his successor. He at +once showed himself superior to the other popular leaders by his humanity, +and by his wise efforts to convince the Chinese people that he had only +their interests at heart. Other Chinese so-called patriots thought mainly +of plunder, and they were not less terrible to peaceful citizens than the +most exacting Mongol commander or governor. But Choo strictly forbade +plundering, and any of his band caught robbing or ill-using the people met +with prompt and summary punishment. By this conduct he gained the +confidence of the Chinese, and his standard among all the national leaders +became the most popular and attracted the largest number of recruits. In +1356 he captured the city of Nankin, which thereupon became the base of +his operations, as it was subsequently the capital of his dynasty. He then +issued a proclamation declaring that his sole object was to expel the +foreigners and to restore the national form of government. In this +document he said, "It is the birthright of the Chinese to govern foreign +peoples and not of these latter to rule in China. It used to be said that +the Yuen or Mongols, who came from the regions of the north, conquered our +empire not so much by their courage and skill as by the aid of Heaven. And +now it is sufficiently plain that Heaven itself wishes to deprive them of +that empire, as some punishment for their crimes, and for not having acted +according to the teaching of their forefathers. The time has now come to +drive these foreigners out of China." While the Mongols were assailed in +every province of the empire by insurgents, Choo headed what was the only +organized movement for their expulsion, and his alliance with the pirate, +Fangkue Chin, added the command of the sea to the control he had himself +acquired over some of the wealthiest and most populous provinces of +Central China. The disunion among the Mongols contributed to their +overthrow as much as the valor of the Chinese. The Emperor Chunti had +quite given himself up to pleasure, and his debaucheries were the scandal +of the day. The two principal generals, Chahan Timour and Polo Timour, +hated each other, and refused to co-operate. Another general, Alouhiya, +raised the standard of revolt in Mongolia, and, while he declared that his +object was to regenerate his race, he, undoubtedly, aggravated the +embarrassment of Chunti. + +In 1366, Choo, having carefully made all the necessary preparations for +war on a large scale, dispatched from Fankin two large armies to conquer +the provinces north of the Yangtsekiang, which were all that remained in +the possession of the Mongols. A third army was intrusted with the task of +subjecting the provinces dependent on Canton, and this task was +accomplished with rapidity and without a check. Such Mongol garrisons as +were stationed in this quarter were annihilated. The main Chinese army of +250,000 men was intrusted to the command of Suta, Choo's principal +lieutenant and best general, and advanced direct upon Pekin. In 1367 Suta +had overcome all resistance south of the Hoangho, which river he crossed +in the autumn of that year. The Mongols appeared demoralized, and +attempted little or no resistance. Chunti fled from Pekin to Mongolia, +where he died in 1370, and Suta carried the capital by storm from the +small Mongol garrison which remained to defend it. Choo hastened to Pekin +to receive the congratulations of his army, and to prove to the whole +Chinese nation that the Yuen dynasty had ceased to rule. The resistance +offered by the Mongols proved surprisingly slight, and, considering the +value of the prize for which they were fighting, quite unworthy of their +ancient renown. The real cause of their overthrow was that the Mongols +never succeeded in propitiating the good opinion and moral support of the +Chinese, who regarded them to the end as barbarians, and it must also be +admitted that the main force of the Mongols had drifted to Western Asia, +where the great Timour revived some of the traditions of Genghis. At the +end of his career that mighty conqueror prepared to invade China, but he +died shortly after he had begun a march that boded ill to the peace and +welfare of China. Thus, with the flight of Chunti, the Mongol or Yuen +dynasty came to an end, and the Mongols only reappear in Chinese history +as the humble allies of the Manchus, when they undertook the conquest of +China in the seventeenth century. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +THE MING DYNASTY + + +Having expelled the Mongols, Choo assumed the style of Hongwou, and he +gave his dynasty the name of Ming, which signifies "bright." He then +rewarded his generals and officers with titles and pecuniary grants, and +in 1369, the first year of his reign after the capture of Pekin, he +erected a temple or hall in that city in honor of the generals who had +been slain, while vacant places were left for the statues of those +generals who still held command. But while he rewarded his army, Hongwou +very carefully avoided giving his government a military character, knowing +that the Chinese resent the superiority of military officials, and he +devoted his main efforts to placing the civil administration on its old +and national basis. In this he received the cordial support of the Chinese +themselves, who had been kept in the background by their late conquerors, +whose administration was essentially military. Hongwou also patronized +literature, and endowed the celebrated Hanlin College, which was neglected +after the death of Kublai. He at once provided a literary task of great +magnitude in the history of the Yuen dynasty, which was intrusted to a +commission of eighteen writers. But a still greater literary work was +accomplished in the codified Book of Laws, which is known as the Pandects +of Yunglo, and which not merely simplified the administration of the law, +but also gave the people some idea of the laws under which they lived. He +also passed a great measure of gratuitous national education, and, in +order to carry out this reform in a thoroughly successful manner, he +appointed all the masters himself. He also founded many public libraries, +and he wished to establish one in every town, but this was beyond the +extent of his power. Not content with providing for the minds of his +subjects, Hongwou did his utmost to supply the needs of the aged. He cut +down the court expenses and issued sumptuary laws, so that he might devote +the sums thus economized to the support of the aged and sick. His last +instructions to the new officials, on proceeding to their posts, were to +"take particular care of the aged and the orphan." Thus did he show that +the Chinese had found in him a ruler who would revive the ancient glories +of the kingdom. + +The frugality and modesty of his court have already been referred to. The +later Mongols were fond of a lavish display, and expended large sums on +banquets and amusements. At Pekin one of their emperors had erected in the +grounds of the palace a lofty tower of porcelain, at enormous expense, and +had arranged an ingenious contrivance at its base for denoting the time. +Two statues sounded a bell and struck a drum at every hour. When Hongwou +saw this edifice, he exclaimed, "How is it possible for men to neglect the +most important affairs of life for the sole object of devoting their +attention to useless buildings? If the Mongols in place of amusing +themselves with these trifles had applied their energies to the task of +contenting the people, would they not have preserved the scepter in their +family?" He then ordered that this building should be razed to the ground. +Nor did this action stand alone. He reduced the size of the harem +maintained by all the Chinese as well as the Mongol rulers, and he +instituted a rigid economy in all matters of state ceremonial. Changtu, +the Xanadu of Coleridge, the famous summer palace of Kublai, had been +destroyed during the campaigns with the Mongols, and Hongwou +systematically discouraged any attempt to embellish the northern capital, +Pekin, which, under the Kin and Yuen dynasties, had become identified with +foreign rulers. Pekin, during the whole of the Ming dynasty, was only a +second-rate city, and all the attention of the Ming rulers was given to +the embellishment of Nankin, the truly national capital of China. + +The expulsion of the Mongols beyond the Great Wall and the death of +Chunti, the last of the Yuen emperors, by no means ended the struggle +between the Chinese and their late northern conquerors. The whole of the +reign of Hongwou was taken up with a war for the supremacy of his +authority and the security of his frontiers, in which he, indeed, took +little personal part, but which was carried on under his directions by his +great generals, Suta and Fuyuta. The former of these generals was engaged +for nearly twenty years, from 1368 to 1385, in constant war with the +Mongols. His first campaign, fought when the Chinese were in the full +flush of success, resulted in the brilliant and almost bloodless conquest +of the province of Shansi. The neighboring province of Shensi, which is +separated from the other by the river Hoangho, was at the time held by a +semi-independent Mongol governor named Lissechi, who believed that he +could hold his ground against the Mings. The principal fact upon which +this hope was based was the breadth and assumed impassability of that +river. Lissechi believed that this natural advantage would enable him to +hold out indefinitely against the superior numbers of the Chinese armies. +But his hope was vain if not unreasonable. The Chinese crossed the Hoangho +on a bridge of junks, and Tsinyuen, which Lissechi had made his capital, +surrendered without a blow. Lissechi abandoned one fortress after another +on the approach of Suta. Expelled from Shensi he hoped to find shelter and +safety in the adjoining province of Kansuh, where he took up his residence +at Lintao. For a moment the advance of the Chinese army was arrested while +a great council of war was held to decide the further course of the +campaign. The majority of the council favored the suggestion that did not +involve immediate action, and wished Suta to abandon the pursuit of +Lissechi and complete the conquest of Shensi, where several fortresses +still held out. But Suta was of a more resolute temper, and resolved to +ignore the decision of the council and to pursue Lissechi to Lintao. The +vigor of Suta's decision was matched by the rapidity of his march. Before +Lissechi had made any arrangements to stand a siege he found himself +surrounded at Lintao by the Ming army. In this plight he was obliged to +throw himself on the mercy of the victor, who sent him to the capital, +where Hongwou granted him his life and a small pension. + +The overthrow of Lissechi prepared the way for the more formidable +enterprise against Ninghia, where the Mongols had drawn their remaining +power to a head. Ninghia, the old capital of Tangut, is situated in the +north of Kansuh, on the western bank of the Hoangho, and the Great Wall +passes through it. Strongly fortified and admirably placed, the Mongols, +so long as they possessed this town with its gates through the Great Wall, +might hope to recover what they had lost, and to make a fresh bid for +power in Northern China. North and west of Ninghia stretched the desert, +but while it continued in their possession the Mongols remained on the +threshold of China and held open a door through which their kinsmen from +the Amour and Central Asia might yet re-enter to revive the feats of +Genghis and Bayan. Suta determined to gain this place as speedily as +possible. Midway between Lintao and Ninghia is the fortified town of +Kingyang, which was held by a strong Mongol garrison. Suta laid close +siege to this town, the governor of which had only time to send off a +pressing appeal for aid to Kuku Timour, the governor at Ninghia, before he +was shut in on all sides by the Ming army. Kuku Timour apparently did his +best to aid his compatriot, but his forces were not sufficient to oppose +those of Suta in the open field, and Kingyang was at last reduced to such +straits that the garrison is said to have been compelled to use the slain +as food. At last the place made an unconditional surrender, and the +commandant was executed, not on account of his stubborn defense, but +because at the beginning of the siege he had said he would surrender and +had not kept his word. After the fall of Kingyang the Chinese troops were +granted a well-earned rest, and Suta visited Nankin to describe the +campaign to Hongwou. + +The departure of Suta emboldened Kuku Timour so far as to lead him to take +the field, and he hastened to attack the town of Lanchefoo, the capital of +Kansuh, where there was only a small garrison. Notwithstanding this the +place offered a stout resistance, but the Mongols gained a decisive +success over a body of troops sent to its relief. This force was +annihilated and its general taken prisoner. The Mongols thought to terrify +the garrison by parading this general, whose name should be preserved, +Yukwang, before the walls, but he baffled their purpose by shouting out, +"Be of good courage, Suta is coming to your rescue." Yukwang was cut to +pieces, but his timely and courageous exclamation, like that of D'Assas, +saved his countrymen. Soon after this incident Suta reached the scene of +action, and on his approach Kuku Timour broke up his camp and retired to +Ninghia. The Chinese commander then hastened to occupy the towns of +Souchow and Kia-yu-kwan, important as being the southern extremity of the +Great Wall, and as isolating Ninghia on the west. Their loss was so +serious that the Mongol chief felt compelled to risk a general engagement. +The battle was keenly contested, and at one moment it seemed as if success +was going to declare itself in favor of the Mongols. But Suta had sent a +large part of his force to attack the Mongol rear, and when this movement +was completely executed, he assailed the Mongol position at the head of +all his troops. The struggle soon became a massacre, and it is said that +as many as 80,000 Mongols were slain, while Kuku Timour, thinking Ninghia +no longer safe, fled northward to the Amour. The success of Suta was +heightened and rendered complete by the capture of a large number of the +ex-Mongol ruling family by Ly Wenchong, another of the principal generals +of Hongwou. Among the prisoners was the eldest grandson of Chunti, and +several of the ministers advised that he should be put to death. But +Hongwou instead conferred on him a minor title of nobility, and expressed +his policy in a speech equally creditable to his wisdom as a statesman and +his heart as a man: + +"The last ruler of the Yuens took heed only of his pleasures. The great, +profiting by his indolence, thought of nothing save of how to enrich +themselves; the public treasures being exhausted by their malpractices, it +needed only a few years of dearth to reduce the people to distress, and +the excessive tyranny of those who governed them led to the forming of +parties which disturbed the empire even to its foundations. Touched by the +misfortunes with which I saw them oppressed, I took up arms, not so much +against the Yuens as against the rebels who were engaged in war with them. +It was over the same foe that I gained my first successes. And if the Yuen +prince had not departed from the rules of wise government in order to give +himself up to his pleasures, and had the magnates of his court performed +their duty, would all honorable men have taken up arms as they did and +declared against him? The misconduct of the race brought me a large number +of partisans who were convinced of the rectitude of my intentions, and it +was from their hands and not from those of the Yuens that I received the +empire. If Heaven had not favored me should I have succeeded in destroying +with such ease those who withdrew into the desert of Shamo? We read in the +Chiking that after the destruction of the Chang family there remained more +than ten thousand of their descendants who submitted themselves to the +Chow, because it was the will of Heaven. Cannot men respect its decrees? +Let them put in the public treasure-house all the spoil brought back from +Tartary, so that it may serve to alleviate the people's wants. And with +regard to Maitilipala (Chunti's grandson), although former ages supply +examples of similar sacrifice, did Wou Wang, I ask you, when exterminating +the Chang family, resort to this barbarous policy? The Yuen princes were +the masters of this empire for nearly one hundred years, and my +forefathers were their subjects, and even although it were the constant +practice to treat in this fashion the princes of a dynasty which has +ceased to reign, yet could I not induce myself to adopt it." + +These noble sentiments, to which there is nothing contradictory in the +whole life of Hongwou, would alone place his reign high among the most +civilizing and humanly interesting epochs in Chinese history. To his +people he appeared as a real benefactor as well as a just prince. He was +ever studious of their interests, knowing that their happiness depended on +what might seem trivial matters, as well as in showy feats of arms and +high policy. He simplified the transit of salt, that essential article of +life, to provinces where its production was scanty, and when dearth fell +on the land he devoted all the resources of his treasury to its +mitigation. His thoughtfulness for his soldiers was shown by sending fur +coats to all the soldiers in garrison at Ninghia where the winter was +exceptionally severe. A final instance of his justice and consideration +may be cited in his ordering certain Mongol colonies established in +Southern China, to whom the climate proved uncongenial, to be sent back at +his expense to their northern homes, when his ministers exhorted him to +proceed to extremities against them and to root them out by fire and +sword. + +The pacification of the northern borders was followed by the dispatch of +troops into the southern provinces of Szchuen and Yunnan, where officials +appointed by the Mongols still exercised authority. One of these had +incurred the wrath of Hongwou by assuming a royal style and proclaiming +himself King of Hia. He was soon convinced of the folly of taking a title +which he had not the power to maintain, and the conquest of Szchuen was so +easily effected that it would not call for mention if it were not rendered +interesting as providing Hongwou's other great general Fuyuta with the +first opportunity of displaying his skill as a commander. The self-created +King of Hia presented himself laden with chains at the Chinese camp and +begged the favor of his life. The conquest of Szchuen was little more than +completed when the attention of Hongwou was again directed to the +northwest frontier, where Kuku Timour was making one more effort to +recover the footing he had lost on the fringe of the Celestial Empire, and +for a time fortune favored his enterprise. Even when Suta arrived upon the +scene and took the command of the Chinese forces in person, the Mongols +more than held their own. Twice did Suta attack the strong position taken +up by the Mongol chief in the desert, and twice was his assault repulsed +with heavy loss. A detachment under one of his lieutenants was surprised +in the desert and annihilated. Supplies were difficult to obtain, and +discouraged by defeat and the scarcity of food the Chinese army was placed +in an extremely dangerous position. Out of this dilemma it was rescued by +the heroic Fuyuta, who, on the news of the Mongol recrudescence, had +marched northward at the head of the army with which he had conquered +Szchuen. He advanced boldly into the desert, operated on the flank and in +the rear of Kuku Timour, vanquished the Mongols in many engagements, and +so monopolized their attention that Suta was able to retire in safety and +without loss. The war terminated with the Chinese maintaining all their +posts on the frontier, and the retreat of the Mongols, who had suffered +too heavy a loss to feel elated at their repulse of Suta. At the same time +no solid peace had been obtained, and the Mongols continued to harass the +borders, and to exact blackmail from all who traversed the desert. When +Hongwou endeavored to attain a settlement by a stroke of policy his +efforts were not more successful. His kind reception of the Mongol Prince +Maitilipala has been referred to, and about the year 1374 he sent him back +to Mongolia, in the hope that he would prove a friendly neighbor on his +father's death. The gratitude of Maitilipala seems to have been +unaffected; but, although he was the legitimate heir, the Mongols refused +to recognize him as Khan on the death of his father. Gradually +tranquillity settled down on those borders. The Chinese officials were +content to leave the Mongols alone, and the Mongols abandoned their +customary raids into Chinese territory. The death of Kuku Timour was +followed by the abandonment of all ideas of reviving Mongol authority in +China. Not long after that event died the great general, Suta, of whom the +national historians give the following glowing description which merits +preservation: "Suta spoke little and was endowed with great penetration. +He was always on good terms with the generals acting with him, sharing the +good and bad fortune alike of his soldiers, of whom there was not one who, +touched by his kindness, would not have done his duty to the death. He was +not less pronounced in his modesty. He had conquered a capital, three +provinces, several hundred towns, and on the very day of his return to +court from these triumphs he went without show and without retinue to his +own house, received there some learned professors and discussed various +subjects with them. Throughout his life he was in the presence of the +emperor respectful, and so reserved that one might have doubted his +capacity to speak." Hongwou was in the habit of speaking thus in his +praise: "My orders received, he forthwith departed; his task accomplished, +he returned without pride and without boasting. He loves not women, he +does not amass wealth. A man of strict integrity, without the slightest +stain, as pure and clear as the sun and moon, there is none like my first +general Suta." + +Hongwou had the satisfaction of restoring amicable relations with the King +of Corea, a state in which the Chinese have always taken naturally enough +a great interest from its proximity, as well as from an apprehension that +the Japanese might make use of it as a vantage ground for the invasion of +the continent. The King of Corea sent a formal embassy to Nankin, and when +he died his son asked for and received investiture in his authority with +the royal yellow robes at the hands of the Ming ruler. During this period +it will be convenient here to note that the ruling power in Corea passed +from the old royal family to the minister Li Chungwei, who was the +ancestor of the present king. The last military episode of the reign of +Hongwou was the conquest of Yunnan, which had been left over after the +recovery of Szchuen, in consequence of the fresh outbreak of the Mongols +in the north. This task was intrusted to Fuyuta, who at the head of an +army of 100,000 men, divided into two corps, invaded Yunnan. The prince of +that state offered the utmost resistance he could, but in the one great +battle of the war his army fighting bravely was overthrown, and he was +compelled to abandon his capital. The conquest of Yunnan completed the +pacification of the empire, and the authority of Hongwou was unchallenged +from the borders of Burmah to the Great Wall and the Corean frontier. The +population of the empire thus restored did not much exceed sixty millions. +The last ten years of the reign of Hongwou were passed in tranquillity, +marred by only one unpleasant incident, the mutiny of a portion of his +army under an ambitious general. The plot was discovered in good time, but +it is said that the emperor did not consider the exigencies of the case to +be met until he had executed twenty thousand of the mutineers. + +In 1398 Hongwou was attacked with the illness which ended his life. He was +then in his seventy-first year, and had reigned more than thirty years +since his proclamation of the Ming dynasty at Nankin. The Emperor Keen +Lung, in his history of the Mings, states that Hongwou possessed most of +the virtues and few of the vices of mankind. He was brave, patient under +suffering, far-seeing, studious of his people's welfare, and generous and +forbearing toward his enemies. It is not surprising that he succeeded in +establishing the Ming dynasty on a firm and popular basis, and that his +family have been better beloved in China than any dynasty with the +possible exception of the Hans. In his will, which is a remarkable +document, he recites the principal events of his reign, how he had +"pacified the empire and restored its ancient splendor." With the view of +providing for the stability of his empire, he chose as his successor his +grandson Chuwen, because he had remarked in him much prudence, a gentle +disposition, good intelligence, and a readiness to accept advice. He also +selected him because he was the eldest son of his eldest son, and as his +other sons might be disposed to dispute their nephew's authority he +ordered them to remain at their posts, and not to come to the capital on +his death. They were also enjoined to show the new emperor all the respect +and docility owed by subjects to their sovereign. Through these timely +precautions Chuwen, who was only sixteen years of age, was proclaimed +emperor without any opposition, and took the title of Kien Wenti. + +Hongwou had rightly divined that his sons might prove a thorn in the side +of his successor, and his policy of employing them in posts at a distance +from the capital was only half successful in attaining its object. If it +kept them at a distance it also strengthened their feeling of +independence, and enabled them to collect their forces without attracting +much attention. Wenti, as it is most convenient to call the new emperor, +felt obliged to send formal invitations to his uncles to attend the +obsequies of their father. Most of them had the tact to perceive that the +invitation was dictated by regard for decency, and not by a wish that it +should be accepted, and gave the simplest excuse for not attending the +funeral. But Ty, Prince of Yen, the most powerful and ambitious of them +all, declared that he accepted the emperor's invitation. This decision +raised quite a flutter of excitement, almost amounting to consternation, +at Nankin, where the Prince of Yen was regarded as a bitter and vindictive +enemy. The only way Wenti saw out of this dilemma was to send his uncle a +special intimation that his presence at the capital would not be +desirable. Before he had been many weeks on the throne Wenti was thus +brought into open conflict with the most powerful and ambitious of all his +relatives. He resolved, under the advice of his ministers, to treat all +his uncles as his enemies, and he sent his officers with armies at their +back to depose them, and bring them as prisoners to his court. Five of his +uncles were thus summarily dealt with, one committed suicide, and the +other four were degraded to the rank of the people. But the Prince of Yen +was too formidable to be tackled in this fashion. Taking warning from the +fate of his brothers, he collected all the troops he could, prepared to +defend his position against the emperor, and issued a proclamation stating +that it was lawful for subjects to revolt for the purpose of removing the +pernicious advisers of the sovereign. The last was, he announced, the +cause of his taking up arms, and he disclaimed any motive of ambitious +turbulence for raising his standard. He said, "I am endeavoring to avert +the ruin of my family, and to maintain the emperor on a throne which is +placed in jeopardy by the acts of traitors. My cause ought, therefore, to +be that of all those who keep the blood of the great Hong-wou, now falsely +aspersed, in affectionate remembrance." A large number of the inhabitants +of the northern provinces joined his side, and proclaimed him as "The +Prince." Wenti had recourse to arms to bring his uncle back to his +allegiance, and a civil war began, which was carried on, with exceptional +bitterness, during five years. The resources of the emperor, in men and +money, were the superior, but he did not seem able to turn them to good +account; and the prince's troops were generally victorious, and his power +gradually increased. In the year 1401 both sides concentrated all their +strength for deciding the contest by a single trial of arms. The two +armies numbered several hundred thousand men, and it is stated that the +imperial force alone mustered 600,000 strong. The battle--which was fought +at Techow in Shantung--considering the numbers engaged, it is not +surprising to learn, lasted several days, and its fortune alternated from +one side to the other. At last victory declared for the prince, and the +imperial army was driven in rout from the field with the loss of 100,000 +men. + +After this great victory the further progress of the prince was arrested +by a capable general named Chinyong, who succeeded in gaining one great +victory. If Wenti had known how to profit by this success he might have +turned the course of the struggle permanently in his own favor. But +instead of profiting by his good fortune, Wenti, believing that all danger +from the prince was at an end, resumed his old practices, and reinstated +two of the most obnoxious of his ministers, whom he had disgraced in a fit +of apprehension. Undoubtedly this step raised against him a fresh storm of +unpopularity, and at the same time brought many supporters to his uncle, +who, even after the serious disaster described, found himself stronger +than he had been before. The struggle must have shown little signs of a +decisive issue, for in 1402 the prince made a voluntary offer of peace, +with a view to putting an end to all strife and of giving the empire +peace; but Wenti could not make up his mind to forgive him. The success of +his generals in the earlier part of the struggle seemed to warrant the +belief that there was no reason in prudence for coming to terms with his +rebellious uncle, and that he would succeed in establishing his +indisputable supremacy. The prince seemed reduced to such straits that he +had to give his army the option of retreat. Addressing his soldiers he +said: "I know how to advance, but not to retreat"; but his army decided to +return to their homes in the north, when the extraordinary and unexpected +retreat of the greater part of the army of Wenti revived their courage and +induced them to follow their leader through one more encounter. Like +Frederick the Great, the Prince of Yen was never greater than in defeat. +He surprised the lately victorious army of Wenti, smashed it in pieces, +and captured Tingan, the emperor's best general. The occupation of Nankin +and the abdication of Wenti followed this victory in rapid succession. +Afraid to trust himself to the mercy of his relative, he fled, disguised +as a priest, to Yunnan, where he passed his life ignominiously for forty +years, and his identity was only discovered after that lapse of time by +his publishing, in his new character of a Buddhist priest, a poem reciting +and lamenting the misfortunes of Wenti. Then he was removed to Pekin, +where he died in honorable confinement. As a priest he seems to have been +more fortunate than as a ruler, and history contains no more striking +example of happiness being found in a private station when unattainable on +a throne. + +After some hesitation the Prince of Yen allowed himself to be proclaimed +emperor, and as such he is best known as Yonglo, a name signifying +"Eternal Joy." Considering his many declarations that his only ambition +was to reform and not to destroy the administration of his nephew, his +first act obliterating the reign of Wenti from the records and +constituting himself the immediate successor of Hongwou was not calculated +to support his alleged indifference to power. He was scarcely seated on +the throne before he was involved in serious troubles on both his northern +and his southern frontiers. In Mongolia he attempted to assert a formal +supremacy over the khans through the person of an adventurer named +Kulitchi, but the agent was unable to fulfill his promises, and met with a +speedy overthrow. In Tonquin an ambitious minister named Likimao deposed +his master and established himself as ruler in his place. The emperor sent +an army to bring him to his senses, and it met with such rapid success +that the Chinese were encouraged to annex Tonquin and convert it into a +province of the empire. When Yonglo's plans failed on the steppe he was +drawn into a struggle with the Mongols, which necessitated annual +expeditions until he died. During the last of these he advanced as far as +the Kerulon, and on his return march he died in his camp at the age of +sixty-five. Although he bore arms so long against the head of the state +there is no doubt that he greatly consolidated the power of the Mings, +which he extended on one side to the Amour and on the other to the +Songcoi. It was during his reign that Tamerlane contemplated the +reconquest of China, and perhaps it was well for Yonglo that that great +commander died when he had traversed only a few stages of his march to the +Great Wall. One of his sons succeeded Yonglo as emperor, but he only +reigned under the style of Gintsong for a few months. + +Then Suentsong, the son of Gintsong, occupied the throne, and during his +reign a vital question affecting the constitution of the civil service, +and through it the whole administration of the country, was brought +forward, and fortunately settled without recourse to blows, as was at one +time feared would be the case. Before his reign the public examinations +had been open to candidates from all parts of the empire, and it had +become noticeable that all the honors were being carried off by students +from the southern provinces, who were of quicker intelligence than those +of the north. It seemed as if in the course of a short time all the posts +would be held by them, and that the natives of the provinces north of the +Hoangho would be gradually driven out of the service. Naturally this +marked tendency led to much agitation in the north, and a very bitter +feeling was spreading when Suentsong and his minister took up the matter +and proceeded to apply a sound practical remedy. After a commission of +inquiry had certified to the reality of the evil, Suentsong decreed that +all competitors for literary honors should be restricted to their native +districts, and that for the purpose of the competitive examinations China +should be divided into three separate divisions, one for the north, +another for the center, and the third for the south. The firmness shown by +the Emperor Suentsong in this matter was equally conspicuous in his +dealings with an uncle, who showed some inclination to revolt. He took the +field in person, and before the country was generally aware of the revolt, +Suentsong was conducting his relative to a state prison. The rest of +Suentsong's reign was peaceful and prosperous, and he left the crown to +his son, Yngtsong, a child eight years old. + +During his minority the governing authority was exercised by his +grandmother, the Empress Changchi, the mother of the Emperor Suentsong. At +first it seemed as if there would be a struggle for power between her and +the eunuch Wangchin, who had gained the affections of the young emperor; +but after she had denounced him before the court and called for his +execution, from which fate he was only rescued by the tears and +supplications of the young sovereign, the feud was composed by Wangchin +gaining such an ascendency over the empress that she made him her +associate in the regency. Unfortunately Wangchin did not prove a wise or +able administrator. He thought more of the sweets of office than of the +duties of his lofty station. He appointed his relations and creatures to +the highest civil and military posts without regard to their +qualifications or ability. To his arrogance was directly due the +commencement of a disastrous war with Yesien, the most powerful of the +Mongol chiefs of the day. When that prince sent the usual presents to the +Chinese capital, and made the customary request for a Chinese princess as +wife, Wangchin appropriated the gifts for himself and sent back a haughty +refusal to Yesien's petition, although it was both customary and rarely +refused. Such a reception was tantamount to a declaration of war, and +Yesien, who had already been tempted by the apparent weakness of the +Chinese frontier to resume the raids which were so popular with the +nomadic tribes of the desert, gathered his fighting men together and +invaded China. Alarmed by the storm he had raised, Wangchin still +endeavored to meet it, and summoning all the garrisons in the north to his +aid, he placed himself at the head of an army computed to number half a +million of men. In the hope of inspiring his force with confidence he took +the boy-emperor, Yngtsong, with him, but his own incompetence nullified +the value of numbers, and rendered the presence of the emperor the cause +of additional ignominy instead of the inspiration of invincible +confidence. The vast and unwieldy Chinese army took up a false position at +a place named Toumon, and it is affirmed that the position was so bad that +Yesien feared that it must cover a ruse. He accordingly sent some of his +officers to propose an armistice, but really to inspect the Chinese lines. +They returned to say that there was no concealment, and that if an attack +were made at once the Chinese army lay at his mercy. Yesien delayed not a +moment in delivering his attack, and it was completely successful. The +very numbers of the Chinese, in a confined position, added to their +discomfiture, and after a few hours' fighting the battle became a massacre +and a rout. Wangchin, the cause of all this ruin, was killed by Fanchong, +the commander of the imperial guards, and the youthful ruler, Yngtsong, +was taken prisoner. There has rarely been a more disastrous day in the +long annals of the Chinese empire than the rout at Toumon. + +Then Yesien returned to his camp on the Toula, taking his prisoner with +him, and announcing that he would only restore him for a ransom of 100 +taels of gold, 200 taels of silver, and 200 pieces of the finest silk. For +some unknown reason the Empress Changchi did not feel disposed to pay this +comparatively low ransom, and instead of reclaiming Yngtsong from his +conqueror she placed his brother, Kingti, on the throne. The struggle with +the Mongols under Yesien continued, but his attention was distracted from +China by his desire to become the great Khan of the Mongols, a title still +held by his brother-in-law, Thotho Timour, of the House of Genghis. +Yesien, suddenly releasing of his own accord Yngtsong--who returned to +Pekin--hastened to the Kerulon country, where he overthrew and +assassinated Thotho Timour, and was in turn himself slain by another +chieftain. While the Mongol was thus pursuing his own ambition, and +reaching the violent death which forms so common a feature in the history +of his family, the unfortunate Yngtsong returned to China, where, on the +refusal of his brother Kingti to resign the throne, he sank quietly into +private life. Kingti died seven years after his brother's return, and +then, failing a better or nearer prince, Yngtsong was brought from his +confinement and restored to the throne. He reigned eight years after his +restoration, but he never possessed any real power, his authority being +wielded by unscrupulous ministers, who stained his reign by the execution +of Yukien, the most honest and capable general of the period. If his reign +was not remarkable for political or military vigor, some useful reforms +appear to have been instituted. Among others may be named the formation of +state farms on waste or confiscated lands, the establishment of military +schools for teaching archery and horsemanship, and the completion of some +useful and elaborate educational works, of which a geography of China, in +ninety volumes, is the most famous. + +Yngtsong died in the year 1465, and was succeeded by his son, Hientsong, +who began his reign with acts of filial devotion that attracted the +sympathy of his subjects. He also rendered posthumous honors to the ill- +used general, Yukien, and established his fame as a national benefactor. +During the twenty-eight years that he occupied the throne he was engaged +in a number of petty wars, none of which requires specific mention. The +only unpopular measure associated with his name was the creation of a +Grand Council of Eunuchs, to which was referred all questions of capital +punishment, and this body soon acquired a power which made it resemble the +tyrannical and irresponsible British Star Chamber. After five years this +institution became so unpopular and was so deeply execrated by the nation +that Hientsong, however reluctantly, had to abolish his own creation, and +acquiesce in the execution of some of its most active members. + +During Hientsong's reign a systematic attempt was made to work the gold +mines reputed to exist in Central China, but although half a million men +were employed upon them it is stated that the find did not exceed thirty +ounces. More useful work was accomplished in the building of a canal from +Pekin to the Peiho, which thus enabled grain junks to reach the northern +capital by the Euho and Shaho canals from the Yangtsekiang. Another useful +public work was the repairing of the Great Wall, effected along a +considerable portion of its extent, by the efforts of 50,000 soldiers, +which gave the Chinese a sense of increased security. In connection with +this measure of defense, it may be stated that the Chinese advanced into +Central Asia and occupied the town of Hami, which then and since has +served them as a useful watch-tower in the direction of the west. The +death of Hientsong occurred in 1487, at a moment when the success and +prosperity of the country under the Mings may be described as having +reached its height. + +During the reign of his son and successor, Hiaotsong, matters progressed +peacefully, for, although there was some fighting for the possession of +Hami, which was coveted by several of the desert chiefs, but which +remained during the whole of this reign subject to China, the empire was +not involved in any great war. An insurrection of the black aborigines of +the island of Hainan was put down without any very serious difficulty. +These events do not throw any very clear light on the character and +personality of Hiaotsong, who died in 1505 at the early age of thirty-six; +but his care for his people, and his desire to alleviate the misfortunes +that might befall his subjects, was shown by his ordering every district +composed of ten villages to send in annually to a State granary, a +specified quantity of grain, until 100,000 bushels had been stored in +every such building throughout the country. The idea was an excellent one; +but it is to be feared that a large portion of this grain was diverted to +the use of the peculating officials, whence arose the phrase, "The emperor +is full of pity, but the Court of Finance is like the never-dying worm +which devours the richest crops." To Hiaotsong succeeded his son, +Woutsong, during whose reign many misfortunes fell upon the land. The +emperor's uncles had designs on his authority, but these fell through and +came to naught, rather through Woutsong's good fortune than the excellence +of his arrangements. In Szchuen a peasant war threatened to assume the +dimensions of a rebellion, and in Pechihli bands of mounted robbers, or +Hiangmas, raided the open country. He succeeded in suppressing these +revolts, but his indifference to the disturbed state of his realm was +shown by his passing most of his time in hunting expeditions beyond the +Great Wall. His successors were to reap the result of this neglect of +business for the pursuit of pleasure; and when he died in 1519, without +leaving an heir, the outlook was beginning to look serious for the Ming +dynasty. One event, and perhaps the most important of Woutsong's reign, +calls for special mention, and that is the arrival at Canton of the first +native of Europe to reach China by sea. Of course it will be recollected +that Marco Polo and others reached the Mongol court by land, although the +Venetian sailed from China on his embassy to southern India. In 1511, +Raphael Perestralo sailed from Malacca to China, and in 1517 the +Portuguese officer, Don Fernand Perez D'Andrade, arrived in the Canton +River with a squadron, and was favorably received by the mandarins. +D'Andrade visited Pekin, where he resided for some time as embassador. The +commencement of intercourse between Europeans and China was thus effected +most auspiciously; and it might have continued so but that a second +Portuguese fleet appeared in Chinese waters, and committed there numerous +outrages and acts of piracy. Upon this D'Andrade was arrested by order of +Woutsong, and after undergoing imprisonment, was executed by his successor +in 1523. It was a bad beginning for a connection which, after nearly four +hundred years, is neither as stable nor as general as the strivers after +perfection could desire. + +The death of Woutsong without children, or any recognized heir, threatened +to involve the realm in serious dangers; but the occasion was so critical +that the members of the Ming family braced themselves to it, and under the +auspices of the Empress Changchi, the widow of the late ruler, a secret +council was held, when the grandson of the Emperor Hientsong, a youth of +fourteen, was placed on the throne under the name of Chitsong. It is said +that his mother gave him good advice on being raised from a private +station to the lofty eminence of emperor, and that she told him that he +was about to accept a heavy burden; but experience showed that he was +unequal to it. Still, his shortcomings were preferable to a disputed +succession. The earlier years of his reign were marked by some successes +over the Tartars, and he received tribute from chiefs who had never paid +it before. But Chitsong had little taste for the serious work of +administration. He showed himself superstitious in matters of religion, +and he cultivated poetry, and may even have persuaded himself that he was +a poet. But he did not pay any heed to the advice of those among his +ministers who urged him to take a serious view of his position, and to act +in a manner worthy of his dignity. It is clear that his influence on the +lot of his people, and even on the course of his country's history, was +small, and such reigns as his inspire the regret expressed at there being +no history of the Chinese people; but such a history is impossible. + +It might be more instructive to trace the growth of thought among the +masses, or to indicate the progress of civil and political freedom; yet, +not only do the materials not exist for such a task, but those we possess +all tend to show that there has been no growth to describe, no progress to +be indicated, during these comparatively recent centuries. It is the +peculiar and distinguishing characteristic of Chinese history that the +people and their institutions have remained practically unchanged and the +same from a very early period. Even the introduction of a foreign element +has not tended to disturb the established order of things. The supreme +ruler possesses the same attributes and discharges the same functions; the +governing classes are chosen in the same manner; the people are bound in +the same state of servitude, and enjoy the same practical liberty; all is +now as it was. Neither under the Tangs nor the Sungs, under the Yuens nor +the Mings, was there any change in national character or in political +institutions to be noted or chronicled. The history of the empire has +always been the fortunes of the dynasty, which has depended, in the first +place, on the passive content of the subjects, and, in the second, on the +success or failure of its external and internal wars. This condition of +things may be disappointing to those who pride themselves on tracing the +origin of a constitution and the growth of civil rights, and also would +have a history of China a history of the Chinese people; although the fact +is undoubted that there is no history of the Chinese people apart from +that of their country to be recorded. The national institutions and +character were formed, and had attained in all essentials their present +state, more than two thousand years ago, or before the destruction of all +trustworthy materials for the task by the burning of the ancient +literature and chronicles of China. Without them we must fain content +ourselves with the history of the country and the empire. + +Chitsong was engaged in three serious operations beyond his frontier, one +with a Tartar chief named Yenta, another with the Japanese, and the third +in Cochin China. Yenta was of Mongol extraction, and enjoyed supreme power +on the borders of Shansi. His brother was chief of the Ordus tribe, which +dwells within the Chinese frontier. Changtu, the old residence of Kublai, +was one of his camps, and it was said that he could bring 100,000 horsemen +into the field. The success of his raids carried alarm through the +province of Shansi, and during one of them he laid siege to the capital, +Taiyuen. Then the emperor placed a reward on his head and offered an +official post to the person who would rid him of his enemy by +assassination. The offer failed to bring forward either a murderer or a +patriot, and Yenta's hostility was increased by the personal nature of +this attack, and perhaps by the apprehension of a sinister fate. He +invaded China on a larger scale than ever, and carried his ravages to the +southern extremity of Shansi, and returned laden with the spoil of forty +districts, and bearing with him 200,000 prisoners to a northern captivity. +After this success Yenta seems to have rested on his laurels, although he +by no means gave up his raids, which, however, assumed more and more a +local character. The Chinese annalists state that never was the frontier +more disturbed, and even the establishment of horse fairs for the benefit +of the Mongols failed to keep them quiet. In Cochin China the emperor +gained some gratifying if not very important successes, and asserted his +right as suzerain over several disobedient princes. But a more serious and +less satisfactory question had to be settled on the side of Japan. + +The Japanese had never forgiven the formidable and unprovoked invasion of +their country by Kublai Khan. The Japanese are by nature a military +nation, and the Chinese writers themselves describe them as "intrepid, +inured to fatigue, despising life, and knowing well how to face death; +although inferior in number a hundred of them would blush to flee before a +thousand foreigners, and if they did they would not dare to return to +their country. Sentiments such as these, which are instilled into them +from their earliest childhood, render them terrible in battle." Emboldened +by their success over the formidable Mongols the Japanese treated the +Chinese with contempt, and fitted out piratical expeditions from time to +time with the object of preying on the commerce and coasting towns of +China. To guard against the descents of these enterprising islanders the +Chinese had erected towers of defense along the coast, and had called out +a militia which was more or less inefficient. On the main they did not so +much as attempt to make a stand against their neighbors, whose war junks +exercised undisputed authority on the Eastern Sea. While this strife +continued a trade also sprang up between the two peoples, who share in an +equal degree the commercial instinct; but as the Chinese government only +admitted Japanese goods when brought by the embassador, who was sent every +ten years from Japan, this trade could only be carried on by smuggling. A +regular system was adopted to secure the greatest success and profit. The +Japanese landed their goods on some island off the coast, whence the +Chinese removed them at a safe and convenient moment to the mainland. The +average value of the cargo of one of the small junks which carried on this +trade is said to have been $20,000, so that it may be inferred that the +profits were considerable. But the national antipathies would not be +repressed by the profitable character of this trade, and the refusal of a +Chinese merchant to give a Japanese the goods for which he had paid lit +the embers of a war which went on for half a century, and which materially +weakened the Ming power. During the last years of Chitsong's long reign of +forty-five years this trouble showed signs of getting worse, although the +Japanese confined their efforts to irregular and unexpected attacks on +places on the coast, and did not attempt to wage a regular war. In the +midst of these troubles, and when it was hoped that the exhortation of his +ministers would produce some effect, Chitsong died, leaving behind him a +will or public proclamation to be issued after his death, and which reads +like a long confession of fault. Mea culpa, exclaimed this Eastern ruler +at the misfortunes of his people and the calamities of his realm, but he +could not propound a remedy for them. + +His third son succeeded him as the Emperor Moutsong, and the character and +capacity of this prince gave promise that his reign would be satisfactory +if not glorious. Unfortunately for his family, and perhaps for his +country, the public expectations were dispelled in his case by an early +death. The six years during which he reigned were rendered remarkable by +the conclusion of a stable peace with the Tartar Yenta, who accepted the +title of a Prince of the Empire. Moutsong when he found that he was dying +grew apprehensive lest the youth of his son might not stir up dissension +and provoke that internal strife which had so often proved the bane of the +empire and involved the wreck of many of its dynasties. He exhorted his +ministers to stand by his son who was only a boy, to give him the best +advice in their power, and to render him worthy of the throne. That the +apprehensions of Moutsong were not without reason was clearly shown by the +mishaps and calamities which occurred during the long reign of his son and +successor Wanleh. With the death of Moutsong the period ends when it was +possible to state that the majesty of the Mings remained undimmed, and +that this truly national dynasty wielded with power and full authority the +imperial mandate. When they had driven out the Mongol the Mings seem to +have settled down into an ordinary and intensely national line of rulers. +The successors of Hongwou did nothing great or noteworthy, but the Chinese +acquiesced in their rule, and even showed that they possessed for it a +special regard and affection. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +THE DECLINE OP THE MINGS + + +The reign of Wanleh covers the long and important epoch from 1573 to 1620, +during which period occurred some very remarkable events in the history of +the country, including the first movements of the Manchus with a view to +the conquest of the empire. The young prince was only six when he was +placed on the throne, but he soon showed that he had been well-trained to +play the part of ruler. The best indication of the prosperity of the realm +is furnished by the revenue, which steadily increased until it reached the +great total, excluding the grain receipts, of seventy-five millions of our +money. But a large revenue becomes of diminished value unless it is +associated with sound finance. The public expenditure showed a steady +increase; the emperor and his advisers were incapable of checking the +outlay, and extravagance, combined with improvidence, soon depleted the +exchequer. Internal troubles occurred to further embarrass the executive, +and the resources of the state were severely strained in coping with more +than one serious rebellion, among which the most formidable was the mutiny +of a mercenary force under the command of a Turk officer named Popai, who +imagined that he was unjustly treated, and that the time was favorable to +found an administration of his own. His early successes encouraged him to +believe that he would succeed in his object; but when he found that all +the disposable forces of the empire were sent against him, he abandoned +the field, and shut himself up in the fortress at Ninghia, where he hoped +to hold out indefinitely. For many months he succeeded in baffling the +attacks of Wanleh's general, and the siege might even have had to be +raised if the latter had not conceived the idea of diverting the course of +the river Hoangho, so that it might bear upon the walls of the fortress. +Popai was unable to resist this form of attack, and when the Chinese +stormers made their way through the breach thus caused, he attempted to +commit suicide by setting fire to his residence. This satisfaction was +denied him, for a Chinese officer dragged him from the flames, slew him, +and sent his head to the general Li Jusong, who conducted the siege, and +of whom we shall hear a great deal more. + +The gratification caused by the overthrow of Popai had scarcely abated +when the attention of the Chinese government was drawn away from domestic +enemies to a foreign assailant who threatened the most serious danger to +China. Reference was made in the last chapter to the relations between the +Chinese and the Japanese, and to the aggressions of the latter, increased, +no doubt, by Chinese chicane and their own naval superiority and +confidence. But nothing serious might have come out of these unneighborly +relations if they had not furnished an ambitious ruler with the +opportunity of embarking on an enterprise which promised to increase his +empire and his glory. The old Japanese ruling family was descended, as +already described, from a Chinese exile; but the hero of the sixteenth +century could claim no relationship with the royal house, and owed none of +his success to the accident of a noble birth. Fashiba, called by some +English writers Hideyoshi; by the Chinese Pingsiuki; and by the Japanese, +on his elevation to the dignity of Tycoon, Taiko Sama, was originally a +slave; and it is said that he first attracted attention by refusing to +make the prescribed obeisance to one of the daimios or lords. He was on +the point of receiving condign punishment, when he pleaded his case with +such ingenuity and courage that the daimio not only forgave him his +offense, but gave him a post in his service. Having thus obtained +honorable employment, Fashiba devoted all his energy and capacity to +promoting the interests of his new master, knowing well that his position +and opportunities must increase equally with them. In a short time he made +his lord the most powerful daimio in the land, and on his death he +stepped, naturally enough, into the position and power of his chief. How +long he would have maintained himself thus in ordinary times may be matter +of opinion, but he resolved to give stability to his position and a +greater luster to his name by undertaking an enterprise which should be +popular with the people and profitable to the state. The Japanese had only +attempted raids on the coast, and they had never thought of establishing +themselves on the mainland. But Fashiba proposed the conquest of China, +and he hoped to effect his purpose through the instrumentality of Corea. +With this view he wrote the king of that country the following letter: "I +will assemble a mighty host, and, invading the country of the Great Ming, +I will fill with hoar-frost from my sword the whole sky over the 400 +provinces. Should I carry out this purpose, I hope that Corea will be my +vanguard. Let her not fail to do so, for my friendship to your honorable +country depends solely on your conduct when I lead my army against China." + +Fashiba began with an act of aggression at Corea's expense, by seizing the +important harbor of Fushan. Having thus secured a foothold on the mainland +and a gateway into the kingdom, Fashiba hastened to invade Corea at the +head of a large army. The capital was sacked and the tombs of Lipan's +ancestors desecrated, while he himself fled to the Chinese court to +implore the assistance of Wanleh. An army was hastily assembled and +marched to arrest the progress of the Japanese invader, who had by this +reached Pingyang, a town 400 miles north of Fushan. An action was fought +outside this town. The advantage rested with the Japanese, who succeeded +in destroying a Chinese regiment. After this a lull ensued in the +campaign, and both sides brought up fresh forces. Fashiba came over from +Japan with further supplies and troops to assist his general, Hingchang, +while on the Chinese side, Li Jusong, the captor of Ninghia, was placed at +the head of the Chinese army. A second battle was fought in the +neighborhood of Pingyang, and after some stubborn fighting the Japanese +were driven out of that town. + +The second campaign was opened by a brilliant feat on the part of Li +Jusong, who succeeded in surprising and destroying the granaries and +storehouses constructed by the Japanese, near Seoul. The loss of their +stores compelled the Japanese to retire on Fushan, but they did not with +such boldness and confidence that the Chinese did not venture to attack +them. The ultimate result of the struggle was still doubtful when the +sudden death of Fashiba completely altered the complexion of the +situation. The Japanese army then withdrew, taking with it a vast amount +of booty and the ears of 10,000 Coreans. The Chinese troops also retired, +leaving the Corean king at liberty to restore his disputed authority, and +his kingdom once more sank into its primitive state of exclusion and semi- +darkness. + +For the first time in Chinese history the relations between the Middle +Kingdom and Europeans became of importance during the reign of Wanleh, +which would alone give it a special distinction. The Portuguese led the +way for European enterprise in China, and it was very unfortunate that +they did so, for it was soon written of them that "the Portuguese have no +other design than to come under the name of merchants to spy the country, +that they may hereafter fall upon it with fire and sword." As early as the +year 1560 they had obtained from the local officials the right to found a +settlement and to erect sheds for their goods at a place which is now +known as Macao. In a few years it became of so much importance that it was +the annual restort of five or six hundred Portuguese merchants; and the +Portuguese, by paying a yearly rent of 500 taels, secured the practical +monopoly of the trade of the Canton River, which was then and long +afterward the only vent for the external trade of China. No doubt the +Portuguese had to supplement this nominal rent by judicious bribes to the +leading mandarins. Next after the Portuguese came the Spaniards, who, +instead of establishing themselves on the mainland, made their +headquarters in a group of the Philippine Islands. + +The promotion of European interests in China owed little or nothing to the +forbearance and moderation of either the Spaniards or Portuguese. They +tyrannized over the Chinese subject to their sway, and they employed all +their resources in driving away other Europeans from what they chose to +consider their special commercial preserves. Thus the Dutch were expelled +from the south by the Portuguese and compelled to take refuge in Formosa, +while the English and French did not make their appearance, except by +occasional visits, until a much later period, although it should be +recorded that the English Captain Weddell was the first to discover the +mouth of the Canton River, and to make his way up to that great city. + +One of the principal troubles of the Emperor Wanleh arose from his having +no legitimate heir, and his ministers impressed upon him, for many years, +the disadvantage of this situation before he would undertake to select one +of his children by the inferior members of the harem as his successor. And +then he made what may be termed a divided selection. He proclaimed his +eldest son heir-apparent, and declared the next brother to be in the +direct order of succession, and conferred on him the title of Prince Fou +Wang. The latter was his real favorite, and, encouraged by his father's +preference, he formed a party to oust his elder brother and to gain the +heritage before it was due. The intrigues in which he engaged long +disturbed the court and agitated the mind of the emperor. Supported by his +mother, Prince Fou Wang threatened the position and even the life of the +heir-apparent, Prince Chu Changlo, but the plot was discovered and Fou +Wang's rank would not have saved him from the executioner if it had not +been for the special intercession of his proposed victim, Chu Changlo. In +the midst of these family troubles, as well as those of the state, the +Emperor Wanleh died, after a long reign, in 1620. The last years of his +life were rendered unhappy and miserable by the reverses experienced at +the hands of the new and formidable opponent who had suddenly appeared +upon the northern frontier of the empire. + +Some detailed account of the Manchu race and of the progress of their arms +before the death of Wanleh will form a fitting prelude to the description +of the long wars which resulted in the conquest of China and in the +placing of the present ruling family on the Dragon Throne. + +The first chief of the Manchu clan was a mythical personage named Aisin +Gioro, who flourished in the middle of the fourteenth century, while +Hongwou, the founder of the Mings, was employed in the task of driving out +the Mongols. Aisin Gioro is said to mean Golden Family Stem, and thus the +connection with the Kin dynasty finds recognition at an early stage. His +birth is described in mythical terms--it is said that a magpie dropped a +red fruit into the lap of a maiden of the Niuche, who straightway ate it +and conceived a son. The skeptical have interpreted this as meaning that +Aisin Gioro was a runaway Mongol, who was granted shelter by the Niuche of +Hootooala. At all events he became lord of the valley, and five +generations later, in the reign of Wanleh, his descendant, Huen, was head +of the Manchus. His grandson, the great Noorhachu, was born in the year +1559, and his birth was attended by several miraculous circumstances. He +is said "to have been a thirteen-months' child, to have had the dragon +face and the phenix eye, an enormous chest, large ears, and a voice like +the tone of the largest bell." + +A chief named Haida was the first to stir up the embers of internecine +strife among the Niuche clans. To gratify his own ambition or to avenge +some blood feuds, he obtained the assistance of one of the principal +Chinese officers on the Leaoutung borders, and thus overran the territory +of his neighbors. Encouraged by his first successes, Haida proceeded to +attack the chief of Goolo, who was married to a cousin of Noorhachu, and +who at once appealed to Hootooala for assistance. The whole Manchu clan +marched to his rescue, and it was on this occasion that Noorhachu had his +first experience of war on a large scale. The Manchus presented such a +bold front that there is every reason to believe that Haida and his +Chinese allies would have failed to conquer Goolo by force, but they +resorted to fraud, which proved only too successful. Haida succeeded in +enticing the old chief Huen and his son, the father of Noorhachu, into a +conference, when he murdered them and many of their companions. The +momentary success gained by this breach of faith was heavily paid for by +the incentive it gave Noorhachu to exact revenge for the brutal and +cowardly murder of his father and grandfather. Haida constructed a +fortified camp at Toolun, but he did not feel secure there against the +open attacks of Noorhachu or the private plots he formed to gain +possession of his person. Several times Haida fled from Toolun to Chinese +territory, where he hoped to enjoy greater safety, until at last the +Chinese became tired of giving him shelter and protecting one who could +not support his own pretensions. Then, with strange inconstancy, they +delivered him over into the hands of Noorhachu, who straightway killed +him, thus carrying out the first portion of his vow to avenge the massacre +at Goolo. + +Then Noorhachu turned all his attention and devoted all his energy to the +realization of the project which Haida had conceived, the union of the +Niuche clans; but whereas Haida had looked to Chinese support and +patronage for the attainment of his object, Noorhachu resolved to achieve +success as an enemy of China and by means of his own Manchu followers. His +first measure was to carefully select a site for his capital on a plain +well supplied with water, and then to fortify it by surrounding it with +three walls. He then drew up simple regulations for the government of his +people, and military rules imposing a severe discipline on his small army. +The Chinese appear to have treated him with indifference, and they +continued to pay him the sums of money and the honorary gifts which had +been made to Haida. Several of the Niuche clans, won over by the success +and reputation of Noorhachu, voluntarily associated themselves with him, +and it was not until the year 1591 that the Manchu chief committed his +first act of open aggression by invading the district of Yalookiang. That +territory was soon overrun and annexed; but it roused such a fear among +the other Niuche chiefs, lest their fate should be the same, that seven of +them combined, under Boojai, to overthrow the upstart who aspired to play +the part of a dictator. They brought into the field a force of 30,000 men, +including, besides their own followers, a considerable contingent from the +Mongols; and as Noorhachu's army numbered only 4,000 men, it seemed as if +he must certainly be overwhelmed. But, small as was his force, it enjoyed +the incalculable advantage of discipline; and seldom has the superiority +of trained troops over raw levies been more conspicuously illustrated than +by this encounter between warriors of the same race. This battle was +fought at Goolo Hill, and resulted in the decisive victory of Noorhachu. +Boojai and 4,000 of his men were killed, a large number of his followers +were taken prisoners and enrolled in the ranks of the victor, and the +spoil included many suits of mail and arms of offense which improved the +state of Noorhachu's arsenal. Several of the districts which had been +subject to these confederated princes passed into the hands of the +conqueror, and he carried his authority northward up the Songari River +over tribes who had never recognized any southern authority. These +successes paved the way to an attack on Yeho, the principality of Boojai, +which was reputed to be the most powerful of all the Niuche states; and on +this occasion it vindicated its reputation by repelling the attack of +Noorhachu. Its success was not entirely due to its own strength, for the +Chinese governor of Leaoutung, roused at last to the danger from +Noorhachu, sent money and arms to assist the Yeho people in their defense. + +The significance of this repulse was diminished by other successes +elsewhere, and Noorhachu devoted his main attention to disciplining the +larger force he had acquired by his later conquests, and by raising its +efficiency to the high point attained by the army with which he had gained +his first triumphs. He also meditated a more daring and important +enterprise than any struggle with his kinsfolk; for he came to the +conclusion that it was essential to destroy the Chinese power in Leaoutung +before he should undertake any further enterprise in Manchuria. His army +had now been raised to an effective strength of 40,000 men, and the Manchu +bowman, with his formidable bow, and the Manchu man-at-arms, in his cotton +mail, proof to the arrow or spear, were as formidable warriors as then +existed in the world. Confident in his military power, and thinking, no +doubt, that a successful foreign enterprise was the best way to rally and +confirm the allegiance of his race, Noorhachu invaded Leaoutung, and +published a proclamation against the Chinese, which became known as the +Seven Hates. Instead of forwarding this document to the Chinese Court he +burned it in the presence of his army, so that Heaven itself might judge +the justice of the cause between him and the Chinese. + +It was in the year 1618 that Noorhachu invaded Leaoutung, and so surprised +were the Chinese at his audacity that they offered little or no +resistance. The town of Fooshun was captured and made the headquarters of +the Manchu prince. From this place he sent a list of his requirements to +the governor of Leaoutung, and it is said that he offered, on the Chinese +complying with his terms, to withdraw and desist from hostilities. But the +Chinese did not appreciate the power of this new enemy. They treated his +grievances with indifference and contempt, and they sent an army to drive +him out of Leaoutung. The Chinese troops soon had a taste of the quality +of the Manchu army. They were defeated in several encounters, and the best +Chinese troops fled before the impetuous charge of the Manchu cavalry. +Noorhachu then laid siege to the prefectural town of Tsingho, which he +captured after a siege of some weeks, and where he massacred nearly 20,000 +of the garrison and townspeople. He would have continued the campaign but +that his followers demanded to be led back, stating that they feared for +the safety of their homes at the hands of Yeho, still hostile and +aggressive in their rear. The conquest of Leaoutung was therefore +discontinued for the purpose of closing accounts with the last of the +Niuche principalities; but enough had been accomplished to whet the +appetite of the Manchu leader for more, and to show him how easy it was to +vanquish the Chinese. On his return to his capital, Hingking, he prepared +to invade Yeho, but his plans were undoubtedly delayed by the necessity of +resting his troops and of allowing many of them to return to their homes. +This delay, no doubt, induced the Chinese to make a supreme effort to +avert the overthrow of Yeho, who had proved so useful an ally, and +accordingly the governor of Leaoutung advanced with 100,000 men into +Manchuria. He sacrificed the advantage of superior numbers by dividing his +army into four divisions, with very inadequate means of inter- +communication. Noorhachu could only bring 60,000 men into the field; but, +apart from their high training, they represented a compact body subject to +the direction of Noorhachu alone. The Manchu leader at once perceived the +faulty disposition of the Chinese army, and he resolved to attack and +overwhelm each corps in detail before it could receive aid from the +others. The strongest Chinese corps was that operating most to the west, +and marching from Fooshun on Hingking; and Noorhachu perceived that if he +could overthrow it the flank of the rest of the Chinese army would be +exposed, and its line of retreat imperiled. The Chinese general in command +of this corps was impetuous and anxious to distinguish himself. His +courage might on another occasion have helped his country, but under the +circumstances his very ardor served the purpose of Noorhachu. Tousong, +such was his name, marched more rapidly than any of his comrades, and +reached the Hwunho--the Tiber of the Manchus--behind which Noorhachu had, +at a little distance, drawn up his army. Without pausing to reconnoiter, +or to discover with what force he had to deal, Tousong threw himself +across the river, and intrenched himself on Sarhoo Hill. His +overconfidence was so extreme and fatuous that he weakened his army by +sending a detachment to lay siege to the town of Jiefan. The Manchus had, +however, well provided for the defense of that place, and while the +Chinese detachment sent against it was being destroyed, Noorhachu attacked +Tousong in his position on Sarhoo Hill with the whole of his army. The +Chinese were overwhelmed, Tousong was slain, and the majority of those who +escaped the fray perished in the waters of the Hwunho, beneath the arrows +and javelins of the pursuing Manchus. + +Then Noorhachu hastened to attack the second of the Chinese divisions +under a capable officer named Malin, who selected a strong position with +great care, and wished to stand on the defensive. His wings rested on two +hills which he fortified, and he strengthened his center in the +intervening valley with a triple line of wagons. If he had only remained +in this position he might have succeeded in keeping Noorhachu at bay until +he could have been joined by the two remaining Chinese corps; but the +impetuosity of his troops, or it may have been the artifice of the Manchu +leader, drew him from his intrenchments. At first the Chinese seemed to +have the best of the battle, but in a short time victory turned to the +side of the Manchus, and Malin fled with the relics of his force back to +Chinese territory. After these two successes Noorhachu proceeded to attack +the third Chinese corps under Liuyen, who had acquired a cheap reputation +by his success over the Miaotze. He had no better fortune than any of his +colleagues, and his signal defeat completed the Manchu triumph over the +Chinese army of invasion. The defeat of Liuyen was effected by a stratagem +as much as by superior force. Noorhachu dressed some of his troops in the +Chinese uniforms he had captured, and sent them among the Chinese, who +received them as comrades until they discovered their mistake in the +crisis of the battle. During this campaign it was computed that the total +losses of the Chinese amounted to 310 general officers and 45,000 private +soldiers. Among other immediate results of this success were the return of +20,000 Yeho troops to their homes and the defection of 5,000 Coreans, who +joined Noorhachu. Like all great commanders, Noorhachu gave his enemies no +time to recover from their misfortunes. He pursued Malin to Kaiyuen, which +he captured, with so many prisoners that it took three days to count them. +He invaded Yeho, which recognized his authority without a blow, and gave +him an additional 30,000 fighting men. All the Niuche clans thus became +united under his banner, and adopted the name of Manchu. He had succeeded +in the great object of his life, the union of his race, and he had well +avenged the death of his father and grandfather; but his ambition was not +satisfied with this success. It had rather grown with the widening horizon +opened by the discomfiture of the Chinese, and with the sense of military +superiority. + +Amid these national disasters the long reign of Wanleh closed in the year +1620. That unhappy monarch lived long enough to see the establishment on +his northern borders of the power which was to destroy his dynasty. The +very last act of his reign was, whether by accident or good judgment, the +most calculated to prevent the Manchus overrunning the State, and that was +the selection of a capable general in the person of Hiung Tingbi. With the +death of Wanleh the decadence of Ming power became clearly marked, and the +only question that remained was whether it could be arrested before it +resulted in absolute ruin. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +THE MANCHU CONQUEST OF CHINA + + +Tingbi, with the wrecks of the Chinese armies, succeeded in doing more for +the defense of his country than had been accomplished by any of his +predecessors with undiminished resources. He built a chain of forts, he +raised the garrison of Leaoutung to 180,000 men, and he spared no effort +to place Leaouyang, the capital of that province, in a position to stand a +protracted siege. If his counsels had been followed to the end, he might +have succeeded in permanently arresting the flood of Manchu conquest; but +at the very moment when his plans promised to give assured success, he +fell into disgrace at the capital, and his career was summarily ended by +the executioner. The greatest compliment to his ability was that Noorhachu +remained quiescent as long as he was on the frontier, but as soon as he +was removed he at once resumed his aggression on Chinese soil. + +Meanwhile, Wanleh had been succeeded on the Chinese throne by his son, Chu +Changlo, who took the name of Kwangtsong. He was an amiable and well- +meaning prince, whose reign was unquestionably cut short by foul means. +There is little doubt that he was poisoned by the mother of his half- +brother, from a wish to secure the throne for her son; but if so she never +gained the object that inspired her crime, for the princes of the family +met in secret conclave, and selected Kwangtsong's son a youth of sixteen, +as his successor. The choice did not prove fortunate, as this prince +became known as Tienki the Unhappy, whose reign witnessed the culmination +of Ming misfortunes. One of his first acts was the removal of Tingbi from +his command, and this error of judgment, aggravated by the ingratitude it +implied to a faithful servant, fitly marked the commencement of a reign of +incompetence and misfortune. + +In 1621 the Manchu war reopened with an attack on Moukden or Fanyang, +which Noorhachu had marked out as his next object. The garrison was +numerous, and might have made a good defense, for the walls were strong; +but the commandant was brave to the degree of temerity, and, leaving his +fortress, marched out to meet the Manchus in the open. The result was a +decisive overthrow, and the victors entered Moukden at the heels of the +vanquished. The Chinese still resisted, and a terrible slaughter ensued, +but the Manchus retained their conquest. At this juncture the Chinese were +offered the assistance of the Portuguese at Macao, who sent a small body +of 200 men, armed with arquebuses and with several cannon, to Pekin; but +after some hesitation the Chinese, whether from pride or contempt of so +small a force, declined to avail themselves of their service, and thus +lost an auxiliary that might have turned the fortune of the war in their +favor. The Portuguese were sent back to Macao, and, although the Chinese +kept the cannon, and employed the Jesuit priests in casting others for +them, nothing came of an incident which might have exercised a lasting +influence not merely on the fortune of the war, but also on the relations +between the Chinese and Europeans. The Chinese sent several armies to +recover Moukden; but, although they took these guns with them, they met +with no success, and Noorhachu made it the base of his plan of attack on +Leaouyang, the capital of the province. The defense of this important town +was intrusted to Yuen Yingtai, the court favorite and incompetent +successor of Tingbi. That officer, unwarned by the past, and regardless of +the experience of so many of his predecessors, weakened himself and +invited defeat by attempting to oppose the Manchus in the open. He was +defeated, losing some of his best soldiers, and compelled to shut himself +up in the town with a disheartened garrison. The Manchus gained an +entrance into the city. Then a terrible encounter took place. The garrison +was massacred to a man, Yuen Yingtai, brave, if incapable, committed +suicide, and those of the townspeople who wished to save their lives had +to shave their heads in token of subjection. This is the first historical +reference to a practice that is now universal throughout China, and that +has become what may be called a national characteristic. The badge of +conquest has changed to a mark of national pride; but it is strange to +find that the Chinese themselves and the most patient inquirers among +sinologues are unable to say what was the origin of the pig-tail. They +cannot tell us whether shaving the head was the national custom of the +Manchus, or whether Noorhachu only conceived this happy idea of +distinguishing those who surrendered to his power among the countless +millions of the long-haired people of China. All that can be said of the +origin of the pig-tail is that it was first enforced as a badge of +subjugation by the Manchus at the siege of Leaouyang, and that +thenceforward, until the whole of China was conquered, it was made the one +condition of immunity from massacre. + +The capture of Leaouyang signified the surrender of the remaining places +in Leaoutung, which became a Manchu possession, and Noorhachu, to +celebrate his triumph, and also to facilitate his plans for the further +humiliation of the Chinese, transferred his capital from Moukden to +Leaouyang. Misfortunes never come singly. In Szchuen a local chief had +raised a force of 30,000 men for service on the frontier in the wars with +the Manchus, and the viceroy of the province not only declined to utilize +their services, but dismissed them without reward or even recognition of +their loyalty. These slighted and disbanded braves easily changed +themselves into brigands, and as the government would not have them as +supporters, they determined to make it feel their enmity, Chetsong Ming, +the chief who had raised them, placed himself at their head, and attracted +a large number of the inhabitants to his standard. The local garrisons +were crushed, the viceroy killed, and general disorder prevailed among the +people of what was the most fertile and prosperous province of the empire. +Chetsong attempted to set up an administration, but he does not seem to +have possessed the capacity or the knowledge to establish a regular +government. While he headed the rebellious movement, a woman named +Tsinleang, the hereditary chieftainess of a small district, placed herself +at the head of the loyalists in the state, and, leading them herself, +succeeded in recovering the principal cities and in driving Chetsong out +of the province. She has been not inappropriately called by one of the +missionary historians the Chinese Penthesilea. The success she met with in +pacifying Szchuen after a two years' struggle was not attained in other +directions without a greater effort and at a still heavier cost. In +Kweichow and Yunnan a rebel named Ganpangyen raised an insurrection on a +large scale, and if his power had not been broken by the long siege of a +strong fortress, obstinately defended by a valiant governor, there is no +telling to what success he might not have attained. But his followers were +disheartened by the delay in carrying this place, and they abandoned him +as soon as they found that he could not command success. In Shantung +another rising occurred; but after two years' disturbance the rebel leader +was captured and executed. These internal disorders, produced by the +corruption and inertness of the officials as much as by a prevalent sense +of the embarrassment of the Mings, distracted the attention of the central +government from Manchuria, and weakened its preparations against +Noorhachu. + +For a time Noorhachu showed no disposition to cross the River Leaou, and +confined his attention to consolidating his position in his new conquest. +But it was clear that this lull would not long continue, and the Chinese +emperor, Tienki, endeavored to meet the coming storm by once more +intrusting the defense of the frontier to Tingbi. That general devised a +simple and what might have proved an efficacious line of defense, but his +colleague, with more powerful influence at court, would have none of it, +and insisted on his own plan being adopted. Noorhachu divined that the +councils of the Chinese were divided, and that Tingbi was hampered. He +promptly took advantage of the divergence of opinion, and, crossing the +frontier, drove the Chinese behind the Great Wall. Even that barrier would +not have arrested his progress but for the stubborn resistance offered by +the fortress of Ningyuen--a town about seventy miles northeast of +Shanhaikwan, once of great importance, but now, for many years past, in +ruins. When he reached that place he found that Tingbi had fallen into +disgrace and been executed, not for devising his own plan of campaign, but +for animadverting on that of his colleague in satirical terms. The Chinese +had made every preparation for the resolute defense of Ningyuen, and when +Noorhachu sat down before it, its resolute defender, Chungwan, defied him +to do his worst, although all the Chinese troops had been compelled to +retreat, and there was no hope of re-enforcement or rescue. At first +Noorhachu did not conduct the siege of Ningyuen in person. It promised to +be an affair of no great importance, and he intrusted it to his +lieutenants, but he soon perceived that Chungwan was a resolute soldier, +and that the possession of Ningyuen was essential to the realization of +his future plans. Therefore, he collected all his forces and sat down +before Ningyuen with the full determination to capture it at all costs. +But the garrison was resolute, its commander capable, and on the walls +were arranged the cannon of European construction. Noorhachu led two +assaults in person, both of which were repulsed, and it is said that this +result was mainly due to the volleys of the European artillery. At last, +Noorhachu was compelled to withdraw his troops, and although he obtained +some successes in other parts of the country, he was so chagrined at this +repulse that he fell ill and died some months later at Moukden, in +September, 1626. + +Noorhachu was succeeded by his fourth son, the fourth Beira or Prince, +known as Taitsong, who continued both his work and policy. Taitsong was as +determined to humiliate the Mings as his father had been. He commenced his +offensive measures by an attack on Corea, which he speedily reduced to +such a pass that it accepted his authority and transferred its allegiance +from the Mings to the Manchus. This was an important success, as it +secured his eastern flank and deprived the Chinese of a useful ally in the +Forbidden Kingdom. It encouraged Taitsong to think that the time was once +more ripe for attacking Ningyuen, and he laid siege to that fortress at +the head of a large army, including the flower of his troops. +Notwithstanding the energy of his attack, Chungwan, the former bold +defender of the place, had again the satisfaction of seeing the Manchus +repulsed, and compelled to admit that the ramparts of Ningyuen presented a +serious if not insuperable obstacle to their progress. Almost at the very +moment of this success the Emperor Tienki died, and was succeeded, in +1627, by his younger brother, Tsongching, who was destined to be the last +of the Ming rulers. + +The repulse of Taitsong before Ningyuen might have been fatal if he had +not been a man of great ability and resource. The occasion called for some +special effort, and Taitsong proved himself equal to it by a stroke of +genius that showed he was the worthy inheritor of the mission of +Noorhachu. Without taking anybody into his confidence he ordered his army +and his allies, the Kortsin Mongols, to assemble in the country west of +Ningyuen, and when he had thus collected over a hundred thousand men, he +announced his intention of ignoring Ningyuen and marching direct on Pekin. +At this juncture Taitsong divided his army into eight banners, which still +remain the national divisions of the Manchu race. The Manchus seem to have +been a little alarmed by the boldness of Taitsong's scheme, and they might +have hesitated to follow him if he had given them any time for reflection, +but his plans were not fully known until his forces were through the +Dangan Pass on the march to the capital. The Chinese, relying altogether +on Ningyuen as a defense, had made no preparation to hold their ground on +this side, and Taitsong encountered no opposition until he reached Kichow. +Then Chungwan, realizing that he had been outmaneuvered, and that the +defenses of Ningyuen had been turned, hastened back by forced marches to +defend Pekin. Owing to his road being the better of the two he gained the +capital in time, and succeeded in throwing himself and his troops into it +in order to defend it against the assault of the Manchus. After Taitsong +sat down before Pekin he engaged in an intrigue for the ruin of Chungwan, +whose disgrace would be equivalent to a great victory. The method is not +to be approved on general grounds, but Taitsong conceived that he was +justified in bribing persons in Pekin to discredit Chungwan and compass +his ruin. The emperor was persuaded that Chungwan was too powerful a +subject to be absolutely loyal, and it was asserted that he was in +communication with the enemy. Chungwan, who had been so long the buttress +of the kingdom, was secretly arrested and thrown into a prison from which +he never issued. The disappearance of Chungwan was as valuable to Taitsong +as a great victory, and he made his final preparations for assaulting +Pekin; but either the want of supplies or the occurrence of some +disturbance in his rear prevented the execution of his plan. He drew off +his forces and retired behind the Great Wall at the very moment when Pekin +seemed at his mercy. + +During four years of more or less tranquillity Taitsong confined his +attention to political designs, and to training a corps of artillery, and +then he resumed his main project of the conquest of China. Instead of +availing themselves of the lull thus afforded to improve their position, +the Chinese ministers seemed to believe that the danger from the Manchus +had passed away, and they treated all the communications from Taitsong +with imprudent and unnecessary disdain. Their attention was also +distracted by many internal troubles, produced by their own folly, as well +as by the perils of the time. + +Taitsong, in 1634, resumed his operations in China, and on this occasion +he invaded the province of Shansi, at the head of an army composed largely +of Mongols as well as of Manchus. Although the people of Shansi had not +had any practical experience of Manchu prowess, and notwithstanding that +their frontier was exceedingly strong by nature, Taitsong met with little +or no resistance from either the local garrisons or the people themselves. +One Chinese governor, it is said, ventured to publish a boastful report of +an imaginary victory over the Manchus, and to send a copy of it to Pekin. +Taitsong, however, intercepted the letter, and at once sent the officer a +challenge, matching 1,000 of his men against 10,000 of the Chinese. That +the offer was not accepted is the best proof of the superiority of the +Manchu army. + +It was at the close of this successful campaign in Shansi, that Taitsong, +in the year 1635, assumed, for the first time among any of the Manchu +rulers, the style of Emperor of China. Events had long been moving in this +direction, but an accident is said to have determined Taitsong to take +this final measure. The jade seal of the old Mongol rulers was suddenly +discovered, and placed in the hands of Taitsong. When the Mongols heard of +this, forty-nine of their chiefs hastened to tender their allegiance to +Taitsong and the only condition made was that the King of Corea should be +compelled to do so likewise. Taitsong, nothing loth, at once sent off +letters to the Corean court announcing the adhesion of the Mongols, and +calling upon the king of that state to recognize his supremacy. But the +Corean ruler had got wind of the contents of these letters and declined to +open them, thus hoping to get out of his difficulty without offending his +old friends the Chinese. But Taitsong was not to be put off in this +fashion. He sent an army to inflict chastisement on his neighbor, and its +mission was successfully discharged. The king and his family were taken +prisoners, although they had fled to the island of Gangwa for safety, and +Corea became a Manchu possession. The last years of Taitsong's life were +spent in conducting repeated expeditions into the provinces of Shansi and +Pechihli, but the strength of the fortresses of Ningyuen and Shanhaikwan +on the Great Wall effectually prevented his renewing his attempt on Pekin. +These two places with the minor forts of Kingchow and Songshan formed a +quadrilateral that effectually secured Pekin on its northern side, and +being intrusted to the defense of Wou Sankwei, a general of great +capacity, of whom much more will be heard, all Taitsong's ability and +resources were taxed to overcome those obstacles to his progress south of +the Great Wall. He succeeded after great loss, and at the end of several +campaigns, in taking Kingchow and Songshan, but these were his last +successes, for in the year 1643 he was seized with a fatal illness at +Moukden, which terminated his career at the comparatively early age of +fifty-two. Taitsong's premature death, due, in all probability, to the +incompetence of his physicians, cut short a career that had not reached +its prime, and retarded the conquest of China, for the supreme authority +among the Manchus then passed from a skillful and experienced ruler into +the hands of a child. + +The possession of a well-trained army, the production of two great leaders +of admitted superiority, and forty years of almost continuously successful +war, had not availed to bring the authority of the Manchus in any +permanent form south of the Great Wall. The barrier of Tsin Che Hwangti +still kept out the most formidable adversary who had ever borne down upon +it, and the independence of China seemed far removed from serious +jeopardy. At this juncture events occurred that altered the whole +situation, and the internal divisions of the Chinese proved more serious +and entailed a more rapid collapse than all the efforts of the Manchus. + +The arch rebel Li Tseching, who proved more formidable to the Ming ruler +than his Manchu opponent, was the son of a peasant in the province of +Shansi. At an early age he attached himself to the profession of arms, and +became well known as a skillful archer and horseman. In 1629, he first +appears on the scene as member of a band of robbers, who were, however, +destroyed by a rare display of energy on the part of one of the emperor's +lieutenants. Li was one of the few who were fortunate enough to escape +with their lives and liberty. He soon gathered round him another band, and +under his successful and courageous leading it shortly acquired the size +of an army. One reason of his success was his forming an alliance with the +Mohammedan settlers in Kansuh, who were already known as Tungani or +"Colonists." But the principal cause of his success was his skill and +promptitude in coming to terms with the imperial authorities whenever they +became too strong for him, and he often purchased a truce when, if the +officials had pushed home their advantage, he must have been destroyed. +His power thus grew to a high point, while that of other robber chiefs +only waxed to wane and disappear; and about the year 1640, when it was +said that his followers numbered half a million of men, he began to think +seriously of displacing the Ming and placing himself on the throne of +China. With this object in view he laid siege to the town of Honan, the +capital of the province of the same name. At first the resolution of the +governor baffled his attempt, but treachery succeeded when force failed. A +traitor opened a gate for a sum of money which he was never paid, and Li's +army burst into the city. The garrison was put to the sword, and horrible +outrages were perpetrated on the townspeople. From Honan Li marched on +Kaifong, which he besieged for seven days; but he did not possess the +necessary engines to attack a place of any strength, and Kaifong was +reputed to be the strongest fortress in China. He was obliged to beat a +hasty retreat, pursued by an army that the imperial authorities had +hurriedly collected. There is reason to think his retreat was a skillful +movement to the rear in order to draw the emperor's troops after him. +Certain it is that they pursued him in four separate corps, and that he +turned upon them and beat them one after the other. When he had vanquished +these armies in four separate encounters he again laid siege to Kaifong, +and it was thought that he would have taken it, when Li was wounded by an +arrow, and called off his troops in consequence. Several times afterward +he resumed the attempt, but with no better fortune, until an accident +accomplished what all his power had failed to do. The governor had among +other precautions flooded the moat from the Hoangho, and this extra +barrier of defense had undoubtedly done much toward discomfiting the +besiegers. But in the end it proved fatal to the besieged, for the +Hoangho, at all times capricious in its movements, and the source of as +much trouble as benefit to the provinces it waters, rose suddenly to the +dimensions of a flood, and overflowing its banks spread over the country. +Many of Li's soldiers were drowned, and his camp was flooded, but the most +serious loss befell the Imperialists in Kaifong. The waters of the river +swept away the walls and flooded the town. Thousands perished at the time, +and those who attempted to escape were cut down by the rebels outside. +Kaifong itself was destroyed and has never recovered its ancient +importance, being now a town of only the third or fourth rank. This great +success established the reputation of Li Tseching on a firm basis, and +constituted him one of the arbiters of his country's destiny. He found +himself master of one-third of the state; proclaimed himself Emperor of +China, under the style of Yongchang, and gave his dynasty the name of +Tachun. Having taken this step of open defiance to the Ming government, Li +invaded Shansi, which he reduced to subjection with little difficulty or +bloodshed. An officer, named Likintai, was sent to organize some measures +of defense, but, on arrival, he found the province in the hands of the +rebel, and he had no choice save to beat a discreet and rapid retreat. The +success of Li continued unchecked. Important places like Taiyuen and +Taitong surrendered to him after a merely nominal resistance, and when +they fell there was no further impediment in the way of his marching on +Pekin. + +No preparations had been made to defend Pekin. The defenses were weak, the +garrison insufficient, as all the best troops were on the frontier, and +the citizens disposed to come to terms with the assailant rather than to +die in the breach for their sovereign. When Li pitched his tent outside +the western gate of the capital, and sent a haughty demand to the emperor +to abdicate his throne, he was master of the situation; but Tsongching, +ignorant of his own impotence, defied and upbraided his opponent as a +rebel. His indignation was turned to despair when he learned that the +troops had abandoned his cause, that the people were crying out for Li +Tseching, and that that leader's followers were rapidly approaching his +palace. Tsongching strangled himself with his girdle, but only one officer +was found devoted enough to share his fate. Although Tsongching had some +nominal successors, he was, strictly speaking, the last of the Ming +emperors, and with him the great dynasty founded by Hongwou came to an +end. The many disasters that preceded its fall rendered the loss of the +imperial station less of a blow to the individual, and the last of the +Ming rulers seems to have even experienced relief on reaching the term of +his anxieties. The episode of the faithful officer, Li Kweiching, +concludes the dramatic events accompanying the capture of Pekin and the +fall of the dynasty. After the death of his sovereign he attempted to +defend the capital; but overpowered by numbers he surrendered to the +victor, who offered him an honorable command in his service. Li Kweiching +accepted the offer on the stipulation that he should be allowed to give +the Emperor Tsongching honorable burial, and that the surviving members of +the Ming family should be spared. These conditions, so creditable to Li +Kweiching, were granted; but, at the funeral of his late sovereign, grief +or a spirit of duty so overcame him that he committed suicide on the grave +of Tsongching. Li Tseching, who had counted on valuable assistance from +this officer, became furious at this occurrence. He plundered and +destroyed the ancestral temple of the Mings, and he caused every member of +the imperial family on whom he could lay hands to be executed. Thus +terminated the events at Pekin in the absolute and complete triumph of the +rebel Li Tseching, and the panic produced by his success and severity +blinded observers to the hollowness of his power, and to the want of +solidity in his administration. Yet it seemed for a time as if he were +left the virtual master of China. + +While the Ming power was collapsing before the onset of Li Tseching, there +still remained the large and well-trained Ming army in garrison on the +Manchu frontier, under command of the able general, Wou Sankwei. At the +eleventh hour the Emperor Tsonching had sent a message to Wou Sankwei, +begging him to come in all haste to save the capital; and that general, +evacuating Ningyuen, and leaving a small garrison at Shanhaikwan, had +begun his march for Pekin, when he learned that it had fallen and that the +Ming dynasty had ceased to be. Placed in this dilemma, between the +advancing Manchus, who immediately occupied Ningyuen on his evacuation of +it, and the large rebel force in possession of Pekin, Wou Sankwei had no +choice between coming to terms with one or other of them. Li Tseching +offered him liberal rewards and a high command, but in vain, for Wou +Sankwei decided that it would be better to invite the Manchus to enter the +country, and to assist them to conquer it. There can be no doubt that this +course was both the wiser and the more patriotic, for Li Tseching was +nothing more than a successful brigand on a large scale; whereas the +Manchu government was a respectable one, was well organized, and aspired +to revive the best traditions of the Chinese. Having come to a prompt +decision, Wou Sankwei lost no time in promptly carrying it out. He wrote a +letter to the Manchus, asking them to send an army to co-operate with his +in driving Li Tseching out of Pekin; and the Manchus, at once realizing +that the moment had arrived for conquering China, acquiesced promptly in +his plans, sent forward their advanced corps, and ordered a _levee en +masse_ of the nation for the conquest of China. Assured of his rear, +and also of speedy re-enforcement, Wou Sankwei did not delay a day in +marching on Pekin. Li Tseching sent out a portion of his army to oppose +the advance of Wou Sankwei; but the officer's instructions were rather to +negotiate than to fight, for to the last Li Tseching expected that Wou +Sankwei would come over to his side. He was already beginning to feel +doubtful as to the security of his position; and his fears were increased +by his superstition, for when, on entering Pekin, he passed under a gate +above which was written the character "joong" (middle), he exclaimed, +drawing his bow at the same time, "If I hit this joong in the middle, it +is a sign I have gained the whole empire, as the empire is joong, the +middle kingdom." His arrow missed its mark. The apprehensions of Li +Tseching were soon confirmed, for Wou Sankwei defeated the first army he +had sent out with a loss of 20,000 men. Li does not seem to have known of +the alliance between that officer and the Manchus, for he marched at the +head of 60,000 men to encounter him. He took with him the aged father of +Wou Sankwei and two Ming princes, who had survived the massacre of their +family, with a view to appealing to the affection and loyalty of that +commander; but these devices proved vain. + +Wou Sankwei drew up his forces at Yungping in a strong position near the +scene of his recent victory; his front seems to have been protected by the +river Zanho, and he calmly awaited the attack of Li Tseching, whose army +far outnumbered his. Up to this point Wou Sankwei had not been joined by +any of the Manchus, but a body was known to be approaching, and he was +anxious to put off the battle until they arrived. For the same reason Li +Tseching was as anxious to begin the attack, and, notwithstanding the +strength of Wou Sankwei's position, he ordered his troops to engage +without delay. Adopting the orthodox Chinese mode of attack of forming his +army in a crescent, so that the extreme wings should overlap and gradually +encompass those of the enemy, Li trusted to his numerical superiority to +give him the victory. At one moment it seemed as if his expectation would +be justified; for, bravely as Wou Sankwei and his army fought, the weight +of numbers was telling its inevitable tale when a Manchu corps opportunely +arrived, and attacking the Chinese with great impetuosity, changed the +fortune of the day and put the army of Li Tseching to the rout. Thirty +thousand men are said to have fallen on the field, and Li himself escaped +from the carnage with only a few hundred horsemen. + +After this Li met with disaster after disaster. He was driven out of +Shansi into Honan, and from Honan into Shensi. Wou Sankwei took Tunkwan +without firing a shot, and when Li attempted to defend Singan he found +that his soldiers would not obey his orders, and wished only to come to +terms with Wou Sankwei. Expelled from the last of his towns he took refuge +in the hills, but the necessity of obtaining provisions compelled him now +and then to descend into the plains, and on one of these occasions he was +surprised in a village and killed. His head was placed in triumph over the +nearest prefecture, and thus ended the most remarkable career of a +princely robber chieftain to be found in Chinese annals. At one time it +seemed as if Li Tseching would be the founder of a dynasty, but his +meteor-like career ended not less suddenly than his rise to supreme power +was rapid. Extraordinary as was his success, Wou Sankwei had rightly +gauged its nature when he declared that it had no solid basis. + +The overthrow of Li Tseching paved the way for a fresh difficulty. It had +been achieved to a large extent by the military genius of Wou Sankwei and +by the exertions of his Chinese army. That officer had invited the Manchus +into the country, but when victory was achieved he showed some anxiety for +their departure. This was no part of the compact, nor did it coincide with +the ambition of the Manchus. They determined to retain the territory they +had conquered, at the same time that they endeavored to propitiate Wou +Sankwei and to retain the command of his useful services. He was given the +high sounding title of Ping-si Wang, or Prince Pacifier of the West, and +many other honors. Gratified by these rewards and unable to discover any +person who could govern China, Wou Sankwei gradually reconciled himself to +the situation and performed his duty faithfully as the most powerful +lieutenant of the young Manchu ruler, Chuntche, the son of Taitsong, who, +after the fall of Li Tseching, removed his capital to Pekin, and assumed +the style and ceremony of a Chinese emperor. The active administration was +intrusted to Prince Dorgun, brother of Taitsong, who now became known as +Ama Wang, the Father Prince, and who acted as regent during the long +minority of his nephew. The new dynasty was inaugurated at Pekin with a +grand ceremony and court. + +After this formal and solemn assumption of the governing power in China by +the young Manchu prince, the activity of the Manchus increased, and +several armies were sent south to subject the provinces, and to bring the +whole Chinese race under his authority. For some time no serious +opposition was encountered, as the disruption of Li's forces entailed the +surrender of all the territory north of the Hoangho. But at Nankin, and in +the provinces south of the Yangtsekiang, an attempt had been made, and not +unsuccessfully, to set up a fresh administration under one of the members +of the prolific Ming family. Fou Wang, a grandson of Wanleh, was placed on +the Dragon Throne of Southern China in this hope, but his character did +not justify the faith reposed in him. He thought nothing of the serious +responsibility he had accepted, but showed that he regarded his high +station merely as an opportunity for gratifying his own pleasures. There +is little or no doubt that if he had shown himself worthy of his station +he might have rallied to his side the mass of the Chinese nation, and Wou +Sankwei, who had shown some signs of chafing at Manchu authority, might +have been won back by a capable and sympathetic sovereign. But +notwithstanding the ability of Fou Wang's minister, Shu Kofa, who strove +to repair the errors of his master, the new Ming power at Nankin did not +prosper. Wou Sankwei, cautious not to commit himself, rejected the patent +of a duke and the money gifts sent him by Shu Kofa, while Ama Wang, on his +side, sought to gain over Shu Kofa by making him the most lavish promises +of reward. But that minister proved as true to his sovereign as Wou +Sankwei did to the Manchu. The result of the long correspondence between +them was nil, but it showed the leaders of the Manchus in very favorable +colors, as wishing to avert the horrors of war, and to simplify the +surrender of provinces which could not be held against them. When Ama Wang +discovered that there was no hope of gaining over Shu Kofa, and thus +paving his way to the disintegration of the Nankin power, he decided to +prosecute the war against the surviving Ming administration with the +greatest activity. + +While these preparations were being made to extend the Manchu conquest +over Central China, all was confusion at Nankin. Jealousies between the +commanders, none of whom possessed much merit or experience, bickerings +among the ministers, apathy on the part of the ruler, and bitter +disappointment and disgust in the ranks of the people, all combined to +precipitate the overthrow of the ephemeral throne that had been erected in +the Southern capital. Ama Wang Waited patiently to allow these causes of +disintegration time to develop their full force, and to contribute to the +ruin of the Mings, but in the winter of 1644-45 he decided that the right +moment to strike had come. Shu Kofa made some effort to oppose the Manchu +armies, and even assumed the command in person, although he was only a +civilian, but his troops had no heart to oppose the Manchus, and the +devices to which he resorted to make his military power appear more +formidable were both puerile and ineffective. Yet one passage may be +quoted to his credit if it gave his opponent an advantage. It is affirmed +on good authority that he could have obtained a material advantage if he +would only have flooded the country, but he "refused to do so, on the +ground that more civilians would perish than Manchus, and he said, 'First +the people, next the dynasty.'" The sentiment was a noble one, but it was +too severe a crisis to admit of any sentiment, especially when fighting an +up-hill battle, and Shu Kofa, soon realizing that he was not qualified to +play the part of a great soldier, resolved to end his existence. He took +shelter with a small force in the town of Yangchow, and when he heard that +the Manchus were entering the gate, he and his officers committed suicide. +The Chinese lamented and were crushed by his death. In him they saw the +last of their great men, and, no doubt, they credited him with a higher +capacity even than he possessed. Only a military genius of the first rank +could have saved the Mings, and Shu Kofa was nothing more than a +conscientious and capable civil mandarin, ignorant of war. His fortitude +could only be measured by his indifference to life, and by his resolve to +anticipate the fall of his sovereign as soon as he saw it to be +inevitable. + +Fou Wang speedily followed the fate of his faithful minister; for, when +the Manchus marched on Nankin, he abandoned his capital, and sought safety +in flight. But one of his officers, anxious to make favorable terms for +himself with the conqueror, undertook his capture, and coming up with him +when on the point of entering a junk to put to sea, Fou Wang had no +alternative left between an ignominious surrender and suicide. He chose +the latter course, and throwing himself into the river was drowned, thus +ending his own career, and the Ming dynasty in its southern capital of +Nankin. + +Meantime dissension further weakened the already discouraged Chinese +forces. The pirate Ching Chelong, who was the mainstay of the Ming cause, +cherished the hope that he might place his own family on the throne, and +he endeavored to induce the Ming prince to recognize his son, Koshinga, as +his heir. Low as he had fallen, it is to the credit of this prince that he +refused to sign away the birth-right of his family. Ching was bitterly +chagrined at this refusal, and after detaching his forces from the other +Chinese he at last came to the resolution to throw in his lot with the +Manchus. He was promised honorable terms, but the Tartars seem to have had +no intention of complying with them, so far at least as allowing him to +retain his liberty. For they sent him off to Pekin, where he was kept in +honorable confinement, notwithstanding his protests and promises, and the +defiant threats of his son Koshinga. In preserving his life he was more +fortunate than the members of the Ming family, who were hunted down in a +remorseless manner and executed with all their relations on capture. The +only place that offered any resistance to the Manchus was the town of +Kanchow, on the Kan River, in Kiangsi. The garrison defended themselves +with desperate valor during two months, and a council of war was held amid +much anxiety, to consider whether the siege should be abandoned. Bold +counsels prevailed. The Manchus returned to the attack, and had the +satisfaction of carrying the town by assault, when the garrison were put +to the sword. + +The relics of the Chinese armies gathered for a final stand in the city of +Canton, but unfortunately for them the leaders were still divided by petty +jealousies. One Ming prince proclaimed himself Emperor at Canton, and +another in the adjoining province of Kwangsi. Although the Manchus were +gathering their forces to overwhelm the Chinese in their last retreat, +they could not lay aside their divisions and petty ambitions in order to +combine against the national enemy, but must needs assail one another to +decide which should have the empty title of Ming emperor. The Manchus had +the satisfaction of seeing the two rivals break their strength against +each other, and then they advanced to crush the victor at Canton. Strong +as the place was said to be, it offered no serious resistance, and the +great commercial city of the south passed into the hands of the race who +had subdued the whole country from Pekin to the Tonquin frontier. At this +moment the fortune of the Manchus underwent a sudden and inexplicable +change. Two repulses before a fortress southwest of Canton, and the +disaffection of a large part of their Chinese auxiliaries, who clamored +for their pay, seem to have broken the strength of the advanced Manchu +army. A wave of national antipathy drove the Tartars out of Canton and the +southern provinces, but it soon broke its force, and the Manchus, +returning with fresh troops, speedily recovered all they had lost, and by +placing stronger garrisons in the places they occupied consolidated their +hold on Southern China. Although the struggle between the Manchus and +their new subjects was far from concluded, the conquest of China as such +may be said to have reached its end at this stage. How a small Tartar +tribe succeeded after fifty years of war in imposing its yoke on the +skeptical, freedom-loving, and intensely national millions of China will +always remain one of the enigmas of history. + + + + +CHAPTER X + +THE FIRST MANCHU RULER + + +While the Manchu generals and armies were establishing their power in +Southern China the young Emperor Chuntche, under the direction of his +prudent uncle, the regent Ama Wang, was setting up at Pekin the central +power of a ruling dynasty. In doing so little or no opposition was +experienced at the hands of the Chinese, who showed that they longed once +more for a settled government; and this acquiescence on the part of the +Chinese people in their authority no doubt induced the Manchu leaders to +adopt a far more conciliatory and lenient policy toward the Chinese than +would otherwise have been the case. Ama Wang gave special orders that the +lives and property of all who surrendered to his lieutenants should be +scrupulously respected. This moderation was only departed from in the case +of some rebels in Shensi, who, after accepting, repudiated the Manchu +authority, and laid close siege to the chief town of Singan, which held a +garrison of only 3,000 Manchus. The commandant wished to make his position +secure by massacring the Chinese of the town, but he was deterred from +taking this extreme step by the representations of a Chinese officer, who, +binding himself for the good faith of his countrymen, induced him to +enroll them in the ranks of the garrison. They proved faithful and +rendered excellent service in the siege; and when a relieving Manchu army +came from Pekin the rebels were quickly scattered and pursued with +unflagging bitterness to their remotest hiding places. + +In the province of Szchuen a Chinese leader proclaimed himself Si Wang, or +King of the West. He was execrated by those who were nominally his +subjects. Among the most heinous of his crimes was his invitation to +literary men to come to his capital for employment, and when they had +assembled to the number of 30,000, to order them to be massacred. He dealt +in a similar manner with 3,000 of his courtiers, because one of them +happened to omit a portion of his full titles. His excesses culminated in +the massacre of Chentu, when 600,000 innocent persons are said to have +perished. Even allowing for the Eastern exaggeration of numbers, the +crimes of this inhuman monster have rarely, if ever, been surpassed. His +rage or appetite for destruction was not appeased by human sacrifices. He +made equal war on the objects of nature and the works of man. He destroyed +cities, leveled forests, and overthrew all the public monuments that +embellished his province. In the midst of his excesses he was told that a +Manchu army had crossed the frontier, but he resolved to crown his inhuman +career by a deed unparalleled in the records of history, and, what is more +extraordinary, he succeeded in inducing his followers to execute his +commands. His project was to massacre all the women in attendance on his +army. + +When the assembly took place Si Wang slew his wives _coram populo_, and +his followers, seized with an extreme frenzy, followed his example. It +is said that as many as 400,000 women were slain that day, and Si Wang, +intoxicated by his success in inducing his followers to execute his +inhuman behests, believed that he had nothing to fear at the hands of the +Manchus. But he was soon undeceived, for in one of the earliest affairs at +the outposts he was killed by an arrow. His power at once crumbled away, +and Szchuen passed under the authority of the Manchus. The conquest of +Szchuen paved the way for the recovery of the position that had been lost +in Southern China, and close siege was laid to the city of Canton. Outside +Canton the Manchus carried everything before them, and that city itself at +last was captured, after what passed for a stubborn resistance. Canton was +given over to pillage. + +At this moment of success Ama Wang, the wise regent, died, and Chuntche +assumed the reins of government. He at once devoted his attention to +administrative reforms. Corruption had begun to sway the public +examinations, and Chuntche issued a special edict, enjoining the examiners +to give fair awards and to maintain the purity of the service. But several +examiners had to be executed and others banished beyond the Wall before +matters were placed on a satisfactory basis. He also adopted the +astronomical system in force in Europe, and he appointed the priest Adam +Schaal head of the Mathematical Board at Pekin. But his most important +work was the institution of the Grand Council, which still exists, and +which is the supreme power under the emperor in the country. It is +composed of only four members--two Manchus and two Chinese--who alone +possess the privilege of personal audience with the emperor whenever they +may demand it. As this act gave the Chinese an equal place with the +Manchus in the highest body of the empire it was exceedingly welcome, and +explains, among other causes, the popularity and stability of the Manchu +dynasty. When allotting Chuntche his place among the founders of Manchu +greatness, allowance must be made for this wise and far-reaching measure. + +An interesting event in the reign of Chuntche was the arrival at Pekin of +more than one embassy from European States. The Dutch and the Russians can +equally claim the honor of having had an envoy resident in the Chinese +capital during the year 1656. + +In 1661 the health of Chuntche became so bad that it was evident to his +courtiers that his end was drawing near, although he was little more than +thirty years of age. On his deathbed he selected as his successor the +second of his sons, who afterward became famous as the Emperor Kanghi. +Kanghi assumed the personal direction of affairs when only fourteen years +of age. Such a bold step undoubtedly betokened no ordinary vigor on the +part of a youth, and its complete success reflected still further credit +upon him. + +The interest of the period passes from the scenes at court to the camp of +Wou Sankwei, who, twenty years earlier, had introduced the Manchus into +China. During the Manchu campaign in Southern China he had kept peace on +the western frontier, gradually extending his authority from Shensi into +Szchuen and thence over Yunnan. When a Ming prince, Kwei Wang, who had +fled into Burmah, returned with the support of the king of that country to +make another bid for the throne, he found himself confronted by all the +power and resources of Wou Sankwei, who was still as loyal a servant of +the Manchu emperor as when he carried his ensigns against Li Tseching. +Kwei Wang does not appear to have expected opposition from Wou Sankwei, +and in the first encounter he was overthrown and taken prisoner. The +conqueror, who was already under suspicion at the Manchu court, and whom +every Chinese rebel persisted in regarding as a natural ally, now +hesitated as to how he should treat these important prisoners. Kwei Wang +and his son--the last of the Mings--were eventually led forth to +execution, although it should be stated that a less authentic report +affirms they were allowed to strangle themselves. Having made use of Wou +Sankwei, and obtained, as they thought, the full value of his services, +the Manchus sought to treat him with indifference and to throw him into +the shade. But the splendor of his work was such that they had to confer +on him the title of Prince, and to make him viceroy of Yunnan and the +adjacent territories. He exerted such an extraordinary influence over the +Chinese subjects that they speedily settled down under his authority; +revenue and trade increased, and the Manchu authority was maintained +without a Tartar garrison, for Wou Sankwei's army was composed exclusively +of Chinese, and its nucleus was formed by his old garrison of Ningyuen and +Shanhaikwan. There is no certain reason for saying that Wou Sankwei nursed +any scheme of personal aggrandizement, but the measures he took and the +reforms he instituted were calculated to make his authority become +gradually independent of Manchu control. For a time the Manchu government +suppressed its apprehensions on account of this powerful satrap, by the +argument that in a few years his death in the course of nature must +relieve it from this peril, but Wou Sankwei lived on and showed no signs +of paying the common debt of humanity. Then it seemed to Kanghi that Wou +Sankwei was gradually establishing the solid foundation of a formidable +and independent power. The Manchu generals and ministers had always been +jealous of the greater fame of Wou Sankwei. When they saw that Kanghi +wanted an excuse to fall foul of him, they carried every tale of alleged +self-assertion on the part of the Chinese viceroy to the imperial ears, +and represented that his power dwarfed the dignity of the Manchu throne +and threatened its stability. + +At last Kanghi resolved to take some decisive step to bring the question +to a climax, and he accordingly sent Wou Sankwei an invitation to visit +him at Pekin. Wou Sankwei excused himself from going to court on the +ground that he was very old, and that his only wish was to end his days in +peace. He also deputed his son to tender his allegiance to the emperor and +to perform the Kotao in his name. But Kanghi was not to be put off in this +way, and he sent two trusted officials to Wou Sankwei to represent that he +must comply with the exact terms of his command, and to point out the +grave consequences of his refusing. Wou Sankwei cast off his allegiance to +the Manchus, and entered upon a war which aimed at the subversion of their +authority. Such was the reputation of this great commander, to whose +ability and military prowess the Manchus unquestionably were indebted for +their conquest of the empire, that a large part of Southern China at once +admitted his authority, and from Szchuen to the warlike province of Hunan +his lieutenants were able to collect all the fighting resources of the +state, and to array the levies of those provinces in the field for the +approaching contest with Kanghi. + +While Wou Sankwei was making these extensive preparations in the south, +his son at Pekin had devised an ingenious and daring plot for the massacre +of the Manchus and the destruction of the dynasty. He engaged in his +scheme the large body of Chinese slaves who had been placed in servitude +under their Tartar conquerors, and these, incited by the hope of liberty, +proved very ready tools to his designs. They bound themselves together by +a solemn oath to be true to one another, and all the preparations were +made to massacre the Manchus on the occasion of the New Year's Festival. +This is the grand religious and social ceremony of the Chinese. It takes +place on the first day of the first moon, which falls in our month of +February. All business is stopped, the tribunals are closed for ten days, +and a state of high festival resembling the Carnival prevails. The +conspirators resolved to take advantage of this public holiday, and of the +excitement accompanying it, to carry out their scheme, and the Manchus +appear to have been in total ignorance until the eleventh hour of the plot +for their destruction. The discovery of the conspiracy bears a close +resemblance to that of the Gunpowder Plot. A Chinese slave, wishing to +save his master, gave him notice of the danger, and this Manchu officer at +once informed Kanghi of the conspiracy. The son of Wou Sankwei and the +other conspirators were immediately arrested and executed without delay. +The Manchus thus escaped by the merest accident from a danger which +threatened them with annihilation, and Kanghi, having succeeded in getting +rid of the son, concentrated his power and attention on the more difficult +task of grappling with the father. + +But the power and reputation of Wou Sankwei were so formidable that Kanghi +resolved to proceed with great caution, and the emperor began his measures +of offense by issuing an edict ordering the disbandment of all the native +armies maintained by the Chinese viceroys, besides Wou Sankwei. The object +of this edict was to make all the governors of Chinese race show their +hands, and Kanghi learned the full measure of the hostility he had to cope +with by every governor from the sea coast of Fuhkien to Canton defying +him, and throwing in their lot with Wou Sankwei. The piratical confederacy +of Formosa, where Ching, the son of Koshinga, had succeeded to his +authority, also joined in with what may be called the national party, but +its alliance proved of little value, as Ching, at an early period, took +umbrage at his reception by a Chinese official, and returned to his island +home. But the most formidable danger to the young Manchu ruler came from +an unexpected quarter. The Mongols, seeing his embarrassment, and +believing that the hours of the dynasty were numbered, resolved to take +advantage of the occasion to push their claims. Satchar, chief of one of +the Banners, issued a proclamation, calling his race to his side, and +declaring his intention to invade China at the head of 100,000 men. It +seemed hardly possible for Kanghi to extricate himself from his many +dangers. With great quickness of perception Kanghi saw that the most +pressing danger was that from the Mongols, and he sent the whole of his +northern garrisons to attack Satchar before the Mongol clans could have +gathered to his assistance. The Manchu cavalry, by a rapid march, +surprised Satchar in his camp and carried him and his family off as +prisoners to Pekin. The capture of their chief discouraged the Mongols and +interrupted their plans for invading China. Kanghi thus obtained a respite +from what seemed his greatest peril. Then he turned his attention to +dealing with Wou Sankwei, and the first effort of his armies resulted in +the recovery of Fuhkien, where the governor and Ching had reduced +themselves to a state of exhaustion by a contest inspired by personal +jealousy not patriotism. From Fuhkien his successful lieutenants passed +into Kwantung, and the Chinese, seeing that the Manchus were not sunk as +low as had been thought, abandoned all resistance, and again recognized +the Tartar authority. The Manchus did not dare to punish the rebels except +in rare instances, and, therefore, the recovery of Canton was +unaccompanied by any scenes of blood. But a garrison of Manchus was placed +in each town of importance, and it was by Kanghi's order that a walled +town, or "Tartar city," was built within each city for the accommodation +and security of the dominant race. + +But notwithstanding these successes Kanghi made little or no progress +against the main force of Wou Sankwei, whose supremacy was undisputed +throughout the whole of southwest China. It was not until 1677 that Kanghi +ventured to move his armies against Wou Sankwei in person. Although he +obtained no signal success in the field, the divisions among the Chinese +commanders were such that he had the satisfaction of compelling them to +evacuate Hunan, and when Wou Sankwei took his first step backward the sun +of his fortunes began to set. Calamity rapidly followed calamity. Wou +Sankwei had not known the meaning of defeat in his long career of fifty +years, but now, in his old age, he saw his affairs in inextricable +confusion. His adherents deserted him, many rebel officers sought to come +to terms with the Manchus, and Kanghi's armies gradually converged on Wou +Sankwei from the east and the north. Driven out of Szchuen, Wou Sankwei +endeavored to make a stand in Yunnan. He certainly succeeded in prolonging +the struggle down to the year 1679, when his death put a sudden end to the +contest, and relieved Kanghi from much anxiety; for although the success +of the Manchus was no longer uncertain, the military skill of the old +Chinese warrior might have indefinitely prolonged the war. Wou Sankwei was +one of the most conspicuous and attractive figures to be met with in the +long course of Chinese history, and his career covered one of the most +critical periods in the modern existence of that empire. From the time of +his first distinguishing himself in the defense of Ningyuen until he died, +half a century later, as Prince of Yunnan, he occupied the very foremost +place in the minds of his fellow-countrymen. The part he had taken, first +in keeping out the Manchus, and then in introducing them into the state, +reflected equal credit on his ability and his patriotism. In requesting +the Manchus to crush the robber Li and to take the throne which the fall +of the Mings had rendered vacant, he was actuated by the purest motives. +There was only a choice of evils, and he selected that which seemed the +less. He gave the empire to a foreign ruler of intelligence, but he saved +it from an unscrupulous robber. He played the part of king-maker to the +family of Noorhachu, and the magnitude of their obligations to him could +not be denied. They were not as grateful as he may have expected, and they +looked askance at his military power and influence over his countrymen. +Probably he felt that he had not been well treated, and chagrin +undoubtedly induced him to reject Kanghi's request to proceed to Pekin. If +he had only acceeded to that arrangement he would have left a name for +conspicuous loyalty and political consistency in the service of the great +race, which he had been mainly instrumental in placing over China. But +even as events turned out he was one of the most remarkable personages the +Chinese race ever produced, and his military career shows that they are +capable of producing great generals and brave soldiers. + +The death of Wou Sankwei signified the overthrow of the Chinese uprising +which had threatened to extinguish the still growing power of the Manchu +under its youthful Emperor Kanghi. Wou Shufan, the grandson of that +prince, endeavored to carry on the task of holding Yunnan as an +independent territory, but by the year 1681 his possessions were reduced +to the town of Yunnanfoo, where he was closely besieged by the Manchu +forces. Although the Chinese fought valiantly, they were soon reduced to +extremities, and the Manchus carried the place by storm. The garrison were +massacred to the last man, and Wou Shufan only avoided a worse fate by +committing suicide. The Manchus, not satisfied with his death, sent his +head to Pekin to be placed on its principal gate in triumph, and the body +of Wou Sankwei himself was exhumed so that his ashes might be scattered in +each of the eighteen provinces of China as a warning to traitors. Having +crushed their most redoubtable antagonist, the Manchus resorted to more +severe measures against those who had surrendered in Fuhkien and Kwantung, +and many insurgent chiefs who had surrendered, and enjoyed a brief +respite, ended their lives under the knife of the executioner. The Manchu +soldiers are said to have been given spoil to the extent of nearly ten +million dollars, and the war which witnessed the final assertion of Manchu +power over the Chinese was essentially popular with the soldiers who +carried it on to a victorious conclusion. A very short time after the +final overthrow of Wou Sankwei and his family, the Chinese regime in +Formosa was brought to an end. Kanghi, having collected a fleet, and +concluded a convention with the Dutch, determined on the invasion and +conquest of Formosa. In the midst of these preparations Ching, the son of +Koshinga, died, and no doubt the plans of Kanghi were facilitated by the +confusion that followed. The Manchu fleet seized Ponghu, the principal +island of the Pescadore group, and thence the Manchus threw a force into +Formosa. It is said that they were helped by a high tide, and by the +superstition of the islanders, who exclaimed, "The first Wang (Koshinga) +got possession of Taiwan by a high tide. The fleet now comes in the same +manner. It is the will of Heaven." Formosa accepted the supremacy of the +Manchus without further ado. Those of the islanders who had ever +recognized the authority of any government, accepted that of the Emperor +Kanghi, shaved their heads in token of submission, and became so far as in +them lay respectable citizens. + +The overthrow of Wou Sankwei and the conquest of Formosa completed what +may be called the pacification of China by the Manchus. From that period +to the Taeping Rebellion, or for nearly 200 years, there was no internal +insurrection on a large scale. On the whole the Manchus stained their +conclusive triumph by few excesses, and Kanghi's moderation was scarcely +inferior to that of his father, Chuntche. The family of Wou Sankwei seems +to have been rooted out more for the personal attempt of the son at Pekin +than for the bold ambition of the potentate himself. The family of +Koshinga was spared, and its principal representative received the patent +of an earl. Thus, by a policy judiciously combined of severity and +moderation, did Kanghi make himself supreme, and complete the work of his +race. Whatever troubles may have beset the government in the last 220 +years, it will be justifiable to speak of the Manchus and the Tatsing +dynasty as the legitimate authorities in China, and, instead of foreign +adventurers, as the national and recognized rulers of the Middle Kingdom. + + + + +CHAPTER XI + +THE EMPEROR KANGHI + + +Among the Mongol tribes the noblest at this period were the Khalkas. They +prided themselves on being the descendants of the House of Genghis, the +representatives of the special clan of the great conqueror, and the +occupants of the original home in the valleys of the Onon and Kerulon. +Although their military power was slight, the name of the Khalka princes +stood high among the Mongol tribes, and they exercised an influence far in +excess of their numbers or capacity as a fighting force. Kanghi determined +to establish friendly relations with this clan, and by the dispatch of +friendly letters and costly presents lie succeeded in inducing the Khalka +chiefs to enter into formal alliance with himself, and to conclude a +treaty of amity with China, which, be it noted, they faithfully observed. +Kanghi's efforts in this direction, which may have been dictated by +apprehension at the movements of his new neighbors, the Russians, were +thus crowned with success, and the adhesion of the Khalkas signified that +the great majority of the Mongols would thenceforth abstain from acts of +unprovoked aggression on the Chinese frontier. But the advance of China +and her influence, even in the form of paying homage to the emperor as the +Bogdo Khan, or the Celestial Ruler, so far west as the upper course of the +Amour, involved the Pekin Government in fresh complications by bringing it +into contact with tribes and peoples of whom it had no cognizance. Beyond +the Khalkas were the Eleuths, supreme in Ili and Kashgaria, and divided +into four hordes, who obeyed as many chiefs. They had had some relations +with the Khalkas, but of China they knew nothing more than the greatness +of her name. When the surrender of the Khalka princes became known the +Eleuth chiefs held a grand assembly or kuriltai, and at this it was +finally, and, indeed, ostentatiously, decided not to yield Kanghi his +demands. Important as this decision was, it derived increased weight from +the character of the man who was mainly instrumental in inducing the +Eleuths to take it. + +Much has been written of the desert chiefs from Yenta to Yakoob Beg, but +none of these showed greater ability or attained more conspicuous success +than Galdan, who strained the power of China, and fought for many years on +equal terms with the Emperor Kanghi. Galdan determined that the easiest +and most advantageous beginning for his enterprise would be to attack his +neighbors the Khalkas, who, by accepting Kanghi's offers, had made +themselves the advanced guard of China in Central Asia. He began a +systematic encroachment into their lands in the year 1679, but at the same +time he resorted to every device to screen his movements from the Chinese +court, and such was the delay in receiving intelligence, and the ignorance +of the situation beyond the border, that in the very year of his beginning +to attack the Khalkas, his envoy at Pekin received a flattering reception +at the hands of Kanghi, still hopeful of a peaceful settlement, and +returned with the seal and patent of a Khan. Events had not reached a +state of open hostility three years later, when Kanghi sent special envoys +to the camp of Galdan, as well as to the Khalkas. They were instructed to +promise and pay much, but to rest content with nothing short of the formal +acceptance by all the chiefs of the supremacy of China. Galdan, bound by +the laws of hospitality, nowhere more sacred than in the East, gave them +an honorable reception, and lavished upon them the poor resources he +commanded. In hyperbolic terms he declared that the arrival of an embassy +from the rich and powerful Chinese emperor in his poor State would be +handed down as the most glorious event of his reign. But he refused to +make any tender of allegiance, or to subscribe himself as a Chinese +vassal. The dissensions among the Khalka princes assisted the development +of Galdan's ambition, and added to the anxiety of the Chinese ruler. +Kanghi admonished them to heal their differences and to abstain from an +internecine strife, which would only facilitate their conquest by Galdan, +and he succeeded so far that he induced them to swear a peace among +themselves before an image of Buddha. + +At this juncture the Chinese came into collision with the Russians on the +Amour. The Russians had built a fort at Albazin, on the upper course of +that river, and the Chinese army located in the Khalka country, +considering its proximity a menace to their own security, attacked it in +overwhelming force. Albazin was taken, and those of the garrison who fell +into the hands of the Chinese were carried off to Pekin, where their +descendants still reside as a distinct Russian colony. But when the +Chinese evacuated Albazin the Russians returned there with characteristic +obstinacy, and Kanghi, becoming anxious at the increasing activity of +Galdan, accepted the overtures of the Russian authorities in Siberia, who, +in 1688, sent the son of the Governor-general of Eastern Siberia to Pekin +to negotiate a peace. After twelve months' negotiation, protracted by the +outbreak of war with Galdan, the Treaty of Nerchinsk, the first concluded +between China and any European power, was signed, and the brief and only +war between Russia and China was thus brought to a speedy and satisfactory +termination. The Russians agreed to the destruction of Fort Albazin, but +they were allowed to build another at Nerchinsk. + +There is reason to believe that Galdan thought that he might derive some +advantage from the complications with Russia, for his military movements +were hastened when he heard that the two powers were embroiled on the +Amour, and he proclaimed his intention of invading the Khalka region, +because some of their people had murdered his kinsmen. Galdan endeavored +to conclude an alliance with the Russians, who sent an officer to his +camp; but they soon came to the determination that it would be more +advantageous to keep on friendly terms with the Chinese than to embark on +a hazardous adventure with the chief of an Asiatic horde. The mere rumor +of a possible alliance between Galdan and the Russians roused Kanghi to +increased activity, and all the picked troops of the Eight Manchu Banners, +the Forty-nine Mongol Banners, and the Chinese auxiliaries, were +dispatched across the steppe to bring the Napoleon of Central Asia to +reason. In face of this formidable danger Galdan showed undiminished +courage and energy. Realizing the peril of inaction, he did not hesitate +to assume the offensive, and the war began with a victory he gained over a +general named Horni, within the limits of Chinese territory. The moral of +this success was that it showed that Kanghi had not decided a moment too +soon in resorting to extreme measures against the ambitious potentate who +found the Gobi Desert and the surrounding region too circumscribed for his +ambition. + +Kanghi intrusted the chief command of his armies to his brother, Yu Tsing +Wang, who justified his appointment by bringing the Eleuth forces speedily +to an engagement, and by gaming a more or less decisive victory over them +at Oulan Poutong. The loss was considerable on both sides, among the +imperial officers killed being an uncle of the emperor; but Galdan's +forces suffered a great deal more during the retreat than they had done in +the action. After this disaster Galdan signed a treaty with the Chinese +commander, Yu Tsing Wang. At first he attempted to gain an advantage by +excluding his personal enemies, the Khalkas, from it, but the Chinese were +not to be entrapped into any such arrangement, and, standing up for their +dependents, the provisions of the treaty provided equally for their safety +and for the acceptance by Galdan of the supremacy of China. This new +arrangement or treaty was concluded in 1690, but Kanghi himself seems to +have placed no great faith in the sincerity of Galdan, and to have +regarded it merely as a truce. This view was soon found to be correct, for +neither side laid aside their arms, and the unusual vigilance of the +Chinese gave Galdan additional cause for umbrage. Kanghi showed that he +was resolved not to let the terms, to which Galdan had subscribed, become +a dead letter. He summoned a great assemblage of the Khalka tribes on the +plain of Dolonor--the Seven Springs near Changtu--and he attended it in +person, bestowing gifts and titles with a lavish hand. Kanghi was thus +able to convince himself that, so far as the Mongol tribes were concerned, +he might count on their loyalty and support. He then began to establish an +understanding with Tse Wang Rabdan, and thus obtain an ally in the rear of +Galdan. This latter circumstance was the direct cause of the second war +with Galdan, for Kanghi's embassador was waylaid and murdered in the +neighborhood of Hami. The outrage for which, whether he inspired it or +not, Galdan was held blameworthy, aroused the strongest resentment and +anger of Kanghi. + +Kanghi made extraordinary preparations for the campaign. He placed four +armies in the field numbering about 150,000 combatants, and it has been +computed that, with non-combatants, the total of men employed did not fall +short of a million. The first of these armies numbered 35,600 men, and was +intrusted to Feyanku, the Ney of the Manchu army. Kanghi took personal +command of the second, and its strength is given at 37,700 men; and the +third army, 35,400 men, was placed under the orders of Sapsu. The fourth, +of unstated but greatest numerical strength, acted as the reserve force +for the others, and did not, properly speaking, come into action at all. +In order to render the war popular Kanghi offered special pay to the +soldiers, and undertook to provide for the widows and orphans of those +slain. At the same time Kanghi neglected no precaution to insure the +success of his arms. He provided cotton armor which was proof to the +bullet for his cavalry and part of his infantry, and he organized a corps +of artillerists mounted on camels, which also carried the light pieces, +and rendered good service as "flying artillery." Before setting out for +the campaign, the emperor reviewed his army, and he chose for the occasion +the date of the popular Feast of Lanterns, when all China takes a holiday. +After the inspection of the numerous and well equipped army an impressive +ceremony took place. Feyanku approached his sovereign, and received at his +hands a cup of wine, which the general took while on his knees, and which, +on descending from the steps of the throne, he quaffed in full view of the +spectators. Each of his assistant generals and the subordinate officers in +groups of ten went through the same ceremony, and the ruin of Galdan was +anticipated in the libations of his conquerors. While Feyanku marched to +encounter Galdan wherever he should find him, the ministers and courtiers +at Pekin made a strenuous effort to prevent Kanghi taking the field in +person, expatiating on the dangers of a war in the desert, and of the loss +to the empire if anything happened to him. But Kanghi, while thanking them +for their solicitude, was not to be deterred from his purpose. He led his +army by a parallel route to that pursued by Feyanku across the Gobi Desert +to Kobdo, where Galdan had established his headquarters. The details of +the march are fully described by the Roman Catholic priest, Gerbillon, in +his interesting narrative. They reveal the difficulties of the enterprise +as well as its success. Some detachments of the Chinese army were +compelled to beat a retreat, but the main body succeeded in making its way +to the valley of the Kerulon, where some supplies could be obtained. +Feyanku's corps, when it reached the neighborhood of the modern Ourga, was +reduced to an effective strength of 10,000 men, and of Sapsu's army only +2,000 ever reached the scene of operations, and they formed a junction +with the force under Feyanku. But Galdan did not possess the military +strength to take any advantage of the enfeebled state in which the Chinese +armies reached his neighborhood. He abandoned camp after camp, and sought +to make good his position by establishing an empty alliance with the +Russians in Siberia, from whom he asked 60,000 troops to consummate the +conquest of China. Such visionary projects as this provided a poor defense +against the active operations of a Chinese army in his own country. In a +fit bordering on desperation Galdan suddenly determined to risk an attack +on the camp of Feyanku at Chowmodo. That general, less fortunate than his +sovereign, had been reduced to the verge of distress by the exhaustion of +his supplies, and was even meditating a retreat back to China, when the +action of Galdan relieved him from his dilemma. The exact course of the +battle at Chowmodo is not described in any authentic document. During +three hours Feyanku stood on the defensive, but when he gave the order for +attack, the Eleuths broke in confusion before the charge of his cavalry. +Two thousand of their best warriors were slain, their organization was +shattered, and Galdan became a fugitive in the region where he had posed +as undisputed master. This victory undoubtedly relieved the Chinese from +serious embarrassment, and Kanghi felt able to return to Pekin, leaving +the further conduct of the war and the pursuit of Galdan in the hands of +Feyanku. Formidable enemy as Galdan had proved himself, the defeat at +Chowmodo put an end to his career, and destroyed all his schemes of +greatness. The Chinese pursued him with great persistence, and at last he +died in 1697, either of his deprivations or by the act of his own hand. +With Galdan disappeared one of the most remarkable of the desert chiefs; +but, although Kanghi flattered himself that such would be the case, peace +did not settle down on Central Asia as the consequence of the death of his +active and enterprising antagonist. The Chinese armies were recalled for +this occasion, and the only force left on the remote frontier was a small +one under the command of the gallant Feyanku. + +The overthrow and death of Galdan brought Tse Wang Rabdan into direct +contact with the Chinese. He had from his hostile relations with Galdan-- +the murderer of his father Tsenka--acted as the ally of Kanghi, but when +he became the chief of the Eleuths on the death of his uncle, his ideas +underwent a change, and he thought more of his dignity and independence. +No rupture might have taken place, but that the Chinese, in their +implacable resolve to exterminate the family of their enemy Galdan, +demanded from Tse Wang Rabdan not only the bones of that chieftain, but +also the persons of his son and daughter, who had taken refuge with him. +Tse Wang Rabdan resented both the demand itself and the language in which +it was expressed. He evaded the requests sent by Feyanku, and he addressed +a letter of remonstrance to Kanghi, in the course of which he said, "The +war being now concluded, past injuries ought to be buried in oblivion. +Pity should be shown to the vanquished, and it would be barbarous to think +of nothing but of how to overwhelm them. It is the first law inspired by +humanity, and one which custom has consecrated from the earliest period +among us who are Eleuths." Kanghi, undeterred by this homily, continued to +press his demand, and sent several missions to the Eleuth camp to obtain +the surrender of Galdan's remains and relations. His pertinacity was at +last rewarded, and the bones of his old opponent were surrendered to be +scattered as those of a traitor throughout China, and his son was sent to +Pekin, where, however, he received an honorable appointment in lieu of +being handed over to the public executioner. Although Tse Wang Rabdan at +last conceded to Kanghi what he demanded, his general action soon marked +him out as the antagonist of the Chinese in Central Asia. He first +vanquished in battle, and then established an alliance with the Kirghiz, +and thus his military forces were recruited from the whole of the vast +territory from Hami on the east to Khokand on the west. + +The main object of his policy was to assert his influence and authority in +Tibet, and to make the ruling lama at Lhasa accept whatever course he +might dictate for him. Galdan had at one time entertained the same idea; +but probably because he had not as good means of access into the country +as Tse Wang Rabdan had, on account of his possession of Khoten, it lay +dormant until it was dispelled by the rupture after his adoption of +Mohammedanism. Up to this time China had been content with a very shadowy +hold on Tibet, and she had no resident representative at Lhasa. But +Kanghi, convinced of the importance of maintaining his supremacy in Tibet, +took energetic measures to counteract the Eleuth intrigues, and for a time +there was a keen diplomatic struggle between the contending potentates. +From an early period the supremacy in the Tibetan administration had been +disputed between two different classes, the one which represented the +military body making use of religious matters to forward its designs, the +other being an order of priests supported by the unquestioning faith and +confidence of the mass of the people. The former became known as Red Caps +and the latter as Yellow Caps. The rivalry between these classes had been +keen before, and was still bitterly contested when Chuntche first asconded +the throne; but victory had finally inclined to the side of the Yellow +Caps before the fall of Galdan. The Dalai Lama was their great spiritual +head, and his triumph had been assisted by the intervention and influence +of the Manchu emperor. The Red Caps were driven out of the country into +Bhutan, where they still hold sway. After this success a new functionary, +with both civil and military authority, was appointed to carry on the +administration, under the orders of the Dalai Lama, who was supposed to be +lost in his spiritual speculations and religious devotions. This +functionary received the name of the Tipa, and, encouraged by the little +control exercised over his acts, he soon began to carry on intrigues for +the elevation of his own power at the expense of that of his priestly +superiors. The ambition of one Tipa led to his fall and execution, but the +offense was attributed to the individual, and a new one was appointed. +This second Tipa was the reputed son of a Dalai Lama, and when his father +died in 1682 he kept the fact of his death secret, giving out that he had +only retired into the recesses of the palace, and ruled the state in his +name for the space of sixteen years. The Tipa well knew that he could not +hope to obtain the approval of Kanghi for what he had done, and he had +made overtures to the princes of Jungaria for protection, whenever he +might require it, against the Chinese emperor. At last the truth was +divulged, and Kanghi was most indignant at having been duped, and +threatened to send an army to punish the Tipa for his crime. Then the Tipa +selected a new Dalai Lama, and endeavored to appease Kanghi, but his +choice proved unfortunate because it did not satisfy the Tibetans. His own +general, Latsan Khan, made himself the executor of public opinion. The +Tipa was slain with most of his supporters, and the boy Dalai Lama shared +the same fate. These occurrences did not insure the tranquillity of the +state, for when another Dalai Lama was found, the selection was not +agreeable to Latsan Khan, and his friends had to convey the youth for +safety to Sining, in China. + +It was at this moment that Tse Wang Rabdan determined to interfere in +Tibet, and, strangely enough, instead of attempting to make Latsan Khan +his friend, he at once resolved to treat him as an enemy, throwing his +son, who happened to be at Ili, into prison. He then dispatched an army +into Tibet to crush Latsan Khan, and at the same time he sent a force +against Sining in the hope of gaining possession of the person of the +young Dalai Lama. The Eleuth army quitted the banks of the Ili in 1709, +under the command of Zeren Donduk, and having crossed Eastern Turkestan +appeared in due course before Lhasa. It met with little or no resistance. +Latsan Khan was slain, and the Eleuth army collected an incalculable +quantity of spoil, with which it returned to the banks of the Ili. The +expedition against Sining failed, and the rapid advance of a Chinese army +compelled the retreat of Zeren Donduk without having attained any +permanent success. As the Eleuth army had evacuated Tibet there was no +object in sending Chinese troops into that state, and Kanghi's generals +were instructed to march westward from Hami to Turfan. But their movements +were marked by carelessness or over-confidence, and the Eleuths surprised +their camp and inflicted such loss upon Kanghi's commanders that they had +even to evacuate Hami. But this was only a temporary reverse. A fresh +Manchu army soon retrieved it, and Hami again became the bulwark of the +Chinese frontier. At the same time Kanghi sent a garrison to Tibet, and +appointed resident ambans at Lhasa, which officials China has retained +there ever since. The war with Tse Wang Rabdan was not ended by these +successes, for he resorted to the hereditary tactics of his family, +retiring when the Chinese appeared in force, and then advancing on their +retreat. As Kanghi wrote, they are "like wolves who, at the sight of the +huntsmen, scatter to their dens, and at the withdrawal of danger assemble +again round the prey they have abandoned with regret. Such was the policy +of these desert robbers." The last year of Kanghi's reign was illustrated +by a more than usually decisive victory over the forces of Tse Wang +Rabdan, which a courtier declared to be "equivalent to the conquest of +Tibet"; but on the whole the utmost success that can be claimed for +Kanghi's policy was that it repelled the chronic danger from the desert +chiefs and their turbulent followers to a greater distance from the +immediate frontier of the empire than had been the case for many +centuries. He left the task of breaking the Eleuth power to his grandson, +Keen Lung. + +The close of Kanghi's reign witnessed a decline in the interest he took in +the representatives of Europe, and this was not revived by the splendor of +the embassy which Peter the Great sent to Pekin in 1719. The embassy +consisted of the embassador himself, M. Ismaloff; his secretary, M. de +Lange; the English traveler, Mr. Bell, and a considerable suite. Kanghi +received in the most gracious manner the letter which Peter addressed to +him in the following terms: "To the emperor of the vast countries of Asia, +to the Sovereign Monarch of Bogdo, to the Supreme Majesty of Khitay, +friendship and greeting. With the design I possess of holding and +increasing the friendship and close relations long established between +your Majesty and my predecessors and myself, I have thought it right to +send to your court, in the capacity of embassador-extraordinary, Leon +Ismaloff, captain in my guards. I beg you will receive him in a manner +suitable to the character in which he comes, to have regard and to attach +as much faith to what he may say on the subject of our mutual affairs as +if I were speaking to you myself, and also to permit his residing at your +Court of Pekin until I recall him. Allow me to sign myself your Majesty's +good friend. Peter." Kanghi gave the Russian envoy a very honorable +reception. A house was set apart for his accommodation, and when the +difficulties raised by the mandarins on the question of the kotao ceremony +at the audience threatened to bring the embassy to an abortive end, Kanghi +himself intervened with a suggestion that solved the difficulty. He +arranged that his principal minister should perform the kotao to the +letter of the Russian emperor, while the Russian envoy rendered him the +same obeisance. The audience then took place without further delay, and it +was allowed on all hands that no foreign embassy had ever been received +with greater honor in China than this. Ismaloff returned to his master +with the most roseate account of his reception and of the opening in China +for Russian trade. A large and rich caravan was accordingly fitted out by +Peter, to proceed to Pekin; but when it arrived it found a very different +state of affairs from what Ismaloff had pictured. Kanghi lay on his death- +bed, the anti-foreign ministers were supreme, declaring that "trade was a +matter of little consequence, and regarded by them with contempt," and the +Russians were ignominiously sent back to Siberia with the final +declaration that such intercourse as was unavoidable must be restricted to +the frontier. Thus summarily was ended Peter's dream of tapping the wealth +of China. + +Although Kanghi was not altogether free from domestic trouble, through the +ambition of his many sons to succeed him, his life must on the whole be +said to have passed along tranquilly enough apart from his cares of state. +The public acts and magnificent exploits of his reign prove him to have +been wise, courageous, and magnanimous, and his private life will bear the +most searching examination, and only render his virtue the more +conspicuous. He always showed a tender solicitude for the interests of his +people, which was proved, among other things, by his giving up his annual +tours through his dominions on account of the expense thrown on his +subjects by the inevitable size of his retinue. His active habits as a +hunter, a rider, and even as a pedestrian, were subjects of admiring +comment on the part of the Chinese people, and he was one of their few +rulers who made it a habit to walk through the streets of his capital. He +was also conspicuous as the patron of learning; notably in his support of +the foreign missionaries as geographers and cartographers. He was also the +consistent and energetic supporter of the celebrated Hanlin College, and, +as he was no ordinary _litterateur_ himself, this is not surprising. +His own works filled a hundred volumes, prominent among which were his +Sixteen Maxims on the Art of Government, and it is believed that he took a +large part in bringing out the Imperial Dictionary of the Hanlin College. +His writings were marked by a high code of morality as well as by the +lofty ideas of a broad-minded statesman. His enemies have imputed to him +an excessive vanity and avarice; but the whole tenor of his life disproves +the former statement, and, whatever foundation in fact the latter may have +had, he never carried it to any greater length than mere prudence and +consideration for the wants of his people demanded. We know that he +resorted to gentle pressure to attain his ends rather than to tyrannical +force. When he wished to levy a heavy contribution from a too rich subject +he had recourse to what may be styled a mild joke, sooner than to threats +and corporal punishment. The following incident has been quoted in this +connection: One day Kanghi made an official, who had grown very wealthy, +lead him, riding on an ass, round his gardens. As recompense the emperor +gave him a tael. Then he himself led the mandarin in similar fashion. At +the end of the tour he asked how much greater he was than his minister? +"The comparison is impossible," said the ready courtier. "Then I must make +the estimate myself," replied Kanghi. "I am 20,000 times as great, +therefore you will pay me 20,000 taels." His reign was singularly free +from the executions so common under even the best of Chinese rulers; and, +whenever possible, he always tempered justice with mercy. + +Notwithstanding his enfeebled health and the many illnesses from which he +had suffered in later life, he persisted in following his usual sporting +amusements, and he passed the winter of 1722 at his hunting-box at Haidsu. +He seems to have caught a chill, and after a brief illness he died on the +2oth of December in that year. + +The place of Kanghi among Chinese sovereigns is clearly defined. He ranks +on almost equal terms with the two greatest of them all--Taitsong and his +own grandson, Keen Lung--and it would be ungracious, if not impossible, to +say in what respect he falls short of complete equality with either, so +numerous and conspicuous were his talents and his virtues. His long +friendship and high consideration for the Christian missionaries have no +doubt contributed to bring his name and the events of his reign more +prominently before Europe than was the case with any other Chinese ruler. +But, although this predilection for European practices may have had the +effect of strengthening his claims to precede every other of his country's +rulers, it can add but little to the impression produced on even the most +cursory reader by the remarkable achievements in peace and war +accomplished by this gifted emperor. Kanghi's genius dominates one of the +most critical periods in Chinese history, of which the narrative should +form neither an uninteresting nor an uninstructive theme. Celebrated as +the consolidator and completer of the Manchu conquest, Kanghi's virtue and +moderation have gained him permanent fame as a wise, just, and beneficent +national sovereign in the hearts of the Chinese people. + + + + +CHAPTER XII + +A SHORT REIGN AND THE BEGINNING OF A LONG ONE + + +Immediately after the death of Kanghi, his fourth son, who had long been +designated as his heir, was proclaimed emperor, under the style of Yung +Ching, which name means "the indissoluble concord or stable peace." The +late emperor had always favored this prince, and in his will he publicly +proclaimed that he bore much resemblance to himself, and that he was a man +of rare and precious character. His first acts indicated considerable +vigor and decision of mind. In the edict announcing the death of his +father and his own accession he said that on the advice of his ministers +he had entered upon the discharge of his imperial duties, without giving +up precious time to the indulgence of his natural grief, which would be +gratifying to his feelings, but injurious to the public interests. As Yung +Ching was of the mature age of forty-five, and as he had enjoyed the +confidence of his predecessor, he was fully qualified to carry on the +administration. He declared that his main purpose was to continue his +father's work, and that he would tread as closely as he could in Kanghi's +footsteps. While Yung Ching took these prompt steps to secure himself on +the throne, some of his brothers assumed an attitude of menacing hostility +toward him, and all his energy and vigilance were required to counteract +their designs. A very little time was needed, however, to show that Kanghi +had selected his worthiest son as his successor, and that China would have +no reason to fear under Yung Ching the loss of any of the benefits +conferred on the nation by Kanghi. His fine presence, and frank, open +manner, secured for him the sympathy and applause of the public, and in a +very short time he also gained their respect and admiration by his wisdom +and justice. + +The most important and formidable of his brothers was the fourteenth son +of Kanghi, by the same mother, however, as that of Yung Ching. He and his +son Poki had been regarded with no inconsiderable favor by Kanghi, and at +one time it was thought that he would have chosen them as his successors; +but these expectations were disappointed. He was sent instead to hold the +chief command against the Eleuths on the western borders. Young Ching +determined to remove him from this post, in which he might have +opportunities of asserting his independence, and for a moment it seemed as +if he might disobey. But more prudent counsels prevailed, and he returned +to Pekin, where he was placed in honorable confinement, and retained there +during the whole of Yung Ching's reign. He and his son owed their release +thirteen years later to the greater clemency or self-confidence of Keen +Lung. Another brother, named Sessaka, also fell under suspicion, and he +was arrested and his estates confiscated. He was then so far forgiven that +a small military command was given him in the provinces. Others of more +importance were involved in his affairs. Lessihin, son of Prince +Sourniama, an elder brother of Kanghi, was denounced as a sympathizer and +supporter of Sessaka. The charge seems to have been based on slender +evidence, but it sufficed to cause the banishment of this personage and +all his family to Sining. It appears as if they were specially punished +for having become Christians, and there is no doubt that their conversion +imbittered the emperor's mind against the Christian missionaries and their +religion. It enabled him to say, or at least induced him to accept the +statement, that the Christians meddled and took a side in the internal +politics of the country. Yung Ching saw and seized his opportunity. His +measures of repression against the recalcitrant party in his own family +culminated in the summary exile of Sourniama and all his descendants down +to the fourth generation. Sourniama vainly endeavored to establish his +innocence, and he sent three of his sons, laden with chains, to the +palace, to protest his innocence and devotion. But they were refused +audience, and Sourniama and his family sank into oblivion and wretchedness +on the outskirts of the empire. + +Having thus settled the difficulties within his own family, Yung Ching +next turned his attention to humbling the bold band of foreigners who had +established themselves in the capital and throughout the country, as much +by their own persistency and indifference to slight as by the acquiescence +of the Chinese government, and who, after they had reached some of the +highest official posts, continued to preach and propagate their gospel of +a supreme power and mercy beyond the control of kings, a gospel which was +simply destructive of the paternal and sacred claims on which a Chinese +emperor based his authority as superior to all earthly interference, and +as transmitted to him direct from Heaven, The official classes confirmed +the emperor's suspicions, and encouraged him to proceed to extreme +lengths. On all sides offenses were freely laid at the doors of the +missionaries. It was said of them that "their doctrine sows trouble among +the people, and makes them doubt the goodness of our laws." In the +province of Fuhkien their eighteen churches were closed, and the priests +were summarily ordered to return to Macao. At Pekin itself the Jesuits +lost all their influence. Those who had been well-disposed toward them +were either banished or cowed into silence. The emperor turned his back on +them and refused to see them, and they could only wait with their usual +fortitude until the period of imperial displeasure had passed over. When +they endeavored to enlist in their support the sympathy and influence of +the emperor's brother--the thirteenth prince--who in Kanghi's time had +been considered their friend, they met with a rebuff not unnatural or +unreasonable when the mishaps to his relations for their Christian +proclivities are borne in mind. This prince said, in words which have +often been repeated since by Chinese ministers and political writers, +"What would you say if our people were to go to Europe and wished to +change there the laws and customs established by your ancient sages? The +emperor, my brother, wishes to put an end to all this in an effectual +manner. I have seen the accusation of the Tsongtou of Fuhkien. It is +undoubtedly strong, and your disputes about our customs have greatly +injured you. What would you say if we were to transport ourselves to +Europe and to act there as you have done here? Would you stand it for a +moment? In the course of time I shall master this business, but I declare +to you that China will want for nothing when you cease to live in it, and +that your absence will not cause it any loss. Here nobody is retained by +force, and nobody also will be suffered to break the laws or to make light +of our customs." + +The influence of Yung Ching on the development of the important foreign +question arrested the ambition and sanguine flight of the imagination of +the Roman Catholic missionaries, who, rendered overconfident by their +success under Kanghi, believed that they held the future of China in their +own hands, and that persistency alone was needed to secure the adhesion of +that country to the Christian Church. Yung Ching dispelled these +illusions, and so far as they were illusions, which nearly two subsequent +centuries have proved them to be, it was well that they should be so +dispelled. He asserted himself in very unequivocal terms as an emperor of +China, and as resolute in maintaining his sovereign position outside the +control of any religious potentate or creed. The progress of the Christian +religion of the Roman Catholic Church in China was quite incompatible with +the supposed celestial origin of the emperor, who was alleged to receive +his authority direct from Heaven. It is not surprising that Yung Ching, at +the earliest possible moment, decided to blight these hopes, and to assert +the natural and inherited prerogative of a Chinese emperor. There is no +room to doubt that the Catholic priests had drawn a too hasty and too +favorable deduction from the favor of Kanghi. They confounded their +practical utility with the intrinsic merit and persuasive force of +Christianity. An enlightened ruler had recognized the former, but a +skeptical people showed themselves singularly obdurate to the latter. The +persecution of the Christians, of which the letters from the missionaries +at Pekin at this time are so full, did not go beyond the placing of some +restraint on the preaching of their religion. No wholesale executions or +sweeping decrees passed against their persons attended its course or +marked its development. Yung Ching simply showed by his conduct that they +must count no longer on the favor of the emperor in the carrying out of +their designs. The difficulties inherent in the task they had undertaken +stood for the first time fully revealed, and having been denounced as a +source of possible danger to the stability of the empire, they became an +object of suspicion even to those who had sympathized with them +personally, if not with their creed. + +The early years of the reign of Yung Ching were marked by extraordinary +public misfortunes. The flooding of the Hoangho entailed a famine, which +spread such desolation throughout the northern provinces that it is +affirmed, on credible authority, that 40,000 persons were fed at the state +expense in Pekin alone for a period of four months. The taxes in some of +the most important cities and wealthiest districts had to be greatly +reduced, and the resources of the exchequer were severely strained. But +the loss and suffering caused by the famine were speedily cast into the +shade by a terrible and sudden visitation which carried desolation and +destruction throughout the whole of the metropolitan province of Pechihli. +The northern districts of China have for many centuries been liable to the +frequent recurrence of earthquakes on a terribly vast and disastrous +scale, but none of them equaled in its terrific proportions that of the +year 1730. It came without warning, but the shocks continued for ten days. +Over 100,000 persons were overwhelmed in a moment at Pekin, the suburbs +were laid in ruins, the imperial palace was destroyed, the summer +residence at Yuen Ming Yuen, on which Yung Ching had lavished his taste +and his treasure, suffered in scarcely a less degree. The emperor and the +inhabitants fled from the city, and took shelter without the walls, where +they encamped. The loss was incalculable, and it has been stated that Yung +Ching expended seventy-five million dollars in repairing the damage and +allaying the public misfortune. Notwithstanding these national calamities +the population increased, and in some provinces threatened to outgrow the +production of rice. Various devices were resorted to to check the growth +of the population; but they were all of a simple and harmless character, +such as the issue of rewards to widows who did not marry again and to +bachelors who preserved their state. + +The military events of Yung Ching's reign were confined to the side of +Central Asia, where Tse Wang Rabdan emulated with more than ordinary +success the example of his predecessors, and where he transmitted his +power and authority to his son, Galdan Chereng, on his death in 1727. He +established his sovereignty over the whole of Kashgaria, which he ruled +through a prince named Daniel, and he established relations with the +Russians, which at one time promised to attain a cordial character, but +which were suddenly converted into hostility by the Russian belief that +the Upper Urtish lay in a gold region which they resolved to conquer. +Instead of an ally they then found in Tse Wang Rabdan the successful +defender of that region. But the wars of Central Asia had no interest for +Yung Ching. He was one of the Chinese rulers who thought that he should +regard these matters as outside his concern, and the experience of +Kanghi's wars had divided Chinese statesmen into two clearly-defined +parties: those who held that China should conquer Central Asia up to the +Pamir, and those who thought that the Great Wall was the best practical +limit for the exercise of Chinese authority. Yung Ching belonged to the +latter school, and, instead of dispatching fresh armies into the Gobi +region to complete the triumph of his father, he withdrew those that were +there, and publicly proclaimed that the aggressive chiefs and turbulent +tribes of that region might fight out their own quarrels, and indulge +their own petty ambitions as best they felt disposed. The success of this +policy would have been incontestable if it had been reflected in the +conduct of the Central Asian princelets, who, however, seemed to see in +the moderation and inaction of the Chinese ruler only a fresh incentive to +aggression and turbulence. Yung Ching himself died too soon to appreciate +the shortcomings of his own policy. + +In the midst of his labors as a beneficent ruler the life of Yung Ching +was cut short. On October 7, 1735, he gave audience to the high officials +of his court in accordance with his usual custom; but feeling indisposed +he was compelled to break off the interview in a sudden manner. His +indisposition at once assumed a grave form, and in a few hours he had +ceased to live. The loss of this emperor does not seem to have caused any +profound or widespread sentiment of grief among the masses, although the +more intelligent recognized in him one of those wise and prudent rulers +whose tenure of power makes their people's happiness. + +Yung Ching died so suddenly that he had not nominated his heir. He left +three sons, and, after brief consideration, the eldest of these--to whom +was given the name of Keen Lung--was placed upon the throne. The choice +was justified by the result, although the chroniclers declare that it came +as a surprise to the recipient of the honor, as he had passed his life in +the pursuit of literary studies rather than in practical administrative +work. His skill and proficiency in the field of letters had already been +proved before his father's death; but of public affairs and the government +of a vast empire he knew little or nothing. He was a student of books +rather than of men, and he had to undergo a preliminary course of training +in the art of government before he felt himself capable of assuming the +reigns of power. Moreover, Keen Lung, although the eldest son, was not the +offspring of the empress, and the custom of succession in the imperial +family was too uncertain to allow any one in his position to feel absolute +confidence as to his claims securing the recognition they might seem to +warrant. His admission of his being unequal to the duties of his lofty +position, notwithstanding that he was twenty-five years of age, was +thoroughly characteristic of the man, and augured well for the future of +his reign. He appointed four regents, whose special task was to show him +how to rule; but in the edict delegating his authority to them he +expressly limited its application to the period of mourning, covering a +space of four years; and as a measure of precaution against any undue +ambition he made the office terminable at his discretion. + +Keen Lung began his reign with acts of clemency, which seldom fail to add +a special luster to a sovereign's assumption of power. His father had +punished with rigor some of the first princes of the court simply because +they were his relations, and there is some ground for thinking that he had +put forward antipathy to the foreign heresy of the Christians as a cloak +to conceal his private animosities and personal apprehensions. Keen Lung +at once resolved to reverse the acts of his predecessor, and to offer such +reparation as he could to those who had suffered for no sufficient +offense. The sons of Kanghi and their children who had fallen under the +suspicion of Yung Ching were released from their confinement, and restored +to their rank and privileges. They showed their gratitude to their +benefactor by sustained loyalty and practical service that contributed to +the splendor of his long reign. The impression thus produced on the public +mind was also most favorable, and already the people were beginning to +declare that they had found a worthy successor to the great Kanghi. + +There is nothing surprising to learn that in consequence of the pardon and +restitution of the men who had nominally suffered for their Christian +proclivities the foreign missionaries began to hope and to agitate for an +improvement in their lot and condition. They somewhat hastily assumed that +the evil days of persecution wore over, and that Keen Lung would accord +them the same honorable positions as they had enjoyed under his +grandfather, Kanghi. These expectations were destined to a rude +disappointment, as the party hostile to the Christians remained as strong +as ever at court, and the regents were not less prejudiced against them +than the ministers of Yung Ching had been. The emperor's own opinion does +not appear to have been very strong one way or the other, but it seems +probable that he was slightly prejudiced against the foreigners. He +certainly assented to an order prohibiting the practice of Christianity by +any of his subjects, and ordaining the punishment of those who should +obstinately adhere to it. At the same time the foreign missionaries were +ordered to confine their labors to the secular functions in which they +were useful, and to give up all attempts to propagate their creed. Still +some slight abatement in practice was procured of these rigid measures +through the mediation of the painter Castiglione, who, while taking a +portrait of the emperor, pleaded, and not ineffectually, the cause of his +countrymen. There was one distinct persecution on a large scale in the +province of Fuhkien, where several Spanish missionaries were tortured, +their chief native supporters strangled, and Keen Lung himself sent the +order to execute the missionaries in retaliation for the massacre of +Chinese subjects by the Spaniards in the Philippines. After he had been on +the throne fifteen years, Keen Lung began to unbend toward the foreigners, +and to avail himself of their services in the same manner as his +grandfather had done. The artists Castiglione and Attiret were constantly +employed in the palace, painting his portrait and other pictures. Keen +Lung is said to have been so pleased with that drawn by Attiret that he +wished to make him a mandarin. The French in particular strove to amuse +the great monarch, and to enable him to wile away his leisure with +ingeniously constructed automatons worked by clockwork machinery. He also +learned from them much about the politics and material condition of +Europe, and it is not surprising that he became imbued with the idea that +France was the greatest and most powerful state in that continent. Almost +insensibly Keen Lung entertained a more favorable opinion of the +foreigners, and extended to them his protection with other privileges that +had long been withheld. But this policy was attributable to practical +considerations and not to religious belief. + +Very little detailed information is obtainable about the inner working of +the government and the annual course of events, owing to the practice of +not giving the official history of the dynasty publicity until after it +has ceased to reign; so all that can be said with any confidence of the +first fifteen years of Keen Lung's reign, is that they were marked by +great internal prosperity arising from the tranquillity of the realm and +the content of the people. Any misfortunes that befell the realm were of +personal importance to the sovereign rather than of national significance, +although some of the foreign priests affected to see in them the +retribution of Providence for the apathy and tyranny of the Chinese +rulers. In 1751 Keen Lung lost both his principal wife, the empress, and +his eldest son. His disagreements with his ministers also proved many and +serious, and the letters from Pekin note, with more than a gleam of +satisfaction, that those who were most prominent as Anti-Christians +suffered most heavily. Keen Lung suffered from physical weakness, and a +susceptibility to bodily ailments, that detracted during the first few +years of his reign from his capacity to discharge all the duties of his +position, and more than their usual share of power consequently fell into +the hands of the great tribunals of the state. When Keen Lung resolutely +devoted himself to the task of supervising the acts of the official world +the evils became less perceptible, and gradually the provincial governors +found it to be their best and wisest course to obey and faithfully execute +the behests of their sovereign. For a brief space Keen Lung seemed likely +to prove more indifferent to the duties of his rank than either of his +predecessors; but after a few years' practice he hastened to devote +himself to his work with an energy which neither Kanghi nor Yung Ching had +surpassed. + +Keen Lung seems to have passed his time between his palace at Pekin and +his hunting-box at Jehol, a small town beyond the Wall. The latter, +perhaps, was his favorite residence, because he enjoyed the quiet of the +country, and the purer and more invigorating air of the northern region +agreed with his constitution. Here he varied the monotony of rural +pursuits--for he never became as keen a hunter as Kanghi--with grand +ceremonies which he employed the foreigners in painting. It was at Jehol +that he planned most of his military campaigns, and those conquests which +carried his banners to the Pamir and the Himalaya. If the earlier period +of Keen Lung's reign was tranquil and undisturbed by war, the last forty +years made up for it by their sustained military excitement and +achievement. As soon as Keen Lung grasped the situation and found that the +administration of the country was working in perfect order, he resolved to +attain a complete settlement of the questions pending in Central Asia, +which his father had shirked. Up to this time Keen Lung had been generally +set down as a literary student, as a man more of thought than of action. +But his reading had taught him one thing, and that was that the danger to +China from the side of Central Asia was one that went back to remote ages, +that it had never been allayed, save for brief intervals, and then only by +establishing Chinese authority on either side of the Tian Shan. His +studies showed Keen Lung what ought to be done, and the aggressions of his +neighbors soon gave him the opportunity of carrying out the policy that he +felt to be the best. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +KEEN LUNG'S WARS AND CONQUESTS + + +It was the arrival of a chief named Amursana at his court that first led +Keen Lung to seriously entertain the idea of advancing into Central Asia, +and having determined on the Central Asian campaign, Keen Lung's military +preparations were commensurate with the importance and magnitude of the +undertaking. He collected an army of 150,000 men, including the picked +Manchu Banners and the celebrated Solon contingent, each of whom was said +to be worth ten other soldiers. The command of this army was given to +Panti, the best of the Manchu generals, and Amursana, who accompanied it, +received a seal and the honorary title of Great General. But Keen Lung +superintended all the operations of the war, and took credit to himself +for its successful issue. + +The triumph of Amursana, by the aid of the Chinese, did not bring +tranquillity to Central Asia. He was not contented with the position to +which the friendship of Keen Lung had raised him, and, placing too high an +estimate on his own ability and resources, he was inclined to dispute the +accepted opinion that all his success was due to the Chinese army. On the +termination of the campaign the major portion of that army returned to +China, but Panti was left with a select contingent, partly to support +Amursana, and partly to secure the restoration of China's authority. +Amursana, however, considered that the presence of this force detracted +from the dignity of his position. Having risen to the greatness he +coveted, Amursana meditated casting aside the prop by which he had risen; +but before he took an irretraceable step he resolved to make use of the +Chinese forces for extending his authority south of the Tian Shan range +into Kashgaria. With some hesitation Panti lent him 500 Chinese soldiers, +and with their aid the Eleuth prince captured the cities of Kashgar and +Yarkand, and set up a chief named Barhanuddin Khoja as his nominee. This +success confirmed Amursana in his good opinion of himself and his +resources, and when Keen Lung, who had grown mistrustful of his good +faith, summoned him to Pekin, he resolved to throw off the mask and his +allegiance to China. At this supreme moment of his fate not the least +thought of gratitude to the Chinese emperor, who had made him what he was, +seems to have entered his mind. He determined not merely to disregard the +summons to Pekin and to proclaim his independence, but also to show the +extent of his hostility by adding to his defiance an act of treachery. +Before he fully revealed his plans he surprised the Chinese garrison and +massacred it to the last man; the valiant Panti, who had gained his +victories for him, being executed by the public executioner. + +The impression produced by this event was profound, and when Amursana +followed up the blow by spreading abroad rumors of the magnitude of his +designs they obtained some credence even among the Mongols. Encouraged by +this success he sought to rally those tribes to his side by imputing +minister intentions to Keen Lung. His emissaries declared that Keen Lung +wished to deprive them all of their rank and authority, and that he had +summoned Amursana to Pekin only for the purpose of deposing him. To +complete the quarrel, Amursana declared himself King of the Eleuths, and +absolutely independent of China. But the energy and indignation of Keen +Lung soon exposed the hollowness of these designs, and the inadequacy of +Amursana's power and capacity to make good his pretensions. Keen Lung +collected another army larger than that which had placed him on his +throne, to hurl Amursana from the supremacy which had not satisfied him +and which he had grossly abused. + +The armies of Keen Lung traversed the Gobi Desert and arrived in Central +Asia, but the incapacity of his generals prevented the campaigns having +those decisive results which he expected. The autocratic Chinese ruler +treated his generals who failed like the fickle French Republic. The +penalty of failure was a public execution. Keen Lung would accept nothing +short of the capture of Amursana as evidence of his victory, and Amursana +escaped to the Kirghiz. His celerity or ingenuity cost the lives of four +respectable Chinese generals, two of whom were executed at Pekin and two +were slain by brigands on their way there to share the same fate. +Emboldened by the inability of the Chinese to capture him, Amursana again +assembled an army and pursued the retiring Chinese across the desert, +where he succeeded in inflicting no inconsiderable loss upon them. + +When the Chinese army retired before Amursana one corps maintained its +position and successfully defied him, thanks to the capacity of its +commander, Tchaohoei. Tchaohoei not merely held his ground, but drew up a +scheme for regaining all that had been lost in Central Asia, and Keen Lung +was so impressed by it that he at once resolved to intrust the execution +of his policy to the only officer who had shown any military capacity. Two +fresh armies were sent to the Ili, and placed, on their arrival there, +under the command of Tchaohoei, who was exhorted, above all things, to +capture Amursana, dead or alive. Tchaohoei at once assumed the offensive, +and as Amursana was abandoned by his followers as soon as they saw that +China was putting forth the whole of her strength, he had no alternative +but once more to flee for shelter to the Kirghiz. But the conditions +imposed by Keen Lung were so rigorous that Tchaohoei realized that the +capture of Amursana was essential to his gaining the confidence and +gratitude of his master. He, therefore, sent his best lieutenant, Fouta, +to pursue the Eleuth prince. Fouta pursued Amursana with the energy of one +who has to gain his spurs, and he almost succeeded in effecting his +capture, but Amursana just made his escape in time across the frontier +into Russian territory. But Keen Lung was not satisfied with this result, +and he sent both to Fouta and Tchaohoei to rest satisfied with nothing +short of the capture of Amursana. The close of that unfortunate prince's +career was near at hand, although it was not ended by the act of the +Chinese officers. He died in Russian territory of a fever, and when the +Chinese demanded of their neighbors that his body should be surrendered +they refused, on the ground that enmity should cease with death; but Fouta +was able to report to his sovereign that he had seen with his own eyes the +mortal remains of the Eleuth chief who had first been the humble friend +and then the bitter foe of the Manchu ruler. + +Keen Lung decided to administer the country which he had conquered. But +another step was seen to be necessary to give stability to the Chinese +administration, and that was the annexation of Kashgaria. The great region +of Little Bokhara or Eastern Turkestan, known to us now under the more +convenient form of Kashgaria, was still ruled by the Khoja Barhanuddin, +who had been placed in power by Amursana, and it afforded a shelter for +all the disaffected, and a base of hostility against the Chinese. Even if +Tchaohoei had not reported that the possession of Kashgaria was essential +to the military security of Jungaria, there is no doubt that sooner or +later Keen Lung would have proceeded to extreme lengths with regard to +Barhanuddin. The Chinese were fully warranted, however, in treating him as +an enemy when he seized an envoy sent to his capital by Tchaohoei and +executed him and his escort. This outrage precluded all possibility of an +amicable arrangement, and the Chinese prepared their fighting men for the +invasion and conquest of Kashgaria. They crossed the frontier in two +bodies, one under the command of Tchaohoei, the other under that of Fouta. +Any resistance that Barhanuddin and his brother attempted was speedily +overcome; the principal cities, Kashgar and Yarkand, were occupied, and +the ill-advised princes were compelled to seek their personal safety by a +precipitate flight. The conquest and annexation of Kashgaria completed the +task with which Tchaohoei was charged, and it also realized Keen Lung's +main idea by setting up his authority in the midst of the turbulent tribes +who had long disturbed the empire, and who first learned peaceful pursuits +as his subjects. The Chinese commanders followed up this decided success +by the dispatch of several expeditions into the adjoining states. + +The ruler of Khokand was either so much impressed by his neighbor's +prowess, or, as there is much reason to believe, experienced himself the +weight of their power by the occupation of his principal cities, Tashkent +and Khokand, that he hastened to recognize the authority of the emperor +and to enroll himself among the tributaries of the Son of Heaven. The +tribute he bound himself to pay was sent without a break for a period of +half a century. The Kirghiz chiefs of low and high degree imitated his +example, and a firm peace was thus established from one end of Central +Asia to the other. The administration was divided between Chinese and +native officials, and if there was tyranny, the people suffered rather +from that of the Mohammedan Hakim Beg than that of the Confucian Amban. + +Keen Lung was engaged in many more wars than those in Central Asia. On the +side of Burmah he found his borders disturbed by nomad and predatory +tribes not less than in the region of Gobi. These clans had long been a +source of annoyance and anxiety to the viceroy of Yunnan, but the weakness +of the courts of Ava and Pegu, who stood behind these frontagers, had +prevented the local grievance becoming a national danger. But the triumph +of the remarkable Alompra, who united Pegu and Burmah into a single state, +and who controlled an army with which he effected many triumphs, showed +that this state of things might not always continue, and that the day +would come when China might be exposed to a grave peril from this side. +The successors of Alompra inherited his pretensions if not his ability, +and when the Chinese called upon them to keep the borders in better order +or to punish some evildoers, they sent back a haughty and unsatisfactory +reply. Sembuen, the grandson of Alompra, was king when Keen Lung ordered, +in the year 1768, his generals to invade Burmah, and the conduct of the +war was intrusted to an officer in high favor at court, named Count +Alikouen, instead of to Fouta, the hero of the Central Asian war, who had +fallen under the emperor's grave displeasure for what, after all, appears +to have been a trifling offense. The course of the campaign is difficult +to follow, for both the Chinese and the Burmese claim the same battles as +victories, but this will not surprise those who remember that the Burmese +court chroniclers described all the encounters with the English forces in +the wars of 1829 and 1853 as having been victorious. The advance of the +Chinese army, estimated to exceed 200,000 men, from Bhamo to Ava shows +clearly enough the true course of the war, and that the Chinese were able +to carry all before them up to the gates of the capital. Count Alikouen +did not display any striking military capacity, but by retaining +possession of the country above Ava for three years he at last compelled +the Burmese to sue for peace on humiliating terms. + +In previous chapters the growth of China's relations with Tibet has been +traced, and especially under the Manchu dynasty. The control established +by Kanghi after the retirement of the Jungarian army was maintained by +both his successors, and for fifty years Tibet had that perfect +tranquillity which is conveyed by the expression that it had no history. +The young Dalai Lama, who fled to Sining to escape from Latsan Khan, was +restored, and under the name of Lobsang Kalsang pursued a subservient +policy to China for half a century. In the year 1749 an unpleasant +incident took place through a collision between the Chinese ambans and the +Civil Regent or Gyalpo, who administered the secular affairs of the Dalai +Lama. The former acted in a high-handed and arbitrary manner, and put the +Gyalpo to death. But in this they went too far, for both the lamas and the +people strongly resented it, and revolted against the Chinese, whom they +massacred to the last man. For a time it looked as if the matter might +have a very serious ending, but Keen Lung contented himself with sending +fresh ambans and an escort to Tibet, and enjoining them to abstain from +undue interference with the Tibetans. But at the same time that they +showed this moderation the Chinese took a very astute measure to render +their position stronger than ever. They asserted their right to have the +supreme voice in nominating the Gyalpo, and they soon reduced that high +official, the Prime Minister of Tibet, to the position of a creature of +their own. The policy was both astute and successful. The Tibetans had +welcomed the Chinese originally because they saved them from the Eleuth +army, and provided a guarantee against a fresh invasion. But the long +peace and the destruction of the Eleuth power had led the Tibetans to +think less of the advantage of Chinese protection, and to pine for +complete independence. The lamas also bitterly resented the assumption by +the ambans of all practical authority. How long these feelings could have +continued without an open outbreak must remain a matter of opinion; but an +unexpected event brought into evidence the unwarlike character of the +Tibetans, and showed that their country was exposed to many dangers from +which only China's protection could preserve them. In Kanghi's time the +danger had come from Ili; in the reign of Keen Lung it came from the side +of Nepaul. + +As a general rule the mighty chain of the Himalaya has effectually +separated the peoples living north and south of it, and the instances in +history are rare of any collision between them. Of all such collisions the +most important was that which has now to be described as the main cause of +the tightening of the hold of China upon Tibet. The mountain kingdom of +Nepaul was equally independent of the British and the Mogul Empire of +Delhi. It was ruled by three separate kings, until in the year 1769 the +Goorkha chief Prithi Narayan established the supremacy of that warlike +race. The Goorkhas cared nothing for trade, and their exactions resulted +in the cessation of the commercial intercourse which had existed under the +Nepaulese kings between India and Tibet. Their martial instincts led them +to carry on raids into both Tibet and India. The Tibetans were unequal to +the task of punishing or restraining them, and at last the Goorkhas were +inspired with such confidence that they undertook the invasion of their +country. It is said that the Goorkhas were encouraged to take this, step +by the belief that the Chinese would not interfere, and that the +lamaseries contained an incalculable amount of treasure. The Goorkhas +invaded Tibet in 1791 with an army of less than 20,000 men, and, advancing +through the Kirong and Kuti passes, overcame the frontier guards, and +carried all before them up to the town of Degarehi, where they plundered +the famous lamasery of Teshu Lumbo, the residence of the Teshu Lama. +Having achieved this success and gratified their desire for plunder, the +Goorkhas remained inactive for some weeks, and wasted much precious time. +The Tibetans did not attempt a resistance, which their want of military +skill and their natural cowardice would have rendered futile, but they +sent express messengers to Pekin entreating the Chinese emperor to send an +army to their assistance. Keen Lung had not sent troops to put a stop to +the raids committed on the frontier by the Goorkhas; but when he heard +that a portion of his dominions was invaded, and that the predominance of +his country in the holy land of Buddhism was in danger, he at once ordered +his generals to collect all the forces they could and to march without +delay to expel the foreign invader. He may have been urged to increased +activity by the knowledge that the Tibetans had also appealed for aid to +the British, and by his being ignorant what steps the Indian Government +would take. Within a very short time of the receipt of the appeal for +assistance a Chinese army of 70,000 men was dispatched into Tibet, and the +Goorkhas, awed by this much larger force, began their retreat to their own +country. Their march was delayed by the magnitude of their spoil, and +before they had reached the passes through the Himalaya the Chinese army +had caught them up. In the hope of securing a safe retreat for his baggage +and booty, the Goorkha commander drew up his force in battle array on the +plain of Tengri Maidan, outside the northern entrance of the Kirong Pass, +and the Chinese general, Sund Fo, made his dispositions to attack the +Goorkhas; but before delivering his attack he sent a letter reciting the +outrages committed, and the terms on which his imperial master would grant +peace. Among these were the restitution of the plunder and the surrender +of the renegade lama, whose tales were said to have whetted the cupidity +of the Goorkhas. A haughty reply was sent back, and the Chinese were told +to do their worst. + +In the desperately-contested battle which ensued the victory was decisive, +and the Goorkha king at once sued for peace, which was readily granted, as +the Chinese had attained all their objects, and Sund Fo was beginning to +be anxious about his retreat owing to the approach of winter. When, +therefore, the Goorkha embassy entered his camp Sund Fo granted terms +which, although humiliating, were as favorable as a defeated people could +expect. The Goorkhas took an oath to keep the peace toward their Tibetan +neighbors, to acknowledge themselves the vassals of the Chinese emperor, +to send a quinquennial embassy to China with the required tribute, and, +lastly, to restore all the plunder that had been carried off from Teshu +Lumbo. The exact language of this treaty has never been published, but its +provisions have been faithfully kept. The Goorkhas still pay tribute to +China; they have kept the peace with one insignificant exception ever +since on the Tibetan border; and they are correctly included among the +vassals of Pekin at the present time. The gratitude of the Tibetans, as +well as the increased numbers of the Chinese garrison, insured the +security of China's position in Tibet, and, as both the Tibetans and the +Goorkhas considered that the English deserted them in their hour of need, +for the latter when hard pressed also appealed to us for assistance, China +has had no difficulty in effectually closing Tibet to Indian trade. China +closed all the passes on the Nepaul frontier, and only allowed the +quinquennial mission to enter by the Kirong Pass. Among all the military +feats of China none is more remarkable or creditable than the overthrow of +the Goorkhas, who are among the bravest of Indian races, and who, only +twenty years after their crushing defeat by Sund Fo, gave the Anglo-Indian +army and one of its best commanders, Sir David Ochterloney, an infinity of +trouble in two doubtful and keenly contested campaigns. + +Keen Lung's war in Formosa calls for only brief notice; but, in concluding +our notice of his many military conquests and campaigns, some description +must be given of the great rising in an island which Chinese writers have +styled "the natural home of sedition and disaffection." In the year 1786 +the islanders rose, slaughtered the Tartar garrisons, and completely +subverted the emperor's authority. The revolt was one not on the part of +the savage islanders themselves, but of the Chinese colonists, who were +goaded into insurrection by the tyranny of the Manchu officials. At first +it did not assume serious dimensions, and it seemed as if it would pass +over without any general rising, when the orders of the Viceroy of +Fuhkien, to which Formosa was dependent until made a separate province a +few years ago, fanned the fuel of disaffection to a flame. The popular +leader Ling organized the best government he could, and, when Keen Lung +offered to negotiate, laid down three conditions as the basis of +negotiation. They were that "the mandarin who had ordered the cruel +measures of repression should be executed," that "Ling personally should +never be required to go to Pekin," and, thirdly, that "the mandarins +should abandon their old tyrannical ways." Keen Lung's terms were an +unconditional surrender and trust in his clemency, which Ling, with +perhaps the Miaotze incident fresh in his mind, refused. At first Keen +Lung sent numerous but detached expeditions to reassert his power; but +these were attacked in detail, and overwhelmed by Ling. Keen Lung said +that "his heart was in suspense both by night and by day as to the issue +of the war in Formosa"; but, undismayed by his reverses, the emperor sent +100,000 men under the command of a member of his family to crush the +insurrection. Complete success was attained by weight of numbers, and +Formosa was restored to its proper position in the empire. + +A rising in Szchuen, which may be considered from some of its features the +precursor of the Taeping Rebellion, and the first outbreak of the Tungan +Mohammedans in the northwest, whom Keen Lung wished to massacre, marked +the close of this long reign, which was rendered remarkable by so many +military triumphs. The reputation of the Chinese empire was raised to the +highest point, and maintained there by the capacity and energy of this +ruler. Within its borders the commands of the central government were +ungrudgingly obeyed, and beyond them foreign peoples and states respected +the rights of a country that had shown itself so well able to exact +obedience from its dependents and to preserve the very letter of its +rights. The military fame of the Chinese, which had always been great +among Asiatics, attained its highest point in consequence of these +numerous and rapidly-succeeding campaigns. The evidences of military +proficiency, of irresistible determination, and of personal valor not +easily surpassed, were too many and too apparent to justify any in +ignoring the solid claims of China to rank as the first military country +in Asia--a position which, despite the appearance of England and Russia in +that continent, she still retains, and which must eventually enable her to +exercise a superior voice in the arrangement of its affairs to that of +either of her great and at present more powerful and better prepared +neighbors. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +THE COMMENCEMENT OF EUROPEAN INTERCOURSE + + +Keen Lung was the first Manchu prince to receive formal embassies from the +sovereigns of Europe. Among these the Portuguese were the first in point +of time, although they never attained the advantage derivable from that +priority; and indeed the important period of their connection with China +may be said to have terminated before the Manchus had established their +authority. Still, as the tenants of Macao, the oldest European settlement +in China for more than three centuries and a half, their connection with +the Chinese government must always possess some features of interest and +originality. The Portuguese paid their rent to and carried on all their +business with the mandarins at Canton, who lost no opportunity of +squeezing large sums out of the foreigners, as they were absolutely in +their power. The Portuguese could only pay with good or bad grace the +bribes and extra duty demanded as the price of their being allowed to +trade at all. The power of China seemed so overwhelming that they never +attempted to make any stand against its arbitrary decrees, and the only +mode they could think of for getting an alleviation of the hardships +inflicted by the Canton authorities was to send costly embassies to the +Chinese capital. These, however, failed to produce any tangible result. +Their gifts were accepted, and their representatives were accorded a more +or less gratifying reception; but there was no mitigation of the severity +shown by the local mandarins, and, for all practical purposes, the money +expended on these missions was as good as thrown away. The Portuguese +succeeded in obtaining an improvement in their lot only by combining their +naval forces with those of the Chinese in punishing and checking the raids +of the pirates, who infested the estuary of the Canton River known as the +Bogue. But they never succeeded in emancipating themselves from that +position of inferiority in which the Chinese have always striven to keep +all foreigners; and if the battle of European enterprise against Chinese +exclusiveness had been carried on and fought by the Portuguese it would +have resulted in the discomfiture of Western progress and enlightenment. + +The Dutch sent an embassy to Pekin in 1795, but it was treated with such +contumely that it does not reflect much credit on those who sent it. The +Spaniards never held any relations with the central government, all their +business being conducted with the Viceroy of Fuhkien; and the successive +massacres of Manila completely excluded them from any good understanding +with the Pekin government. With Russia, China's relations have always been +different from those with the other powers, and this is explained partly +by the fact of neighborship, and partly by Russia seeking only her own +ends, and not advantages for the benefit of every other foreign nation. + +With France, the relations of China, owing to a great extent to the +efforts and influence of the missionaries, had always been marked with +considerable sympathy and even cordiality. The French monarchs had from +time to time turned their attention to promoting trade with China and the +Far East. Henry the Fourth sanctioned a scheme with this object, but it +came to nothing; and Colbert only succeeded in obtaining the right for his +countrymen to land their goods at Whampoa, the river port of Canton. But +French commerce never flourished in China, and a bold but somewhat +Quixotic attempt to establish a trade between that country and the French +settlements on the Mississippi failed to achieve anything practical. But +what the French were unable to attain in the domain of commerce they +succeeded in accomplishing in the region of literature. They were the +first to devote themselves to the study of the Chinese literature and +language, and what we know of the history of China down to the last +century is exclusively due to their laborious research and painstaking +translations of Chinese histories and annals. They made China known to the +polite as well as the political world of Europe. Keen Lung himself +appreciated and was flattered by these efforts. His poetry, notably his +odes on "Tea," and the "Eulogy of Moukden" as the cradle of his race, was +translated by Pere Amiot, and attracted the attention of Voltaire, who +addressed to the emperor an epistolary poem on the requirements and +difficulties of Chinese versification. The French thus rendered a material +service in making China better known to Europe and Europe better known in +China, which, although it may be hard to gauge precisely, entitles them +still to rank among those who have opened up China to Europeans. The +history of China, down to the eighteenth century at least, could not have +been written but for the labors of the French, of Mailla, Du Halde, Amiot, +and many others. + +There remains only to summarize the relations with the English, who, early +in the seventeenth century, and before the Manchus had established their +supremacy, possessed factories at Amoy and on the island of Chusan. But +their trade, hampered by official exactions, and also by the jealousy of +the Portuguese and Dutch, proved a slow growth; and at Canton, which they +soon discovered to be the best and most convenient outlet for the state, +they were more hampered than anywhere else, chiefly through the hostile +representations of the Portuguese, who bribed the mandarins to exclude all +other foreigners. The English merchants, like the Portuguese, believed +that the only way to obtain a remedy for their grievances was by +approaching the imperial court and obtaining an audience with the emperor; +but they were wise in not attempting to send delegates of their own. They +saw that if an impression was to be created at Pekin the embassador must +come fully accredited by the British government, and not merely as the +representative of a body of merchants who were suppliants for commercial +privileges. The war with the Goorkhas had made the Chinese authorities +acquainted with the fact that the English, who were only humble suitors +for trade on the coast, were a great power in India. The knowledge of this +fact undoubtedly created a certain amount of curiosity in the mind of Keen +Lung, and when he heard that the King of England contemplated sending an +embassy to his court he gave every encouragement to the suggestion, and +promised it a welcome and honorable reception. Permission was given it to +proceed to Pekin, and thus was a commencement made in the long story of +diplomatic relations between England and China, which have at length +acquired a cordial character. As great importance was attached to this +embassy, every care was bestowed on fitting it out in a worthy manner. +Colonel Cathcart was selected as the envoy, but died on the eve of his +departure, and a successor was found in the person of Lord Macartney, a +nobleman of considerable attainments, who had been Governor of Madras two +years before. Sir George Staunton, one of the few English sinologues, was +appointed secretary, and several interpreters were sought for and +obtained, not without difficulty. The presents were many and valuable, +chosen with the double object of gratifying the emperor and impressing him +with the wealth and magnificence of the English sovereign. In September, +1792--the same month that witnessed the overthrow of the Goorkhas at +Nayakot--the embassy sailed from Portsmouth, but it did not reach the +Peiho, on which Pekin is inaccurately said to stand, until the following +August. + +An honorable and exceedingly gratifying reception awaited it. The +embassador and his suite, on landing from the man-of-war, were conducted +with all ceremony and courtesy up the Peiho to Tientsin, where they +received what was called the unusual honor of a military salute. Visits +were exchanged with the Viceroy of Pechihli and some of the other high +officials, and news came down from Pekin that "the emperor had shown some +marks of great satisfaction at the news of the arrival of the English +embassador." Keen Lung happened to be residing at his summer palace at +Jehol beyond the Wall, but he sent peremptory instructions that there was +to be no delay in sending the English up to Pekin. Up to this point all +had gone well, but the anti-foreign party began to raise obstructions, +and, headed by Sund Fo, the conqueror of the Goorkhas, to advise the +emperor not to receive the embassador, and to reject all his propositions. +Whether to strengthen his case, or because he believed it to be the fact, +Sund Fo declared that the English had helped "the Goorkha robbers," and +that he had found among them "men with hats," _i.e._, Europeans, as well +as "men with turbans." As Sund Fo was the hero of the day, and also the +viceroy of the Canton province, his views carried great weight, and +they were also of unfavorable omen for the future of foreign relations. +But for this occasion the inquisitiveness of the aged emperor prevailed +over the views of the majority in his council and also over popular +prejudice. When the embassy had been detained some time at Pekin, and +after it looked as if a period of vexatious delay was to herald the +discomfiture of the mission, such positive orders were sent by Keen Lung +for the embassy to proceed to Jehol that no one dared to disobey him. Lord +Macartney proceeded to Jehol with his suite and a Chinese guard of honor, +and he accomplished the journey, about one hundred miles, in an English +carriage. The details of the journey and reception are given in Sir George +Staunton's excellent narrative; but here it may be said that the emperor +twice received the British embassador in personal audience in a tent +specially erected for the ceremony in the gardens of the palace. The +embassy then returned to Pekin, and, as the Gulf of Pechihli was frozen, +it was escorted by the land route to Canton. On this journey Lord +Macartney and his party suffered considerable inconvenience and annoyance +from the spite and animosity of the Chinese inferior officials; but +nothing serious occurred to mar what was on the whole a successful +mission. Keen Lung is said to have wished to go further, but his official +utterance was limited to the reciprocation of "the friendly sentiments of +His Britannic Majesty." His advanced age and his abdication already +contemplated left him neither the inclination nor the power to go very +closely into the question of the policy of cultivating closer relations +with the foreign people who asserted their supremacy on the sea and who +had already subjugated one great Asiatic empire. But it may at least be +said that he did nothing to make the ultimate solution of the question +more difficult, and his flattering reception of Lord Macartney's embassy +was an important and encouraging a precedent for English diplomacy with +China. + +The events of internal interest in the history of the country during the +last twenty years of this reign call for some, brief notice, although they +relate to comparatively few matters that can be disentangled from the +court chronicles and official gazettes of the period. The great floods of +the Hoangho and the destruction caused thereby had been a national +calamity from the earliest period. Keen Lung, filled with the desire to +crown his reign by overcoming it, intrusted the task of dealing with this +difficulty to Count Akoui, whose laurels over the Miaotze had raised him +to the highest position in public popularity and his sovereign's +confidence. Keen Lung issued his personal instructions on the subject in +unequivocal language. He said in his edict, "My intention is that this +work should be unceasingly carried on, in order to secure for the people a +solid advantage both for the present and in the time to come. Share my +views, and in order to accomplish them, forget nothing in the carrying out +of your project, which I regard as my own, since I entirely approve of it, +and the idea which originated it was mine. For the rest, it is at my own +charge, and not at the cost of the province, that I wish all this to be +done. Let expenses not be stinted. I take upon myself the consequences, +whatever they may be." Akoui threw himself into his great task with +energy, and it is said that he succeeded in no small degree in controlling +the waters and restricting their ravages. We are ignorant of the details +of his work, but it may certainly be said that the Hoangho has done less +damage since Akoui carried out his scheme than it had effected before. The +question is still unsolved, and probably there is no undertaking in which +China would benefit more from the engineering science of Europe than this, +if the Chinese government were to seriously devote its attention to a +matter that affects many millions of people and some of the most important +provinces of the empire. + +A great famine about the same period is chiefly remarkable for the +persecution it entailed on the Christian missionaries and those among the +Chinese themselves professing the foreign religion. The cause of this +scarcity was mainly due to the extraordinary growth of the population, +which had certainly doubled in fifty years, and which, according to the +official censuses, had risen from sixty millions in 1735 to three hundred +millions in 1792. Of course the larger part of this increase was due to +the expansion of the empire and the consolidation of the Manchu authority. +So great was the national suffering that the gratuitous distribution of +grain and other supplies at the cost of the state provided but a very +partial remedy for the evil, which was aggravated by the peculation of the +mandarins, and the evidence of the few European witnesses shows that the +horrors of this famine have seldom been surpassed. The famine was laid to +the charge of the Christians, and a commission of mandarins drew up a +formal indictment of Christianity, which has stood its ground ever since +as the text of the argument of the anti-foreign school. It read as +follows: "We have examined into the European religion (or the doctrine) of +the Lord of Heaven, and although it ought not to be compared with other +different sects, which are absolutely wicked, yet, and that is what we lay +to its blame, it has had the audacity to introduce itself, to promulgate +itself, and to establish itself in secret. No permission has ever been +given to the people of this country to embrace it. Nay, the laws have +absolutely long forbidden its adoption. And now all these criminals have +had the boldness to come, all of a sudden, into our kingdom, to establish +their bishops and priests in order to seduce the people! This is why it is +necessary to extinguish this religion by degrees and to prevent its +multiplying its votaries." The fury of the Chinese, fortunately, soon +exhausted itself; and although many Europeans were injured none lost their +lives, but several thousand native converts were branded on the face and +sent to colonize the Ili valley. + +While Lord Macartney was at Pekin it was known that the emperor +contemplated abdicating when he had completed the sixtieth year of his +reign--the cycle of Chinese chronology--because he did not desire his +reign to be of greater length than that of his illustrious grandfather, +Kanghi. This date was reached in 1796, when on New Year's day (6th of +February) of the Chinese calendar, he publicly abdicated, and assigned the +imperial functions to his son, Kiaking. He survived this event three +years, and during that period he exercised, like Charles the Fifth of +Germany, a controlling influence over his son's administration; and he +endeavored to inculcate in him the right principles of sound government. +But in China, where those principles have been expressed in the noblest +language, their practical application is difficult, because the official +classes are underpaid and because the law of self-preservation, as well as +custom, compels them to pay themselves at the equal expense of the +subjects and the government. Even Keen Lung had been unable to grapple +with this difficulty of the Chinese civil service, which is as formidable +at the present time as ever. One of the ablest and most honest of Keen +Lung's ministers, when questioned on the subject, said that there was no +remedy. "It is impossible, the emperor himself cannot do it, the evil is +too widespread. He will, no doubt, send to the scene of these disorders +mandarins, clothed with all his authority, but they will only commit still +greater exactions, and the inferior mandarins, in order to be left +undisturbed, will offer them presents. The emperor will be told that all +is well, while everything is really wrong, and while the poor people are +being oppressed." And so the vicious circle has gone on to the present +day, with serious injury to the state and the people. When Keen Lung had +the chance of bringing matters under his own personal control he did not +hesitate to exercise his right and power, and all capital punishments were +carried out at the capital only after he had examined into each case. It +is declared that he always tempered justice with mercy, and that none but +the worst offenders suffered death. Transportation to Ili, which he wished +to develop, was his favorite form of punishment. + +To the end of his life Keen Lung retained the active habits which had +characterized his youth. Much of his official work was carried on at an +early hour of the morning, and it surprised many Europeans to find the +aged ruler so keen and eager for business at these early conferences. His +vigor was attributed by competent observers to the active life and +physical exercises common among the Tartars. It will be proper to give a +description of the personal appearance of this great prince. A missionary +thus described him: "He is tall and well built. He has a very gracious +countenance, but capable at the same time of inspiring respect. If in +regard to his subjects he employs a great severity, I believe it is less +from the promptings of his character than from the necessity which would +otherwise not render him capable of keeping within the bounds or +dependence and duty two empires so vast as China and Tartary. Therefore +the greatest tremble in his presence. On all the occasions when he has +done me the honor to address me it has been with a gracious air that +inspired me with the courage to appeal to him in behalf of our +religion.... He is a truly great prince, doing and seeing everything for +himself." Keen Lung survived his abdication about three years, dying on +the 8th of February, 1799--which also happened to be the Chinese New +Year's day. + +With the death of Keen Lung the vigor of China reached a term, and just as +the progress had been consistent and rapid during the space of 150 years, +so now will its downward course be not less marked or swift, until, in the +very hour of apparent dissolution, the empire will find safety in the +valor and probity of an English officer, Charles George Gordon, and in the +ability and resolution of the empress-regents and their two great soldier- +statesmen, Li Hung Chang and Tso Tsung Tang. + + + + +CHAPTER XV + +THE DECLINE OF THE MANCHUS + + +The favorable opinion which his father had held of Kiaking does not seem +to have been shared by all his ministers. The most prominent of them all, +Hokwan, who held to Keen Lung the relation that Wolsey held to Henry the +Eighth, soon fell under the displeasure of the new emperor, and was called +upon to account for his charge of the finances. The favor and the age of +Keen Lung left Hokwan absolutely without control, and the minister turned +his opportunities to such account that he amassed a private fortune of +eighty million taels, or more than one hundred and twenty-five million +dollars. He was indicted for peculation shortly after the death of Keen +Lung, and, without friends, he succumbed to the attack of his many enemies +incited to attack him by the greed of Kiaking. But the amount of his +peculations amply justified his punishment, and Kiaking in signing his +death warrant could not be accused of harshness or injustice. The +execution of Hokwan restored some of his ill-gotten wealth to the state, +and served as a warning to other officials; but as none could hope to +enjoy his opportunities, it did not act as a serious deterrent upon the +mass of the Chinese civil service. If arraigned, they might have justified +their conduct by the example of their sovereign, who, instead of devoting +the millions of Hokwan to the necessities of the state, employed them on +his own pleasure, and in a lavish palace expenditure. + +The Portuguese were the tenants, as has previously been stated, of Macao, +for which they paid an annual rent to the Chinese; but the nature of their +tenure was not understood in Europe, where Macao was considered a +Portuguese possession. During the progress of the great European struggle, +the French, as part of one of their latest schemes for regaining their +position in the East, conceived the idea of taking possession of Macao; +but while they were contemplating the enterprise, an English squadron had +accomplished it, and during the year 1802 Macao was garrisoned by an +English force. The Treaty of Amiens provided for its restoration to +Portugal, and the incident closed, chiefly because the period of +occupation was brief, without the Chinese being drawn into the matter, or +without the true nature of the Portuguese hold on Macao being explained. +The exigencies of war unfortunately compelled the re-occupation of Macao +six years later, when the indignation of the Chinese authorities at the +violation of their territory fully revealed itself. Peremptory orders were +sent to the Canton authorities from Pekin to expel the foreigners at all +costs. The government of India was responsible for what was a distinct +blunder in our political relations with China. In 1808, when alarm at +Napoleon's schemes was at its height, it sent Admiral Drury and a +considerable naval force to occupy Macao. The Chinese at once protested, +withheld supplies, refused to hold any intercourse with that commander, +and threatened the English merchants at Lintin with the complete +suspension of the trade. In his letter of rebuke the chief mandarin at +Canton declared that, "as long as there remained a single soldier at +Macao," he would not allow any trade to be carried on, and threatened to +"block up the entrance to Macao, cut off your provisions, and send an army +to surround you, when repentance would be too late." The English merchants +were in favor of compliance with the Chinese demands, but Admiral Drury +held a very exalted opinion of his own power and a corresponding contempt +for the Chinese. He declared that, as "there was nothing in his +instructions to prevent his going to war with the Emperor of China," he +would bring the Canton officials to reason by force. He accordingly +assembled all his available forces, and proceeded up the river at the head +of a strong squadron of boats with the avowed intention of forcing his way +up to the provincial capital. On their side the Chinese made every +preparation to defend the passage, and they blocked the navigation of the +river with a double line of junks, while the Bogue forts were manned by +all the troops of the province. When Admiral Drury came in sight of these +defenses, which must have appeared formidable to him, he hesitated, and +instead of delivering his attack he sent a letter requesting an interview +with the mandarin, again threatening to force his way up to Canton. But +the Chinese had by this time taken the measure of the English commander, +and they did not even condescend to send him a reply; when Admiral Drury, +submitting to their insult, hastily beat a retreat. On several subsequent +occasions he renewed his threats, and even sailed up the Bogue, but always +retreated without firing a shot. It is not surprising that the Chinese +were inflated with pride and confidence by the pusillanimous conduct of +the English officer, or that they should erect a pagoda at Canton in honor +of the defeat of the English fleet. After these inglorious incidents +Admiral Drury evacuated Macao and sailed for India, leaving the English +merchants to extricate themselves as well as they could from the +embarrassing situation in which his hasty and blundering action had placed +them. If the officials at Canton had not been as anxious for their own +selfish ends that the trade should go on as the foreign merchants +themselves, there is no doubt that the views of the ultra school at Pekin, +who wished all intercourse with foreigners interdicted, would have +prevailed. But the Hoppo and his associates were the real friends of the +foreigner, and opened the back door to foreign commerce at the very moment +that they were signing edicts denouncing it as a national evil and +misfortune. + +The Macartney mission had attracted what may be called the official +attention of the British government to the Chinese question, and the East +India Company, anxious to acquire fresh privileges to render that trade +more valuable, exercised all its influence to sustain that attention. On +its representations a costly present was sent to Sung Tajin, one of the +ablest and most enlightened of all the Chinese officials who had shown +cordiality to Lord Macartney, but the step was ill-advised and had +unfortunate consequences. The present, on reaching Pekin, was returned to +Canton with a haughty message that a minister of the emperor dare not even +see a present from a foreign ruler. The publicity of the act rather than +the offer of a present must be deemed the true cause of this unqualified +rejection, but the return of the present was not, unfortunately, the worst +part of the matter. The Emperor Kiaking sent a letter couched in lofty +language to George the Third, declaring that he had taken such British +subjects as were in China under his protection, and that there was "no +occasion for the exertions of your Majesty's Government." The advice of +the Minister Sung, who was suspected of sympathy with the foreigners, was +much discredited, and from a position of power and influence he gradually +sank into one of obscurity and impotence. This was especially unfortunate +at a moment when several foreign powers were endeavoring to obtain a +footing at Pekin. The Russian emperor, wishing no doubt to emulate the +English, sent, in 1805, an imposing embassy under Count Goloyken to the +Chinese capital. The presents were rich and numerous, for the express +purpose of impressing the Chinese ruler with the superior wealth and power +of Russia over other European states, and great hopes were entertained +that Count Goloyken would establish a secure diplomatic base at Pekin. The +embassy reached Kalgan on the Great Wall in safety, but there it was +detained until reference had been made to the capital. The instructions +came back that the Russian envoy would only be received in audience +provided he would perform the kotow, or prostration ceremony, and that if +he would not promise to do this he was not to be allowed through the Wall. +Count Goloyken firmly refused to give this promise, and among other +arguments he cited the exemption accorded to Lord Macartney. The Chinese +remained firm in their purpose, Count Goloyken was informed that his visit +had been prolonged too far, and the most brilliant of all Russian +embassies to China had to retrace its steps without accomplishing any of +its objects. This was not the only rebuff Russia experienced at this time. +The naval officer Krusenstern conceived the idea that it would be possible +to attain all the objects of his sovereign, and to open up a new channel +for a profitable trade, by establishing communications by sea with Canton, +where the Russian flag had never been seen. The Russian government fitted +out two ships for him, and he safely arrived at Canton, where he disposed +of their cargoes. When it became known at Pekin that a new race of +foreigners had presented themselves at Canton, a special edict was issued +ordering that "all vessels belonging to any other nation than those which +have been in the habit of visiting this port shall on no account whatever +be permitted to trade, but merely suffered to remain in port until every +circumstance is reported to us and our pleasure made known." Thus in its +first attempt to add to its possession of a land trade, via Kiachta and +the Mongol steppe, a share in the sea trade with Canton, Russia +experienced a rude and discouraging rebuff. + +The unsatisfactory state of our relations with the Chinese government, +which was brought home to the British authorities by the difficulty our +ships of war experienced in obtaining water and other necessary supplies +on the China coast, which had generally to be obtained by force, led to +the decision that another embassy should be sent to Pekin, for the purpose +of effecting a better understanding. + +Lord Amherst, who was specially selected for the mission on account of his +diplomatic experience, reached the mouth of the Peiho in August, 1816. +When the embassy reached Pekin, the Emperor Kiaking's curiosity to see the +foreigners overcame his political resolutions, and with the natural +resolve of an irresponsible despot to gratify his wish without regard to +the convenience of others, he determined to see them at once, and ordered +that Lord Amherst and his companions should be brought forthwith into his +presence. This sudden decision was most disconcerting to his own +ministers, who had practically decided that no audience should be granted +unless Lord Amherst performed the kotow, and especially to his brother-in- +law Ho Koong Yay, who, at the emperor's repeated wish to see the English +representatives, was compelled to abandon his own schemes and to remove +all restrictions to the audience. The firmness of Lord Amherst was +unexpected and misunderstood. Ho Koong Yay repeated his invitation several +times, and even resorted to entreaty; but when the Chinese found that +nothing was to be gained they changed their tone, and the infuriated +Kiaking ordered that the embassador and his suite should not be allowed to +remain at Pekin, and that they should be sent back to the coast at once. +Thus ignominiously ended the Amherst mission, which was summarily +dismissed, and hurried back to the coast in a highly-inconvenient and +inglorious manner. In a letter to the Prince Regent, Kiaking suggested +that it would not be necessary for the British government to send another +embassy to China. He took some personal satisfaction out of his +disappointment by depriving Ho Koong Yay of all his offices, and mulcting +him in five years of his pay as an imperial duke. The cause of his +disgrace was expressly stated to be the mismanagement of the relations +with the English embassador and the suppression of material facts from the +emperor's knowledge. Sung Tajin, who had been specially recalled from his +governorship in Ili to take part in the reception of the Europeans, and +whose sympathy for them was well known, was also disgraced, and did not +recover his position until after the death of Kiaking. The failure of the +Amherst mission put an end to all schemes for diplomatic intercourse with +Pekin until another generation had passed away; but the facts of the case +show that its failure was not altogether due to the hostility of the +Chinese emperor. No practical results, in all probability, would have +followed; but if Lord Amherst had gone somewhat out of his way to humor +the Chinese autocrat, there is no doubt that he would have been received +in audience without any humiliating conditions. + +Long before the Amherst mission reached China evidence had been afforded +that there were many elements of disorder in that country, and that a +dangerous feeling of dissatisfaction was seething below the surface. The +Manchus, even in their moments of greatest confidence, had always +distrusted the loyalty of their Chinese subjects, and there is no dispute +that one of their chief reasons for pursuing an excluding policy toward +Europeans was the fear that they might tamper with the mass of their +countrymen. What had been merely a sentiment under the great rulers of the +eighteenth century became an absolute conviction when Kiaking found +himself the mark of conspirators and assassins. The first of the plots to +which he nearly fell a victim occurred at such an early period of his +reign that it could not be attributed to popular discontent at his +misgovernment. In 1803, only four years after the death of Keen Lung, +Kiaking, while passing through the streets of his capital in his chair, +carried by coolie bearers, was attacked by a party of conspirators, +members of one of the secret societies, and narrowly escaped with his +life. His eunuch attendants showed considerable devotion and courage, and +in the struggle several were killed; but they succeeded in driving off the +would-be assassins. The incident caused great excitement, and much +consternation in the imperial palace, where it was noted that out of the +crowds in the streets only six persons came forward to help the sovereign +in the moment of danger. After this the emperor gave up his practice of +visiting the outer city of Pekin, and confined himself to the imperial +city, and still more to the Forbidden palace which is situated within it. +But even here he could not enjoy the sense of perfect security, for the +discovery was made that this attempted assassination was part of an +extensive plot with ramifications into the imperial family itself. +Inquisitorial inquiries were made, which resulted in the disgrace and +punishment of many of the emperor's relatives, and thus engendered an +amount of suspicion and a sense of insecurity that retained unabated force +as long as Kiaking filled the throne. That there was ample justification +for this apprehension the second attempt on the person of the emperor +clearly revealed. Whatever dangers the emperor might be exposed to in the +streets of Pekin, where the members of the hated and dreaded secret +societies had as free access as himself, it was thought that he could feel +safe in the interior of the Forbidden city--a palace-fortress within the +Tartar quarter garrisoned by a large force, and to which admission was +only permitted to a privileged few. Strict as the regulations were at all +times, the attempt on Kiaking and the rumors of sedition led undoubtedly +to their being enforced with greater rigor, and it seemed incredible for +any attempt to be made on the person of the emperor except by the mutiny +of his guards or an open rebellion. Yet it was precisely at this moment +that an attack was made on the emperor in his own private apartments which +nearly proved successful, and which he himself described as an attack +under the elbow. In the year 1813 a band of conspirators, some two hundred +in number, made their way into the palace, either by forcing one of the +gates, or, more probably, by climbing the walls at an unguarded spot, and, +overpowering the few guards they met, some of them forced their way into +the presence of the emperor. There is not the least doubt that Kiaking +would then have fallen but for the unexpected valor of his son Prince +Meenning, afterward the Emperor Taoukwang, who, snatching up a gun, shot +two of the intruders. This prince had been set down as a harmless, +inoffensive student, but his prompt action on this occasion excited +general admiration, and Kiaking, grateful for his life, at once proclaimed +him his heir. + +Toward the close of his reign, and very soon after the departure of Lord +Amherst, Kiaking was brought face to face with a very serious conspiracy, +or what he thought to be such, among the princes of the Marichu imperial +family. By an ordinance passed by Chuntche all the descendants of that +prince's father were declared entitled to wear a yellow girdle and to +receive a pension from the state; while, with a view to prevent their +becoming a danger to the dynasty, they were excluded from civil or +military employment, and assigned to a life of idleness. This imperial +colony was, and is still, one of the most peculiar and least understood of +the departments of the Tartar government; and although it has served its +purpose in preventing dynastic squabbles, there must always remain the +doubt as to how far the dynasty has been injured by the loss of the +services of so many of its members who might have possessed useful +capacity. They purchased the right to an easy and unlaborious existence, +with free quarters and a small income guaranteed, at the heavy price of +exclusion from the public service. No matter how great their ambition or +natural capability, they had no prospect of emancipating themselves from +the dull sphere of inaction to which custom relegated them. Toward the +close of Kiaking's reign the number of these useless Yellow Girdles had +risen to several thousand, and the emperor, alarmed by the previous +attacks, or having some reason to fear a fresh plot, adopted strenuous +measures against them. Whether the emperor's apprehensions overcame his +reason, or whether there were among his kinsmen, some men of more than +average ability, it is certain that the princes of the Manchu family were +goaded or incited into what amounted to rebellion. The exact particulars +remain unknown until the dynastic history sees the light of day; but it is +known that many of them were executed, and that many hundreds of them were +banished to Manchuria, where they were given employment in taking care of +the ancestral tombs of the ruling family. + +Special significance was given to these intrigues and palace plots by the +remarkable increase in the number and the confidence of the secret +societies which, in some form or other, have been a feature of Chinese +public life from an early period. Had they not furnished evidence by their +increased numbers and daring of the dissatisfaction prevalent among the +Chinese masses, whether on account of the hardships of their lot, or from +hatred of their Tartar lords, they would scarcely have created so much +apprehension in the bosom of the Emperor Kiaking, whose authority met with +no open opposition, and whose reign was nominally one of both internal and +external peace. These secret societies have always been, in the form of +fraternal confederacies and associations, a feature in Chinese life; but +during the present century they have acquired an importance they could +never previously claim, both in China and among Chinese colonies abroad. +The first secret society to become famous was that of the Water-Lily, or +Pe-leen-keaou, which association chose as its emblem and title the most +popular of all plants in China. Although the most famous of the societies, +and the one which is regarded as the parent of all that have come after +it, the Water-Lily had, as a distinct organization, a very brief +existence. Its organizers seem to have dropped the name, or to have +allowed it to sink into disuse in consequence of the strenuous official +measures taken against the society by the government for the attempt, in +1803, on Kiaking's life in the streets of Pekin. They merged themselves +into the widely-extended confederacy of the Society of Celestial Reason-- +the Theen-te-Hwuy--which became better known by the title given to it by +Europeans of the Triads, from their advocacy of the union between Heaven, +earth, and man. The Water-Lily Society, before it was dissolved, caused +serious disturbances in both Shantung and Szchuen, and especially in the +latter province, where the disbanded army that had rescued Tibet and +punished the Goorkhas furnished the material for sedition. With more or +less difficulty, and at a certain expense of life, these risings were +suppressed, and Kiaking's authority was rendered secure against these +assailants, while for his successors was left the penalty of feeling the +full force of the national indignation of which their acts were the +expression. + +With regard to the organization of these secret societies, which probably +remain unchanged to the present day, China had nothing to learn from +Europe either as to the objects to be obtained in this way or as to how +men are to be bound together by solemn vows for the attainment of illegal +ends. By signs known only to themselves, and by pass-words, these sworn +conspirators could recognize their members in the crowded streets, and +could communicate with each other without exciting suspicion as to their +being traitors at heart. In its endeavors to cope with this formidable and +widespread organization under different names, Kiaking's government found +itself placed at a serious disadvantage. Without an exact knowledge of the +intentions or resources of its secret enemies, it failed to grapple with +them, and, as its sole remedy, it could only decree that proof of +membership carried with it the penalty of death. + +During the last years of the reign of Kiaking the secret societies rather +threatened future trouble than constituted a positive danger to the state. +They were compelled to keep quiet and to confine their attention to +increasing their numbers rather than to realizing their programme. The +emperor was consequently able to pass the last four years of his life with +some degree of personal tranquillity, and in full indulgence of his palace +pleasures, which seem at this period to have mainly consisted of a +theatrical troupe which accompanied him even when he went to offer +sacrifice in the temples. His excessive devotion to pleasure did not add +to his reputation with his people, and it is recorded that one of the +chief causes of the minister Sung's disgrace and banishment to Ili was his +making a protest against the emperor's proceedings. Some time before his +death Kiaking drew up his will, and on account of his great virtues he +specially selected as his successor his second son, Prince Meenning, who +had saved his life from assassins in the attack on the palace. Kiaking +died on September 2, 1820, in the sixty-first year of his age, leaving to +his successor a diminished authority, an enfeebled power, and a +discontented people. Some mitigating circumstance may generally be pleaded +against the adverse verdict of history in its estimation of a public +character. The difficulties with which the individual had to contend may +have been exceptional and unexpected, the measures which he adopted may +have had untoward and unnatural results, and the crisis of the hour may +have called for genius of a transcendent order. But in the case of Kiaking +not one of these extenuating facts can be pleaded. His path had been +smoothed for him by his predecessor, his difficulties were raised by his +own indifference, and the consequences of his spasmodic and ill-directed +energy were scarcely less unfortunate than those of his habitual apathy. +So much easier is the work of destruction than the labor of construction, +that Kiaking in twenty-five years had done almost as much harm to the +constitution of his country and to the fortunes of his dynasty as Keen +Lung had conferred solid advantages on the state in his brilliant reign of +sixty years. + +On the whole it seems as if the material prosperity of the people was +never greater than during the reign of Kiaking. The population by the +census of 1812 is said to have exceeded 360 millions, and the revenue +never showed a more flourishing return on paper. To the external view all +was still fair and prosperous when Kiaking died; under his successor, who +was in every sense a worthier prince, the canker and decay were to be +clearly revealed. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI + +THE EMPEROR TAOUKWANG + + +The early years of the new reign were marked by a number of events +unconnected with each other but all contributing to the important +incidents of the later period which must be described, although they +cannot be separated. The name of Taoukwang, which Prince Meenning took on +ascending the throne, means Reason's Light, and there were many who +thought it was especially appropriate for a prince who was more qualified +for a college than a palace. Most of the chroniclers of the period gave an +unfavorable picture of the new ruler, who was described as "thin and +toothless," and as "lank in figure, low of stature, with a haggard face, a +reserved look, and a quiet exterior." He was superior to his external +aspect, for it may be truly said that although he had to deal with new +conditions he evinced under critical circumstances a dignity of demeanor +and a certain royal patience which entitled him to the respect of his +opponents. + +Taoukwang began his reign in every way in a creditable manner. While +professing in his proclamations the greatest admiration for his father, +his first acts reversed his policy and aimed at undoing the mischief he +had accomplished. He released all the political prisoners who had been +consigned to jail by the suspicious fear of Kiaking, and many of the +banished Manchu princes were allowed to return to Pekin. He made many +public declarations of his intention to govern his people after a model +and conscientious fashion and his subsequent acts showed that he was at +least sincere in his intentions, if an accumulation of troubles prevented +his attaining all the objects he set before himself when he first took the +government in hand. Nothing showed his integrity more clearly than his +restoration of the minister Sung to the favor and offices of which he had +been dispossessed. The vicissitudes of fortune passed through by this +official have been previously referred to, and his restoration to power +was a practical proof of the new ruler's good resolutions, and meant more +than all the virtuous platitudes expressed in vermilion edicts. Sung had +gained a popularity that far exceeded that of the emperor, through the +lavish way in which he distributed his wealth, consistently refusing to +accumulate money for the benefit of himself or his family. But his +independent spirit rendered him an unpleasant monitor for princes who were +either negligent of their duty or sensitive of criticism, and even +Taoukwang appears to have dreaded, in anticipation, the impartial and +fearless criticism of the minister whom he restored to favor. Sung was +employed in two of the highest possible posts, Viceroy of Pechihli and +President of the Board of Censors, and until his death he succeeded in +maintaining his position in face of his enemies, and notwithstanding his +excessive candor. One of the first reforms instituted by the Emperor +Taoukwang was to cut down the enormous palace expenses, which his father +had allowed to increase to a high point, and to banish from the imperial +city all persons who could not give some valid justification for their +being allowed to remain. The troupes of actors and buffoons were expelled, +and the harem was reduced to modest dimensions. Taoukwang declared himself +to be a monogamist, and proclaimed his one wife empress. He also put a +stop to the annual visits to Jehol and to the costly hunting establishment +there, which entailed a great waste of public funds. The money thus saved +was much wanted for various national requirements, and the sufferings +caused by flood and famine were alleviated out of these palace savings. +How great the national suffering had become was shown by the marked +increase of crime, especially all forms of theft and the coining of false +money, for which new and severe penalties were ordained without greatly +mitigating the evil. During all these troubles and trials Taoukwang +endeavored to play the part of a beneficent and merciful sovereign, +tempering the severity of the laws by acts of clemency, and personally +superintending every department of the administration. He seems thus to +have gained a reputation among his subjects which he never lost, and the +blame for any unpopular measures was always assigned to his ministers. But +although he endeavored to play the part of an autocrat, there is every +ground for saying that he failed to realize the character, and that he was +swayed more than most rulers by the advice of his ministers. The four +principal officials after Sung, whose death occurred at an early date +after Taoukwang's accession, were Hengan, Elepoo, Keying, and Keshen. + +The first ten years of Taoukwang's reign have been termed prosperous, +because they have left so little to record, but this application of the +theory that "the country is happy which has no history," does not seem +borne out by such facts as have come to our knowledge. There is no doubt +that there was a great amount of public suffering, and that the prosperity +of the nation declined from the high point it had reached under Kiaking. +Scarcity of food and want of work increased the growing discontent, which +did not require even secret societies to give it point and expression, and +as far as could be judged it was worse than when the Water-Lily Society +inspired Kiaking with most apprehension. Kiaking, as has been observed, +escaped the most serious consequences of his own acts. There was much +popular discontent, but there was no open rebellion. Taoukwang had not +been on the throne many years before he was brought face to face with +rebels who openly disputed his authority, and, strangely enough, his +troubles began in Central Asia, where peace had been undisturbed for half +a century. + +The conquest of Central Asia had been among the most brilliant and +remarkable of the feats of the great Keen Lung. Peace had been preserved +there as much by the extraordinary prestige or reputation of China as by +the skill of the administration or the soundness of the policy of the +governing power, which left a large share of the work to the subject +races. Outside each of the principal towns the Chinese built a fort or +gulbagh, in which their garrison resided, and military officers or ambans +were appointed to every district. The Mohammedan officials were held +responsible for the good conduct of the people and the due collection of +the taxes, and as long as the Chinese garrison was maintained in strength +and efficiency they discharged their duties with the requisite good faith. +The lapse of time and the embarrassment of the government at home led to +the neglect of the force in Central Asia, which had once been an efficient +army. The Chinese garrison, ill-paid and unrecruited, gradually lost the +semblance of a military force, and was not to be distinguished from the +rest of the civil population. The difference of religion was the only +unequivocal mark of distinction between the rulers and the ruled, and it +furnished an ever-present cause of enmity and dislike, although apart from +this the Mohammedans accepted the Chinese rule as not bad in itself, and +even praised it. The Chinese might have continued to govern Ili and +Kashgar indefinitely, notwithstanding the weakness and decay of their +garrison, but for the ambition of a neighbor. The Chinese are to blame, +however, not merely for having ignored the obvious aggressiveness of that +neighbor, but for having provided it with facilities for carrying out its +plans. The Khanate of Khokand, the next-door state in Central Asia, had +been intimately connected with Kashgar from ancient times, both in +politics and trade. The Chinese armies in the eighteenth century had +advanced into Khokand, humbled its khan, and reduced him to a state of +vassalage. For more than fifty years the khan sent tribute to China, and +was the humble neighbor of the Chinese. He gave, however, a place of +refuge and a pension to Sarimsak, the last representative of the old Khoja +family of Kashgar, and thus retained a hold on the legitimate ruler of +that state. Sarimsak had as a child escaped from the pursuit of Fouta and +the massacre of his relations by the chief of Badakshan, but he was +content to remain a pensioner at Khokand to the end of his days, and he +left the assertion of what he considered his rights to his children. His +three sons were named, in the order of their age, Yusuf, Barhanuddin, and +Jehangir, and each of them attempted at different times to dispossess the +Chinese in Kashgar. In the year 1812, when Kiaking's weakness was +beginning to be apparent, the Khan of Khokand, a chief of more than usual +ability, named Mahomed Ali, refused to send tribute any more to China, and +the Viceroy of Ili, having no force at his disposal, acquiesced in the +change with good grace, and no hostilities ensued. The first concession +was soon followed by others. The khan obtained the right to levy a tax on +all Mohammedan merchandise sold in the bazaars of Kashgar and Yarkand, and +deputed consuls or aksakals for the purpose of collecting the duties. +These aksakals naturally became the center of all the intrigue and +disaffection prevailing in the state against the Chinese, and they +considered it to be as much their duty to provoke political discontent as +to supervise the customs placed under their charge. Before the aksakals +appeared on the scene the Chinese ruled a peaceful territory, but after +the advent of these foreign officials trouble soon ensued. + +Ten years after his refusal to pay tribute the Khan of Khokand decided to +support the Khoja pretenders who enjoyed his hospitality, and in 1822 +Jehangir was provided with money and arms to make an attempt on the +Chinese position in Kashgaria. Although the youngest, Jehangir seems to +have been the most energetic of the Khoja princes; and having obtained the +alliance of the Kirghiz, he attempted, by a rapid movement, to surprise +the Chinese in the town of Kashgar. In this attempt he was disappointed, +for the Chinese kept better guard than he expected, and he was compelled +to make an ignominious retreat. The Khan of Khokand, disappointed at the +result and apprehensive of counter action on the part of the Chinese, +repudiated all participation in the matter, and forbade Jehangir to return +to his country. That adventurer then fled to Lake Issik Kul, whither the +Chinese pursued him; but when his fortunes seemed to have reached their +lowest ebb a revulsion suddenly took place, and by the surprise and +annihilation of a Chinese force he was again able to pose as an arbiter of +affairs in Central Asia. The fortitude of Jehangir confirmed the +attachment of his friends, and the Khokandian ruler, encouraged by the +defeat of the Chinese, again took up his cause and sent him troops and a +general for a fresh descent on Kashgaria. The khan had his own ends in +view quite as much as to support the Khoja pretender; but his support +encouraged Jehangir to leave his mountain retreat and to cross the Tian +Shan into Kashgaria. This happened in the year 1826, and the Chinese +garrison of Kashgar very unwisely quitted the shelter of its citadel and +went out to meet the invaders. The combat is said to have been fiercely +contested, but nothing is known about it except that the Chinese were +signally defeated. This overthrow was the signal for a general +insurrection throughout the country, and the Chinese garrisons, after more +or less resistance, were annihilated. An attempt was then made to restore +the old Mohammedan administration, and Jehangir was proclaimed by the +style of the Seyyid Jehangir Sultan. One of his first acts was to dismiss +the Khokandian contingent, and to inform his ally or patron, Mahomed Ali, +that he no longer required his assistance. His confidence received a rude +check when he learned a short time afterward that the Chinese were making +extraordinary preparations to recover their lost province, and that they +had collected an immense army in Ili for the purpose. Then he wished his +Khokandian allies back again; but he still resolved to make as good a +fight as he could for the throne he had acquired; and when the Chinese +general Chang marched on Kashgar, Jehangir took up his position at +Yangabad and accepted battle. He was totally defeated; the capture of +Kashgar followed, and Jehangir himself fell into the hands of the victors. +The Khoja was sent to Pekin, where, after many indignities, he was +executed and quartered as a traitor. The Chinese punished all open rebels +with death, and as a precaution against the recurrence of rebellion they +removed 12,000 Mohammedan families from Kashgar to Ili, where they became +known as the Tarantchis, or toilers. They also took the very wise step of +prohibiting all intercourse with Khokand, and if they had adhered to this +resolution they would have saved themselves much serious trouble. But +Mahomed Ali was determined to make an effort to retain so valuable a +perquisite as his trade relations with Kashgar, and as soon as the Chinese +had withdrawn the main portion of their force he hastened to assail +Kashgar at the head of his army, and put forward Yusuf as a successor to +Jehangir. Only desultory fighting ensued, but his operations were so far +successful that the Chinese agreed to resort to the previous arrangement, +and Mahomed Ali promised to restrain the Khojas. Fourteen years of peace +and prosperity followed this new convention. + +Serious disorders also broke out in the islands of Formosa and Hainan. In +the former the rebellion was only put down by a judicious manipulation of +the divisions of the insurgent tribes; but the settlement attained must be +pronounced so far satisfactory that the peace of the island was assured. +In Hainan, an island of extraordinary fertility and natural wealth, which +must some day be developed, the aboriginal tribes revolted against Chinese +authority, and massacred many of the Chinese settlers, who had begun to +encroach on the possessions of the natives. Troops had to be sent from +Canton before the disorders were suppressed, and then Hainan reverted to +its tranquil state, from which only the threat of a French occupation +during the Tonquin war roused it. These disorders in different parts of +the empire were matched by troubles of a more domestic character within +the palace. In 1831 Taoukwang's only son, a young man of twenty, whose +character was not of the best, gave him some cause of offense, and he +struck him. The young prince died of the blow, and the emperor was left +for the moment without a child. His grief was soon assuaged by the news +that two of his favorite concubines had borne him sons, one of whom became +long afterward the Emperor Hienfung. At this critical moment Taoukwang was +seized with a severe illness, and his elder brother, Hwuy Wang, whose +pretensions had threatened the succession, thinking his chance had at last +come, took steps to seize the throne. But Taoukwang recovered, and those +who had made premature arrangements in filling the throne were severely +punished. These minor troubles culminated in the Miaotze Rebellion, the +most formidable internal war which the Chinese government had to deal with +between that of Wou Sankwei and the Taepings. From an early period the +Miaotze had been a source of trouble to the executive, and the relations +between them and the officials had been anything but harmonious. The +Manchu rulers had only succeeded in keeping them in order by stopping +their supply of salt on the smallest provocation; and in the belief that +they possessed an absolutely certain mode of coercing them, the Chinese +mandarins assumed an arrogant and dictatorial tone toward their rude and +unreclaimed neighbors. In 1832 the Miaotze, irritated past endurance, +broke out in rebellion, and their principal chief caused himself to be +proclaimed emperor. Their main force was assembled at Lienchow, in the +northwest corner of the Canton province, and their leader assumed the +suggestive title of the Golden Dragon, and called upon the Chinese people +to redress their wrongs by joining his standard. But the Chinese, who +regarded the Miaotze as an inferior and barbarian race, refused to combine +with them against the most extortionate of officials or the most unpopular +of governments. Although they could not enlist the support of any section +of the Chinese people, the Miaotze, by their valor and the military skill +of their leader, made so good a stand against the forces sent against them +by the Canton viceroy that the whole episode is redeemed from oblivion, +and may be considered a romantic incident in modern Chinese history. The +Miaotze gained the first successes of the war, and for a time it seemed as +if the Chinese authorities would be able to effect nothing against them. +The Canton viceroy fared so badly that Hengan was sent from Pekin to take +the command, and the chosen braves of Hoonan were sent to attack the +Miaotze in the rear. The latter gained a decisive victory at Pingtseuen, +where the Golden Dragon and several thousand of his followers were slain. +But, although vanquished in one quarter, the Miaotze continued to show +great activity and confidence in another, and when the Canton viceroy made +a fresh attack on them they repulsed him with heavy loss. The disgrace of +this officer followed, and his fall was hastened by the suppression of the +full extent of his losses, which excited the indignation of his own +troops, who said, "There is no use in our sacrificing our lives in secret; +if our toils are concealed from she emperor neither we nor our posterity +will be rewarded." This unlucky commander was banished to Central Asia, +and after his supersession Hengan had the satisfaction of bringing the war +to a satisfactory end within ten days. Some of the leaders were executed, +the others swore to keep the peace, and a glowing account of the +pacification of the Miaotze region was sent to Pekin. Some severe critics +suggested that the whole arrangement was a farce, and that Hengan's +triumph was only on paper; but the lapse of time has shown this skepticism +to be unjustified, as the Miaotze have remained tranquil ever since, and +the formidable Yaoujin, or Wolfmen, as they are called, have observed the +promises given to Hengan, which would not have been the case unless they +had been enforced by military success. Should they ever break out again, +the government would possess the means, from their command of money and +modern arms, of repressing their lawlessness with unprecedented +thoroughness, and of absolutely subjecting their hitherto inaccessible +districts. + +If the first ten or twelve years of the reign of the Emperor Taoukwang +were marked by these troubles on a minor scale, an undue importance should +not be attached to them, for they did not seriously affect the stability +of the government or the authority of the emperor. It is true that they +caused a decline in the revenue and an increase in the expenditure, which +resulted in the year 1834 in an admitted deficit of fifty million dollars, +and no state could be considered in a flourishing condition with the +public exchequer in such a condition. But this large deficit must be +regarded rather as a floating debt than an annual occurrence. + +The Chinese authorities continued to hinder and protest against the +foreign trade and intercourse between their subjects and the merchants of +Europe as much as ever; but their opposition was mainly confined to edicts +and proclamations. When Commissioner Lin resorted to force and violence +some years later the auspicious moment for expelling all foreigners had +passed away, and the weakness of the government contributed in no small +degree to this result. Taoukwang, although his claims as occupant of the +Dragon Throne were unabated, could not pretend to the power of a great +ruler like Keen Lung, who would have known how to enforce his will. For +was it possible after 1834 to continue the policy of uncompromising +hostility to all foreign nations whose governments had become directly +interested in, and to a certain extent responsible to, their respective +peoples, for the opening of the Chinese empire to civilized intercourse +and commerce. Up to this point Taoukwang's only experience of the +pretensions of the foreign powers had been the Amherst mission, in the +time of his father, which had ended so ignominiously, and the Russian +mission which arrived at Pekin every ten years to recruit the Russian +college there, and to pay the descendants of the garrison of Albazin the +sum allotted by the czar for their support. But from these trifling +matters Taoukwang's attention was suddenly and completely distracted to +the important situation at Canton and on the coast, the settlement of the +questions arising out of which filled the remainder of his reign. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII + +THE FIRST FOREIGN WAR + + +AT the very time that the Emperor Taoukwang, by the dismissal of the +Portuguese astronomers at Pekin and by his general indifference to the +foreign question, was showing that no concessions were to be expected from +him, an unknown legislature at a remote distance from his capital was +decreeing, in complete indifference to the susceptibilities of the +occupant of the Dragon Throne, that trade with China might be pursued by +any English subject. Up to the year 1834 trade with China had, by the +royal charter, remained the monopoly of the East India Company; but when +the charter was renewed in that year for a further period of twenty years, +it was shorn of the last of its commercial privileges, and an immediate +change became perceptible in the situation at Canton, which was the +principal seat of the foreign trade. The withdrawal of the monopoly was +dictated solely by English, and not Chinese, considerations. Far from +facilitating trade with the Chinese, it tended to hinder and prevent its +developing; for the Chinese officials had no objection to foreigners +coming to Canton, and buying or selling articles of commerce, so long as +they derived personal profit from the trade, and so long as the laws of +the empire were not disputed or violated. The servants of the East India +Company were content to adapt themselves to this view, and they might have +carried on relations with the Hong merchants for an indefinite period, and +without any more serious collision than occasional interruptions. Had the +monopoly been renewed things would have been left in precisely the same +position as when intercourse was first established, and trade might have +continued within its old restricted limits. But the abolition of the +monopoly and the opening of the trade created quite a new situation, and +by intensifying the opposition of the Chinese government, paved the way to +the only practicable solution of the question of foreign intercourse with +China, which was that, however reluctantly she should consent to take her +place in the family of nations. + +The Chinese were not left long in doubt as to the significance of this +change. In December, 1833, a royal commission was issued appointing Lord +Napier chief superintendent of trade with China, and two assistants under +him, of whom one was Sir John Davis. The Chinese had to some extent +contributed to this appointment, the Hoppo at Canton having written that +"in case of the dissolution of the Company it was incumbent on the British +government to appoint a chief to come to Canton for the general management +of commercial dealings, and to prevent affairs from going to confusion." +But in this message the Hoppo seems to have expressed his own view rather +than that of the Pekin government or the Canton viceroy; and certainly +none of the Chinese were prepared to find substituted for "a chief of +commercial dealings" an important commissioner clothed with all the +authority of the British ruler. How very different was the idea formed of +this functionary by the Chinese and English may be gathered from their +official views of his work. What the Chinese thought has been told in the +words of the Hoppo. Lord Palmerston was more precise from his point of +view. His instruction to Lord Napier read, "Your lordship will announce +your arrival at Canton by letter to the viceroy. In addition to the duty +of protecting and fostering the trade at Canton, it will be one of your +principal objects to ascertain whether it may not be practicable to extend +that trade to other parts of the Chinese dominions. It is obvious that, +with a view to the attainment of this object, the establishment of direct +communication with the imperial court at Pekin would be most desirable." +The two points of radical disagreement between these views were that the +Chinese wished to deal with an official who thought exclusively of trade, +whereas Lord Napier's task was not less diplomatic than commercial; and, +secondly, that they expected him to carry on his business with the Hoppo, +as the Company's agents had done, while Lord Napier was specially +instructed to communicate with the viceroy, whom those agents had never +dared to approach. + +If it was thought that the Chinese would not realize all the significance +of the change, those who held so slight an opinion of their clear- +headedness were quickly undeceived. Lord Napier reached the Canton River +in July, 1834, and he at once addressed a letter of courtesy to the +viceroy announcing his arrival. The Chinese officers, after perusing it, +refused to forward it to the viceroy, and returned it to Lord Napier. Such +was the inauspicious commencement of the assumption of responsibility by +the crown in China. The Chinese refused to have anything to do with Lord +Napier, whom they described as "a barbarian eye," and they threatened the +merchants with the immediate suspension of the trade. The viceroy issued +an order forbidding the new superintendent to proceed to Canton, and +commanding him to stay at Macao until he had applied in the prescribed +form for permission to proceed up the river. But Lord Napier did not +listen to these representations, nor did he condescend to delay his +progress a moment at Macao. He proceeded up the river to Canton, but, +although he succeeded in making his way to the English factory, it was +only to find himself isolated, and that, in accordance with the viceroy's +order, the Hoppo had interdicted all intercourse with the English. The +Chinese declared that the national dignity was at stake, and so thoroughly +did both officials and merchants harmonize that the English factory was at +once deserted by all Chinese subjects, and even the servants left their +employment. On his arrival at Canton, Lord Napier found himself confronted +with the position that the Chinese authorities refused to have anything to +do with him, and that his presence effectually debarred his countrymen +from carrying on the trade, which it was his first duty to promote. At +this conjuncture it happened that the Chinese had discovered what they +thought to be a new grievance against the foreign traders in the steady +efflux of silver as the natural consequence of the balance of trade being +against China. In a report to the throne in 1833 it was stated that as +much as 60,000,000 taels of silver, or $100,000,000, had been exported +from China in the previous eleven years, and, as the Chinese of course +made no allowance for the equivalent value imported into their country, +this total seemed in their eyes an incredibly large sum to be lost from +the national treasure. It will be easily understood that at this +particular moment the foreign trade appeared to possess few advantages, +and found few patrons among the Chinese people. + +In meeting this opposition Lord Napier endeavored to combine courtesy and +firmness. He wrote courteous and argumentative letters to the mandarins, +combating their views, and insisting on his rights as a diplomatist to be +received by the officials of the empire; and at the same time he issued a +notice to the Chinese merchants which was full of threats and defiance. +"The merchants of Great Britain," he said, "wish to trade with all China +on principles of mutual benefit; they will never relax in their exertions +till they gain a point of equal importance to both countries, and the +viceroy will find it as easy to stop the current of the Canton River as to +carry into effect the insane determinations of the Hong." This notice was +naturally enough interpreted as a defiance by the viceroy, who placed the +most severe restrictions he could on the trade, sent his troops into the +foreign settlements to remove all Chinese servants, and ordered the Bogue +forts to fire on any English ship that attempted to pass. The English +merchants, alarmed at the situation, petitioned Lord Napier to allay the +storm he had raised by retiring from Canton to Macao, and, harassed in +mind and enfeebled in body, Lord Napier acquiesced in an arrangement that +stultified all his former proceedings. The Chinese were naturally +intoxicated by their triumph, which vindicated their principle that no +English merchant or emissary should be allowed to come to Canton except by +the viceroy's permit, granted only to the petition and on the guarantee of +the Hong merchants. The viceroy had also carried his point of holding no +intercourse with the English envoy, to whom he had written that "the great +ministers of the Celestial Empire, unless with regard to affairs of going +to court and carrying tribute, or in consequence of imperial commands, are +not permitted to have interviews with outside barbarians." While the +Chinese officials had been both consistent and successful, the new English +superintendent of trade had been both inconsistent and discomfited. He had +attempted to carry matters with a high hand and to coerce the mandarins, +and he was compelled to show in the most public manner that he had failed +by his retirement to Macao. He had even imperiled the continuance of the +trade which he had come specially to promote, and all he could do to show +his indignation was to make a futile protest against "this act of +unprecedented tyranny and injustice." Very soon after Lord Napier's return +to Macao he died, leaving to other hands the settlement of the difficult +affair which neither his acts nor his language had simplified. + +On Lord Napier's departure from Canton the restrictions placed on trade +were removed, and the intercourse between the English and Chinese +merchants of the Hong was resumed. But even then the mandarins refused to +recognize the trade superintendents, and after a short time they issued +certain regulations which had been specially submitted to and approved by +the Emperor Taoukwang as the basis on which trade was to be conducted. +These Regulations, eight in number, forbade foreign men-of-war to enter +the inner seas, and enforced the old practice that all requests on the +part of Europeans should be addressed through the Hong in the form of a +petition. It therefore looked as if the Chinese had completely triumphed +in carrying out their views, that the transfer of authority from the East +India Company to the British crown, with the so-called opening of the +trade, had effected no change in the situation, and that such commerce as +was carried on should be as the Chinese dictated, and in accordance with +their main idea, which was to "prevent the English establishing themselves +permanently at Canton." The death of the Viceroy Loo and the familiarity +resulting from increased intercourse resulted in some relaxation of these +severe regulations, and at last, in March, 1837, nearly three years after +Lord Napier's arrival in the Bogue, the new superintendent of trade, +Captain Elliot, received, at his own request, permission through the Hong +to proceed to Canton. The emperor passed a special edict authorizing +Captain Elliot to reside in the factory at Canton, where he was to +"control the merchants and seamen"; but it was also stipulated that he was +to strictly abide by the old regulations, and not to rank above a +supercargo. As Captain Elliot was the representative of a government not +less proud or exacting than that of China, it was clear that these +conditions could not be permanently enforced; and although he endeavored +for a period to conciliate the Chinese and to obtain more favorable terms +by concessions, there came a time when it was impossible to assent to the +arrogant demands of the mandarins, and when resort became necessary to the +_ultima ratio regum_. But for the first two critical years Captain Elliot +pursued the same policy as Lord Napier, alternating concessions with +threats, and, while vaunting the majesty of his sovereign, yielding to +demands which were unreasonable and not to be endured. + +The balance of trade against China was the principal cause of the export +of silver, and the balance of trade was only against China through the +increasing import of opium. Without acquiescing in the least with the +strong allegations of the anti-opium party, there is no reason to doubt +that the excessive use of opium, especially in a crowded city like Canton, +was attended with sufficient mischief to justify its official +denunciation. The Pekin government may be so far credited with the honest +intention to reduce the mischief and to prevent a bad habit from becoming +more and more of a national vice, when they determined for far other +reasons to place it in the front of their tirade against foreign trade +generally. They soon found that it would be more convenient and more +plausible to substitute the moral opposition to the opium traffic for the +political disinclination to foreign intercourse in any form. They scarcely +expected that in this project they would receive the assistance and co- +operation of many of the Europeans themselves, who shared with them the +opinion that opium was detestable, and its use or sale a mark of +depravity. + +In January, 1839, Taoukwang ordered Lin Tsihseu, viceroy of the double +province of Houkwang and an official of high reputation, to proceed to +Canton as Special Commissioner to report on the situation, and to propound +the best remedy for the opium evil. At this moment the anti-opium party +was supreme in the imperial council, and three Manchu princes were +disgraced and banished from Pekin for indulging in the practice. The +peremptory instructions given to Commissioner Lin, as he is historically +known, were "to cut off the fountain of evil, and, if necessary for the +attainment of his object, to sink his ships and break his caldrons, for +the indignation of the great emperor has been fairly aroused at these +wicked practices--of buying and selling and using opium--and that the +hourly thought of his heart is to do away with them forever." + +Before Lin reached Canton there had been frequent friction between Captain +Elliot and the local mandarins, and more than one interruption of the +trade. Less than six months after his installation at Canton his official +relations were broken off, and he wrote home to his government a dispatch +complaining of the difficulty of conducting any sort of amicable relations +with the local mandarins, and indorsing the growing demand for the right +of dealing direct with the Pekin government. Captain Elliot, acting under +instructions from home, issued a public notice warning all English +subjects to discontinue the illicit opium trade, and stating that "her +Majesty's Government would not in any way interfere if the Chinese +Government should think fit to seize and confiscate the same." + +At this juncture Commissioner Lin, whose fervor and energy carried him +away, appeared upon the scene, and, whereas a less capable or honest man +would have come to an arrangement with Captain Elliot, his very ability +and enthusiasm tended to complicate the situation and render a pacific +solution unattainable. Commissioner Lin, on taking up his post, lost no +time in showing that he was terribly in earnest; but both his language and +his acts proved that he had a very much larger programme than was included +in his propaganda against the opium traffic. He wished to achieve the +complete humiliation of the foreigners, and nothing less would satisfy +him. Within a week of his arrival at Canton he issued an edict denouncing +the opium trade; throwing all the blame for it on the English, and +asserting what was absolutely untrue; viz., that "the laws of England +prohibited the smoking of opium, and adjudged the user to death." The +language of the edict was unfriendly and offensive. The Europeans were +stigmatized as a barbarous people, who thought only of trade and of making +their way by stealth into the Flowery Land. At the same time that he +issued this edict he gave peremptory orders that no foreigner was to leave +Canton or Macao until the opium question had been settled to his +satisfaction. Even then English merchants and officials, who felt no great +sympathy with the opium traffic, saw that these proceedings indicated an +intention to put down the trade in other articles, and to render the +position of foreigners untenable. Lin's demands culminated in the request +for all stores of opium to be surrendered to him within three days. By the +efforts of some of the merchants about a thousand chests were collected +and handed over to the Chinese for destruction; but this did not satisfy +Lin, who collected a large rabble force, encamped it outside the +settlement, and threatened to carry the place by storm. In this crisis +Captain Elliot, who had declared that his confidence in the justice and +good faith of the provincial government was destroyed, and who had even +drawn up a scheme for concentrating all his forces at Hongkong, called +upon all the English merchants to surrender to him, for paramount +considerations of the lives and property of every one concerned, all the +stores of opium in their possession. More than 20,000 chests, of an +estimated value of $10,000,000, were placed at his disposal, and in due +course handed over by him to Commissioner Lin for destruction. This task +was performed at Chuenpee, when the opium was placed in trenches, then +mixed with salt and lime, and finally poured off into the sea. After this +very considerable triumph, Lin wrote a letter to Queen Victoria--whose +reign has witnessed the most critical periods of the China question and +its satisfactory settlement--calling upon her Majesty to interdict the +trade in opium forever. The letter was as offensive in its tone as it was +weak in argument, and no answer was vouchsafed to it. Before any reply +could be given, the situation, moreover, had developed into one of open +hostilities. + +But great as were the concessions made by Captain Elliot, in consequence +of the threatening attitude of Commissioner Lin, the Chinese were not +satisfied, and made fresh and more exacting demands of those who had been +weak enough to make any concession at all. They reasserted their old +pretension that Europeans in China must be subject to her laws, and as the +sale of opium was a penal offense they claimed the right to punish those +Englishmen who had been connected with the traffic. They accordingly drew +up a list of sixteen of the principal merchants, some of whom had never +had anything to do with opium, and they announced their intention to +arrest them and to punish them with death. Not only did Commissioner Lin +and the Canton authorities claim the right to condemn and punish British +subjects, but they showed in the most insolent manner that they would take +away their liberty and lives on the flimsiest and falsest pretext. Captain +Elliot, weak and yielding as he was on many points, declared that "this +law is incompatible with safe or honorable continuance at Canton." +Apparently the Chinese authorities acted on the assumption that so long as +there remained even one offending European the mass of his countrymen +ought to be hindered in their avocations, and consequently petty +restrictions and provocations continued to be enforced. Then Captain +Elliot, seeing that the situation was hopeless and that there was no sign +of improvement, took the bold, or at least the pronounced, step of +ordering all British subjects to leave Canton or to stay at their own +peril. It was on this occasion that he explained away, or put a new +interpretation on, his action with regard to the opium surrendered for +destruction, which most of the merchants thought represented an +irrecoverable loss. It will be best to give the precise words used in his +notice of the 22d of May, 1839. "Acting on behalf of her Majesty's +Government in a momentous emergency, he has, in the first place, to +signify that the demand he recently made to her Majesty's subjects for the +surrender of British-owned opium under their control had no special +reference to the circumstances of that property; but (beyond the actual +pressure of necessity) that demand was founded on the principle that these +violent compulsory measures being utterly unjust _per se_ and of general +application for the enforced surrender of any other property, or of human +life, or for the constraint of any unsuitable terms or concessions, it +became highly necessary to vest and leave the right of exacting effectual +security and full indemnity for every loss directly in the queen." +Unfortunately, Captain Elliot's language at the time of the surrender of +the opium had undoubtedly led to the conclusion that he sympathized with +Commissioner Lin, and that he took the same view as the Chinese officials +of the moral iniquity of selling or using opium. The whole mercantile +community adopted Captain Elliot's counsel, and the English factory at +Canton, which had existed for nearly two hundred years, was abandoned. At +the same time a memorial was sent home begging the government to protect +the English merchants in China against "a capricious and corrupt +government," and demanding compensation for the $10,000,000 worth of opium +destroyed by Commissioner Lin. Pending the reply of the home government to +that appeal, nothing could be more complete than the triumph of +Commissioner Lin. The Emperor Taoukwang rewarded him with the important +viceroyship of the Two Kiang, the seat of which administration is at +Nankin. + +But the limit of endurance had been reached, and the British government +was on the point of taking decisive action at the very moment when the +Chinese triumph seemed most complete and unthreatened. Even before the +action of the home authorities was known in the Bogue the situation had +become critical, and the sailors in particular had thrown off all +restraint. Frequent collisions occurred between them and the foreigners, +and in one of them a Chinaman was killed. Commissioner Lin characterized +this act as "going to the extreme of disobedience to the laws," and +demanded the surrender of the sailor who committed the act, so that a life +might be given for a life. This demand was flatly refused, and in +consequence of the measures taken by the Chinese at Lin's direction to +prevent all supplies reaching the English, Captain Elliot felt bound to +remove his residence from Macao to Hongkong. The Chinese called out all +their armed forces, and incited their people along the Canton River to +attack the foreigners wherever found. An official notice said, "Produce +arms and weapons; join together the stoutest of your villagers, and thus +be prepared to defend yourselves. If any of the said foreigners be found +going on shore to cause trouble, all and every of the people are permitted +to fire upon them, to withstand and drive them back, or to make prisoners +of them." This appeal to a force which the Chinese did not possess was an +act of indiscretion that betrayed an overweening confidence or a singular +depth of ignorance. When the mandarins refused to supply the ships with +water and other necessaries they carried their animosity to a length which +the English naval officers at once defined as a declaration of open +hostilities. They retaliated by ordering their men to seize by force +whatever was necessary, and thus began a state of things which may be +termed one of absolute warfare. The two men-of-war on the station had +several encounters with the forts in the Bogue, and on November 3, 1839, +they fought a regular engagement with a Chinese fleet of twenty-nine junks +off Chuenpee. The Chinese showed more courage than skill, and four of +their junks were sunk. It is worth noting that the English sailors +pronounced both their guns and their powder to be excellent. While this +action deterred the Chinese fleet from coming to close quarters, it also +imbittered the contest, and there was no longer room to doubt that if the +Chinese were to be brought to take a more reasonable view of foreign trade +it would have to be by the disagreeable lesson of force. And at the end of +1839 the Chinese were fully convinced that they had the power to carry out +their will and to keep the European nations out of their country by the +strong hand. + +A short time after the action at Chuenpee an Englishman named Mr. Gribble +was seized by the Canton officials and thrown into prison. The English +men-of-war went up the river as far as the Bogue forts, which they +threatened to bombard unless he was released; and, after considerable +discussion, Mr. Gribble was set free, mainly because the Chinese heard of +the large force that was on its way from England. Before that armament +arrived the Emperor Taoukwang had committed himself still further to a +policy of hostility. A report of the fight at Chuenpee was duly submitted +to him, but the affair was represented as a very creditable one for his +commander, and as a Chinese victory. The misled monarch at once conferred +a high honor on his admiral, and commanded his officers at Canton "to at +once put a stop to the trade of the English nation." This had, practically +speaking, been already accomplished, and the English merchants had taken +refuge at Macao or in their ships anchored at Hongkong. + +Before describing the military operations now about to take place, a +survey may conveniently be taken of events since the abolition of the +monopoly, and it may be pardonable to employ the language formerly used. +From an impartial review of the facts, and divesting our minds, so far as +is humanly possible, of the prejudice of accepted political opinions, and +of conviction as to the hurtful or innocent character of opium in the +mixture as smoked by the Chinese, it cannot be contended that the course +pursued by Lord Napier and Captain Elliot, and particularly by the latter, +was either prudent in itself or calculated to promote the advantage and +reputation of England. Captain Elliot's proceedings were marked by the +inconsistency that springs from ignorance. The more influential English +merchants, touched by the appeal to their moral sentiment, or impressed by +the depravity of large classes of the Canton population, of which the +practice of opium-smoking was rather the mark than the cause, set their +faces against the traffic in this article, and repudiated all sympathy and +participation in it. The various foreign publications, whether they +received their inspirations from Mr. Gutzlaff or not matters little, +differed on most points, but were agreed on this, that the trade in opium +was morally indefensible, and that we were bound, not only by our own +interests, but in virtue of the common obligations of humanity, to cease +to hold all connection with it. Those who had surrendered their stores of +opium at the request of Captain Elliot held that their claim for +compensation was valid, in the first place, against the English government +alone. They had given them up for the service of the country at the +request of the queen's representative, and, considering the line which +Captain Elliot had taken, many believed that it would be quite impossible +for the English government to put forward any demand upon the government +of China. The ten million dollars, according to these large-hearted and +unreflecting moralists, would have to be sacrificed by the people of +England in the cause of humanity, to which they had given so much by +emancipating the slaves, and the revenue of India should, for the future, +be poorer by the amount that used to pay the dividend of the great +Company! The Chinese authorities could not help being encouraged in their +opinions and course of proceeding by the attitude of the English. Their +most sweeping denunciations of the iniquity of the opium traffic elicited +a murmur of approval from the most influential among the foreigners. No +European stood up to say that their allegations as to the evil of using +opium were baseless and absurd. What is more, no one thought it. Had the +Chinese made sufficient use of this identity of views, and shown a desire +to facilitate trade in the so-called innocent and legitimate articles, +there is little doubt that the opium traffic would have been reduced to +very small dimensions, because there would have been no rupture. But the +action of Commissioner Lin revealed the truth that the Chinese were not to +be satisfied with a single triumph. The more easily they obtained their +objects in the opium matter the more anxious did they become to impress +the foreigners with a sense of their inferiority, and to force them to +accept the most onerous and unjust conditions for the sake of a +continuance of the trade. None the less, Captain Elliot went out of his +way to tie his own hands, and to bind his own government, so far as he +could, to co-operate with the emperor's officials in the suppression of +the opium traffic. That this is no random assertion may be judged from the +following official notice, issued several months after the surrender of +the stores of opium. In this Captain Elliot announced that "Her Majesty's +flag does not fly in the protection of a traffic declared illegal by the +emperor, and, therefore, whenever a vessel is suspected of having opium on +board Captain Elliot will take care that the officers of his establishment +shall accompany the Chinese officers in their search, and that if, after +strict investigation, opium shall be found, he will offer no objection to +the seizure and confiscation of the cargo." + +The British expedition arrived at the mouth of the Canton River in the +month of June, 1840. It consisted of 4,000 troops on board twenty-five +transports, with a convoy of fifteen men-of-war. If it was thought that +this considerable force would attain its objects without fighting and +merely by making a demonstration, the expectation was rudely disappointed. +The reply of Commissioner Lin was to place a reward on the person of all +Englishmen, and to offer $20,000 for the destruction of an English man-of- +war. The English fleet replied to this hostile step by instituting a close +blockade at the mouth of the river, which was not an ineffectual retort. +Sir Gordon Bremer, the commander of the first part of the expedition, came +promptly to the decision that it would be well to extend the sphere of his +operations, and he accordingly sailed northward with a portion of his +force to occupy the island of Chusan, which had witnessed some of the +earliest operations of the East India Company two centuries before. The +capture of Chusan presented no difficulties to a well-equipped force, yet +the fidelity of its garrison and inhabitants calls for notice as a +striking instance of patriotism. The officials at Tinghai, the capital of +Chusan, refused to surrender, as their duty to their emperor would not +admit of their giving up one of his possessions. It was their duty to +fight, and although they admitted resistance to be useless, they refused +to yield, save to force. The English commander reluctantly ordered a +bombardment, and after a few hours the Chinese defenses were demolished, +and Tinghai was occupied. Chusan remained in our possession as a base of +operations during the greater part of the war, but its insalubrity rather +dissipated the reputation it had acquired as an advantageous and well- +placed station for operations on the coast of China. Almost at the same +time as the attack on Chusan, hostilities were recommenced against the +Chinese on the Canton River, in consequence of the carrying off of a +British subject, Mr. Vincent Stanton, from Macao. The barrier forts were +attacked by two English men-of-war and two smaller vessels. After a heavy +bombardment, a force of marines and blue-jackets was landed, and the +Chinese positions carried. The forts and barracks were destroyed, and Mr. +Stanton released. Then it was said that "China must either bend or break," +for the hour of English forbearance had passed away, and unless China +could vindicate her policy by force of arms there was no longer any doubt +that she would have to give way. + +While these preliminary military events were occurring, the diplomatic +side of the question was also in evidence. Lord Palmerston had written a +letter stating in categorical language what he expected at the hands of +the Chinese government, and he had directed that it should be delivered +into nobody else's hands but the responsible ministers of the Emperor +Taoukwang. The primary task of the English expedition was to give this +dispatch to some high Chinese official who seemed competent to convey it +to Pekin. This task proved one of unexpected difficulty, for the +mandarins, basing their refusal on the strict letter of their duty, which +forbade them to hold any intercourse with foreigners, returned the +document, and declared that they could not receive it. This happened at +Amoy and again at Ningpo, and the occupation of Chusan did not bring our +authorities any nearer to realizing their mission. Baffled in these +attempts, the fleet sailed north for the mouth of the Peiho, when at last +Lord Palmerston's letter was accepted by Keshen, the viceroy of the +province, and duly forwarded by him to Pekin. The arrival of the English +fleet awoke the Chinese court for the time being from its indifference, +and Taoukwang not merely ordered that the fleet should be provided with +all the supplies it needed, but appointed Keshen High Commissioner for the +conclusion of an amicable arrangement. The difficulty thus seemed in a +fair way toward settlement, but as a matter of fact it was only at its +commencement, for the wiles of Chinese diplomacy are infinite and were +then only partially understood. Keshen was remarkable for his astuteness +and for the yielding exterior which covered a purpose of iron, and in the +English political officer, the Captain Elliot of Canton, he did not find +an opponent worthy of his steel. Although experience had shown how great +were the delays of negotiation at Canton, and how inaccessible were the +local officials, Captain Elliot allowed himself to be persuaded that the +best place to carry on negotiations was at that city, and after a brief +delay the fleet was withdrawn from the Peiho and all the advantages of the +alarm created by its presence at Pekin were surrendered. Relieved by the +departure of the foreign ships, Taoukwang sent orders for the dispatch of +forces from the inland provinces, so that he might be able to resume the +struggle with the English under more favorable conditions, and at the same +time he hastened to relieve his overcharged feelings by punishing the man +whom he regarded as responsible for his misfortunes and humiliation. The +full weight of the imperial wrath fell on Commissioner Lin, who from the +position of the foremost official in China fell at a stroke of the +vermilion pencil to a public criminal arraigned before the Board of +Punishments to receive his deserts. He was stripped of all his offices, +and ordered to proceed to Pekin, where, however, his life was spared. + +Keshen arrived at Canton on November 29, 1840, but his dispatch to the +emperor explaining the position he found there shows that his view of the +situation did not differ materially from that of Lin. "Night and day I +have considered and examined the state of our relations with the English. +At first moved by the benevolence of his Majesty and the severity of the +laws, they surrendered the opium. Commissioner Lin commanded them to give +bonds that they would never more deal in opium--a most excellent plan for +securing future good conduct. This the English refused to give, and then +they trifled with the laws, and so obstinate were their dispositions that +they could not be made to submit. Hence it becomes necessary to soothe and +admonish them with sound instruction, so as to cause them to change their +mien and purify their hearts, after which it will not be too late to renew +their commerce. It behooves me to instruct and persuade them so that their +good consciences may be restored, and they reduced to submission." The +language of this document showed that the highest Chinese officers still +believed that the English would accept trade facilities as a favor, that +they would be treated _de haut en bas_, and that China possessed the +power to make good her lofty pretensions. China had learned nothing from +her military mishaps at Canton, Amoy, and Chusan, and from the appearance +of an English fleet in the Gulf of Pechihli. Keshen had gained a breathing +space by procrastination in the north, and he resorted to the same tactics +at Canton. Days expanded into weeks, and at last orders were issued for an +advance up the Canton River, as it had become evident that the Chinese +were not only bent on an obstructive policy, but were making energetic +efforts to assemble a large army. On January 7, 1841, orders were +consequently issued for an immediate attack on the Bogue forts, which had +been placed in a state of defense, and which were manned by large numbers +of Chinese. Fortunately for us, the Chinese possessed a very rudimentary +knowledge of the art of war, and showed no capacity to take advantage of +the strength of their position and forts, or even of their excellent guns. +The troops were landed on the coast in the early morning to operate on the +flank and rear of the forts at Chuenpee. The advance squadron, under +Captain, afterward Sir Thomas, Herbert, was to engage the same forts in +front, while the remainder of the fleet proceeded to attack the stockades +on the adjoining island of Taikok. The land force of 1,500 men and three +guns had not proceeded far along the coast before it came across a +strongly intrenched camp in addition to the Chuenpee forts, with several +thousand troops and many guns in position. After a sharp cannonade the +forts were carried at a rush, and a formidable army was driven +ignominiously out of its intrenchments with hardly any loss to the +assailants. The forts at Taikok were destroyed by the fire of the ships, +and their guns spiked and garrisons routed by storming parties. In all, +the Chinese lost 500 killed, besides an incalculable number of wounded, +and many junks. The Chinese showed some courage as well as incompetence, +and the English officers described their defense as "obstinate and +honorable." + +The capture of the Bogue forts produced immediate and important +consequences. Keshen at once begged a cessation of hostilities, and +offered terms which conceded everything we had demanded. These were the +payment of a large indemnity, the cession of Hongkong, and the right to +hold official communication with the central government. In accordance +with these preliminary articles, Hongkong was proclaimed, on January 29, +1841, a British possession, and the troops evacuated Chusan to garrison +the new station. It was not considered at the time that the acquisition +was of much importance, and no one would have predicted for it the +brilliant and prosperous position it has since attained. But the promises +given by Keshen were merely to gain time and to extricate him from a very +embarrassing situation. The morrow of what seemed a signal reverse was +marked by the issue of an imperial notice, breathing a more defiant tone +than ever. Taoukwang declared, in this edict, that he was resolved "to +destroy and wash the foreigners away without remorse," and he denounced +the English by name as "staying themselves upon their pride of power and +fierce strength." He, therefore, called upon his officers to proceed with +courage and energy, so that "the rebellious foreigners might give up their +ringleaders, to be sent encaged to Pekin, to receive the utmost +retribution of the laws." So long as the sovereign held such opinions as +these it was evident that no arrangement could endure. The Chinese did not +admit the principle of equality in their dealings with the English, and +this was the main point in contention, far more than the alleged evils of +the opium traffic. So long as Taoukwang and his ministers held the +opinions which they did not hesitate to express, a friendly intercourse +was impossible. There was no practical alternative between withdrawing +from the country altogether and leaving the Chinese in undisturbed +seclusion, or forcing their government to recognize a common humanity and +an equality in national privileges. + +It is not surprising that under these circumstances the suspension of +hostilities proved of brief duration. The conflict was hastened by the +removal of Keshen from his post, in consequence of his having reported +that he considered the Chinese forces unequal to the task of opposing the +English. His candor in recognizing facts did him credit, while it cost him +his position; and his successor, Eleang, was compelled to take an opposite +view, and to attempt something to justify it. Eleang refused to ratify the +convention signed by Keshen, and, on February 25, the English commander +ordered an attack on the inner line of forts which guarded the approaches +to Canton. After a brief engagement, the really formidable lines of +Anunghoy, with 200 guns in position, were carried at a nominal loss. The +many other positions of the Chinese, up to Whampoa, were occupied in +succession; and on March 1 the English squadron drew up off Howqua's +Folly, in Whampoa Reach, at the very gateway of Canton. On the following +day the dashing Sir Hugh Gough arrived to take the supreme direction of +the English forces. After these further reverses, the Chinese again begged +a suspension of hostilities, and an armistice for a few days was granted. +The local authorities were on the horns of a dilemma. They saw the +futility of a struggle with the English, and the Cantonese had to bear all +the suffering for the obstinacy of the Pekin government; but, on the other +hand, no one dared to propose concession to Taoukwang, who, confident of +his power, and ignorant of the extent of his misfortunes, breathed nothing +but defiance. After a few days' delay, it became clear that the Cantonese +had neither the will nor the power to conclude a definite arrangement, and +consequently their city was attacked with as much forbearance as possible. +The fort called Dutch Folly was captured, and the outer line of defenses +was taken possession of, but no attempt was made to occupy the city +itself. Sir Hugh Gough stated, in a public notice, that the city was +spared because the queen had desired that all peaceful people should be +tenderly considered. The first English successes had entailed the disgrace +of Lin, the second were not less fatal to Keshen. Keshen was arraigned +before the Board at Pekin, his valuable property was escheated to the +crown, and he himself sentenced to decapitation, which was commuted to +banishment to Tibet, where he succeeded in amassing a fresh fortune. The +success of the English was proclaimed by the merchants re-occupying their +factories on March 18, 1841, exactly two years after Lin's first fiery +edict against opium. It was a strange feature in this struggle that the +instant they did so the Chinese merchants resumed trade with undiminished +ardor and cordiality. The officials even showed an inclination to follow +their example, when they learned that Taoukwang refused to listen to any +conclusive peace, and that his policy was still one of expelling the +foreigners. To carry out his views, the emperor sent a new commission of +three members to Canton, and it was their studious avoidance of all +communication with the English authorities that again aroused suspicion as +to the Chinese not being sincere in their assent to the convention which +had saved Canton from an English occupation. Taoukwang was ignorant of the +success of his enemy, and his commissioners, sent to achieve what Lin and +Keshen had failed to do, were fully resolved not to recognize the position +which the English had obtained by force of arms, or to admit that it was +likely to prove enduring. This confidence was increased by the continuous +arrival of fresh troops, until at last there were 50,000 men in the +neighborhood of Canton, and all seemed ready to tempt the fortune of war +again, and to make another effort to expel the hated foreigner. The +measure of Taoukwang's animosity may be taken by his threatening to punish +with death any one who suggested making peace with the barbarians. + +[Illustration: CANTON--THE FLOWER PAGODA] + +While the merchants were actively engaged in their commercial operations, +and the English officers in conducting negotiations with a functionary who +had no authority, and who was only put forward to amuse them, the Chinese +were busily employed in completing their warlike preparations, which at +the same time they kept as secret as possible, in the hope of taking the +English by surprise. But it was impossible for such extensive preparations +to be made without their creating some stir, and the standing aloof of the +commissioners was in itself ground of suspicion. Suspicion became +certainty when, on Captain Elliot paying a visit to the prefect in the +city, he was received in a disrespectful manner by the mandarins and +insulted in the streets by the crowd. He at once acquainted Sir Hugh +Gough, who was at Hongkong, with the occurrence, and issued a notice, on +May 21, 1841, advising all foreigners to leave Canton that day. This +notice was not a day too soon, for, during the night, the Chinese made a +desperate attempt to carry out their scheme. The batteries which they had +secretly erected at various points in the city and along the river banks +began to bombard the factories and the ships at the same time that fire- +rafts were sent against the latter in the hope of causing a conflagration. +Fortunately the Chinese were completely baffled, with heavy loss to +themselves and none to the English; and during the following day the +English assumed the offensive, and with such effect that all the Chinese +batteries were destroyed, together with forty war-junks. The only exploit +on which the Chinese could compliment themselves was that they had sacked +and gutted the English factory. This incident made it clearer than ever +that the Chinese government would only be amenable to force, and that it +was absolutely necessary to inflict some weighty punishment on the Chinese +leaders at Canton, who had made so bad a return for the moderation shown +them and their city, and who had evidently no intention of complying with +the arrangement to which they had been a party. + +Sir Hugh Gough arrived at Canton with all his forces on May 24, and on the +following morning the attack commenced with the advance of the fleet up +the Macao passage, and with the landing of bodies of troops at different +points which appeared well suited for turning the Chinese position and +attacking the gates of Canton. The Chinese did not molest the troops in +landing, which was fortunate, as the operation proved exceedingly +difficult and occupied more than a whole day. The Chinese had taken up a +strong position on the hills lying north of the city, and they showed +considerable judgment in their selection, and no small skill in +strengthening their ground by a line of forts. The Chinese were said to be +full of confidence in their ability to reverse the previous fortune of the +war, and they fought with considerable confidence, while the turbulent +Cantonese populace waited impatiently on the walls to take advantage of +the first symptoms of defeat among the English troops. The English army, +divided into two columns of nearly 2,000 men each, with a strong artillery +force of seven guns, four howitzers, five mortars, and fifty-two rockets, +advanced on the Chinese intrenchments across paddy fields, rendered more +difficult of passage by numerous burial-grounds. The obstacles were +considerable and the progress was slow, but the Chinese did not attempt +any opposition. Then the battle began with the bombardment of the Chinese +lines, and after an hour it seemed as if the Chinese had had enough of +this and were preparing for flight, when a general advance was ordered. +But the Chinese thought better of their intention or their movement was +misunderstood, for when the English streamed up the hill to attack them +they stood to their guns and presented a brave front. Three of their forts +were carried with little or no loss, but at the fourth they offered a +stubborn if ill-directed resistance. Even then the engagement was not +over, for the Chinese rallied in an intrenched camp one mile in the rear +of the forts, and, rendered confident by their numbers, they resolved to +make a fresh stand, and hurled defiance at the foreigners. The English +troops never halted in their advance, and, led by the 18th or Royal Irish, +they carried the intrenchment at a rush and put the whole Chinese army to +flight. The English lost seventy killed and wounded, the Chinese losses +were never accurately known. It was arranged that Canton was to be stormed +on the following day, but a terrific hurricane and deluge of rain +prevented all military movements on May 26, and, as it proved, saved the +city from attack. Once more Chinese diplomacy came to the relief of +Chinese arms. To save Canton the mandarins were quite prepared to make +every concession, if they only attached a temporary significance to their +language, and they employed the whole of that lucky wet day in getting +round Captain Elliot, who once more allowed himself to place faith in the +promises of the Chinese. The result of this was seen on the 27th, when, +just as Sir Hugh Gough was giving orders for the assault, he received a +message from Captain Elliot stating that the Chinese had come to terms and +that all hostilities were to be suspended. The terms the Chinese had +agreed to in a few hours were that the commissioners and all the troops +should retire to a distance of sixty miles from Canton, and that +$6,000,000 should be paid "for the use of the English crown." + +Five of the $6,000,000 had been handed over to Captain Elliot, and +amicable relations had been established with the city authorities, when +the imperial commissioners, either alarmed at the penalties their failure +entailed, or encouraged to believe in the renewed chances of success from +the impotence into which the English troops might have sunk, made a sudden +attempt to surprise Sir Hugh Gough's camp and to retrieve a succession of +disasters at a single stroke. The project was not without a chance of +success, but it required prompt action and no hesitation in coming to +close quarters--the two qualifications in which the Chinese were most +deficient. So it was on this occasion. Ten or fifteen thousand Chinese +braves suddenly appeared on the hills about two miles north of the English +camp; but instead of seizing the opportunity created by the surprise at +their sudden appearance and at the breach of armistice, and delivering +home their attack, they merely waved their banners and uttered threats of +defiance. They stood their ground for some time in face of the rifle and +artillery fire opened upon them, and then they kept up a sort of running +fight for three miles as they were pursued by the English. They did not +suffer any serious loss, and when the English troops retired in +consequence of a heavy storm they became in turn the pursuers and +inflicted a few casualties. The advantages they obtained were due to the +terrific weather more than to their courage, but one party of Madras +sepoys lost its way, and was surrounded by so overwhelming a number of +Chinese that they would have been annihilated but that their absence was +fortunately discovered and a rescuing party of marines, armed with the new +percussion gun, which was to a great degree secure against the weather, +went out to their assistance. They found the sepoys, under their two +English officers, drawn up in a square firing as best they could and +presenting a bold front to the foe--"many of the sepoys, after extracting +the wet cartridge very deliberately, tore their pocket handkerchiefs or +lining from their turbans and, baling water with their hands into the +barrel of their pieces, washed and dried them, thus enabling them to fire +an occasional volley." Out of sixty sepoys one was killed and fourteen +wounded. After this Sir Hugh Gough threatened to bombard Canton if there +were any more attacks on his camp, and they at once ceased, and when the +whole of the indemnity was paid the English troops were withdrawn, leaving +Canton as it was, for a second time "a record of British magnanimity and +forbearance." + +After this trade reverted to its former footing, and by the Canton +convention, signed by the imperial commissioners in July, 1841, the +English obtained all the privileges they could hope for from the local +authorities. But it was essentially a truce, not a treaty, and the great +point of direct intercourse with the central government was no nearer +settlement than ever. At this moment Sir Henry Pottinger arrived as +Plenipotentiary from England, and he at once set himself to obtaining a +formal recognition from the Pekin executive of his position and the +admission of his right to address them on diplomatic business. With the +view of pressing this matter on the attention of Taoukwang, who personally +had not deviated from his original attitude of emphatic hostility, Sir +Henry Pottinger sailed northward with the fleet and a large portion of the +land forces about the end of August. The important seaport of Amoy was +attacked and taken after what was called "a short but animated +resistance." This town is situated on an island, the largest of a group +lying at the entrance to the estuary of Lungkiang, and it has long been +famous as a convenient port and flourishing place of trade. The Chinese +had raised a rampart of 1,100 yards in length, and this they had armed +with ninety guns, while a battery of forty-two guns protected its flank. +Kulangsu was also fortified, and the Chinese had placed in all 500 guns in +position. They believed in the impregnability of Amoy, and it was allowed +that no inconsiderable skill as well as great expense had been devoted to +the strengthening of the place. When the English fleet arrived off the +port the Chinese sent a flag of truce to demand what it wanted, and they +were informed the surrender of the town. The necessity for this measure +would be hard to justify, especially as we were nominally at peace with +China, for the people of Amoy had inflicted no injury on our trade, and +their chastisement would not bring us any nearer to Pekin. Nor was the +occupation of Amoy necessary on military grounds. It was strong only for +itself, and its capture had no important consequences. As the Chinese +determined to resist the English, the fleet engaged the batteries, and the +Chinese, standing to their guns "right manfully," only abandoned their +position when they found their rear threatened by a landing party. Then, +after a faint resistance, the Chinese sought safety in flight, but some of +their officers, preferring death to dishonor, committed suicide, one of +them being seen to walk calmly into the sea and drown himself in face of +both armies. The capture of Amoy followed. + +As the authorities at Amoy refused to hold any intercourse with the +English, the achievement remained barren of any useful consequence, and +after leaving a small garrison on Kulangsu, and three warships in the +roadstead, the English expedition continued its northern course. After +being scattered by a storm in the perilous Formosa channel, the fleet +reunited off Ningpo, whence it proceeded to attack Chusan for a second +time. The Chinese defended Tinghai, the capital, with great resolution. At +this place General Keo, the chief naval and military commander, was +killed, and all his officers, sticking to him to the last, also fell with +him. Their conduct in fact was noble; nothing could have surpassed it. On +the reoccupation of Chusan, which it was decided to retain until a formal +treaty had been concluded with the emperor, Sir Henry Pottinger issued a +proclamation to the effect that years might elapse before that place would +be restored to the emperor's authority, and many persons wished that it +should be permanently annexed as the best base for commercial operations +in China. A garrison of 400 men was left at Tinghai, and then the +expedition proceeded to attack Chinhai on the mainland, where the Chinese +had made every preparation to offer a strenuous resistance. The Chinese +suffered the most signal defeat and the greatest loss they had yet +incurred during the war. The victory at Chinhai was followed by the +unopposed occupation of the important city of Ningpo, where the +inhabitants shut themselves up in their houses, and wrote on their doors +"Submissive People." Ningpo was put to ransom and the authorities informed +that unless they paid the sum within a certain time their city would be +handed over to pillage and destruction. As the Pekin government had made +no sign of giving in, it was felt that no occasion ought to be lost of +overawing the Chinese, and compelling them to admit that any further +prolongation of the struggle would be hopeless. The arrival of further +troops and warships from Europe enabled the English commanders to adopt a +more determined and uncompromising attitude, and the capture of Ningpo +would have been followed up at once but for the disastrous events in +Afghanistan, which distracted attention from the Chinese question, and +delayed its settlement. It was hoped, however, that the continued +occupation of Amoy, Chusan and Ningpo would cause sufficient pressure on +the Pekin government to induce it to yield all that was demanded. + +These anticipations were not fulfilled, for neither the swift-recurring +visitation of disaster nor the waning resources of the imperial government +in both men and treasure, could shake the fixed hostility of Taoukwang or +induce him to abate his proud pretensions. Minister after minister passed +into disgrace and exile. Misfortune shared the same fate as incompetence, +and the more the embarrassments of the state increased the heavier fell +the hand of the ruler and the verdict of the Board of Punishments upon +beaten generals and unsuccessful statesmen. The period of inaction which +followed the occupation of Ningpo no doubt encouraged the emperor to think +that the foreigners were exhausted, or that they had reached the end of +their successes, and he ordered increased efforts to be made to bring up +troops, and to strengthen the approaches to Pekin. The first proof of his +returning spirit was shown in March, 1842, when the Chinese attempted to +seize Ningpo by a coup de main. Suddenly, and without warning, a force of +between ten and twelve thousand men appeared at daybreak outside the south +and west gates of Ningpo, and many of them succeeded in making their way +over the walls and gaining the center of the town; but, instead of proving +the path to victory, this advance resulted in the complete overthrow of +the Chinese. Attacked by artillery and foot in the market-place they were +almost annihilated, and the great Chinese attack on Ningpo resulted in a +fiasco. Similar but less vigorous attacks were made about the same time on +Chinhai and Chusan, but they were both repulsed with heavy loss to the +Chinese. In consequence of these attacks and the improved position in +Afghanistan it was decided to again assume the offensive, and to break up +the hostile army at Hangchow, of which the body that attacked Ningpo was +the advanced guard. Sir Hugh Gough commanded the operations in person, and +he had the co-operation of a naval force under Sir William Parker. The +first action took place outside Tszeki, a small place ten miles from +Ningpo, where the Chinese fancied they occupied an exceedingly strong +position. But careful inspection showed it to be radically faulty. Their +lines covered part of the Segaou hills, but their left was commanded by +some higher hills on the right of the English position, and the Chinese +left again commanded their own right. It was evident, therefore, that the +capture of the left wing of the Chinese encampment would entail the +surrender or evacuation of the rest. The difficulties of the ground caused +a greater delay in the advance than had been expected, and the assault had +to be delivered along the whole line, as it was becoming obvious that the +Chinese were growing more confident, and, consequently, more to be feared +from the delay in attacking them. The assault was made with the +impetuosity good troops always show in attacking inferior ones, no matter +how great the disparity of numbers; and here the Chinese were driven out +of their position--although they stood their ground in a creditable +manner--and chased over the hills down to the rice fields below. The +Chinese loss was over a thousand killed, including many of the Imperial +Guard, of whom 500 were present, and whom Sir Hugh Gough described as +"remarkably fine men," while the English had six killed and thirty-seven +wounded. For the moment it was intended to follow up this victory by an +attack on the city of Hangchow, the famous Kincsay of medieval travelers; +but the arrival of fresh instructions gave a complete turn to the whole +war. + +Little permanent good had been effected by these successful operations on +the coast, and Taoukwang was still as resolute as ever in his hostility; +nor is there any reason to suppose that the capture of Hangchow, or any +other of the coast towns, would have caused a material change in the +situation. The credit of initiating the policy which brought the Chinese +government to its knees belongs exclusively to Lord Ellenborough, then +governor-general of India. He detected the futility of operations along +the coast, and he suggested that the great waterway of the Yangtsekiang, +perfectly navigable for warships up to the immediate neighborhood of +Nankin, provided the means of coercing the Chinese, and effecting the +objects which the English Government had in view. The English expedition, +strongly re-enforced from India, then abandoned Ningpo and Chinhai, and, +proceeding north, began the final operations of the war with an attack on +Chapoo, where the Chinese had made extensive measures of defense. Chapoo +was the port appointed for trade with Japan, and the Chinese had collected +there a very considerable force from the levies of Chekiang, which ex- +Commissioner Lin had been largely instrumental in raising. Sir Hugh Gough +attacked Chapoo with 2,000 men, and the main body of the Chinese was +routed without much difficulty, but 300 desperate men shut themselves up +in a walled inclosure, and made an obstinate resistance. They held out +until three-fourths of them were slain, when the survivors, seventy-five +wounded men, accepted the quarter offered them from the first. The English +lost ten killed and fifty-five wounded, and the Chinese more than a +thousand. After this the expedition proceeded northward for the Great +River, and it was found necessary to attack Woosung, the port of Shanghai, +en route. This place was also strongly fortified with as many as 175 guns +in position, but the chief difficulty in attacking it lay in that of +approach, as the channel had first to be sounded, and then the sailing +ships towed into position by the steamers. Twelve vessels were in this +manner placed broadside to the batteries on land, a position which +obviously they could not have maintained against a force of anything like +equal strength; but they succeeded in silencing the Chinese batteries with +comparatively little loss, and then the English army was landed without +opposition. Shanghai is situated sixteen miles up the Woosung River, and +while part of the force proceeded up the river another marched overland. +Both columns arrived together, and the disheartened Chinese evacuated +Shanghai after firing one or two random shots. No attempt was made to +retain Shanghai, and the expedition re-embarked, and proceeded to attack +Chankiang or Chinkiangfoo, a town on the southern bank of the +Yangtsekiang, and at the northern entrance of the southern branch of the +Great Canal. This town has always been a place of great celebrity, both +strategically and commercially, for not merely does it hold a very strong +position with regard to the Canal, but it forms, with the Golden and +Silver Islands, the principal barrier in the path of those attempting to +reach Nankin. At this point Sir Hugh Gough was re-enforced by the 98th +Regiment, under Colonel Colin Campbell. The difficulties of navigation and +the size of the fleet, which now reached seventy vessels, caused a delay +in the operations, and it was not until the latter end of July, or more +than a month after the occupation of Shanghai, that the English reached +Chinkiangfoo, where, strangely enough, there seemed to be no military +preparations whatever. A careful reconnaissance revealed the presence of +three strong encampments at some distance from the town, and the first +operation was to carry them, and to prevent their garrisons joining such +forces as might still remain in the city. This attack was intrusted to +Lord Saltoun's brigade, which was composed of two Scotch regiments and +portions of two native regiments, with only three guns. The opposition was +almost insignificant, and the three camps were carried with comparatively +little loss and their garrisons scattered in all directions. At the same +time the remainder of the force assaulted the city, which was surrounded +by a high wall and a deep moat. Some delay was caused by these obstacles, +but at last the western gate was blown in by Captain Pears, of the +Engineers, and at the same moment the walls were escaladed at two +different points, and the English troops, streaming in on three sides, +fairly surrounded a considerable portion of the garrison, who retired into +a detached work, where they perished to the last man either by our fire or +in the flames of the houses which were ignited partly by themselves and +partly by the fire of our soldiers. The resistance did not stop here, for +the Tartar or inner city was resolutely defended by the Manchus, and owing +to the intense heat the Europeans would have been glad of a rest; but, as +the Manchus kept up a galling fire, Sir Hugh Gough felt bound to order an +immediate assault before the enemy grew too daring. The fight was renewed, +and the Tartars were driven back at all points; but the English troops +were so exhausted that they could not press home this advantage. The +interval thus gained was employed by the Manchus, not in making good their +escape, but in securing their military honor by first massacring their +women and children, and then committing suicide. It must be remembered +that these were not Chinese, but Manchu Tartars of the dominant race. + +The losses of the English army at this battle--40 killed, and 130 wounded +--were heavy, and they were increased by several deaths caused by the heat +and exhaustion of the day. The Chinese, or rather the Tartars, never +fought better, and it appears from a document discovered afterward that if +Hailing's recommendations had been followed, and if he had been properly +supported, the capture of Chinkiangfoo would have been even more difficult +and costly than it proved. + +Some delay at Chinkiangfoo was rendered necessary by the exhaustion of the +troops and by the number of sick and wounded; but a week after the capture +of that place in the manner described the arrangements for the further +advance on Nankin were completed. A small garrison was left in an +encampment on a height commanding the entrance to the Canal; but there was +little reason to apprehend any fresh attack, as the lesson of Chinkiangfoo +had been a terrible one. That city lay beneath the English camp like a +vast charnel house, its half-burned buildings filled with the self- +immolated Tartars who had preferred honor to life; and so thickly strewn +were these and so intense the heat that the days passed away without the +ability to give them burial, until at last it became absolutely impossible +to render the last kind office to a gallant foe. Despite the greatest +precautions of the English authorities, Chinkiangfoo became the source of +pestilence, and an outbreak of cholera caused more serious loss in the +English camp than befell the main force intrusted with the capture of +Nankin. Contrary winds delayed the progress of the English fleet, and it +was not until the fifth of August, more than a fortnight after the battle +at Chinkiangfoo, that it appeared off Nankin, the second city in +reputation and historical importance of the empire, with one million +inhabitants and a garrison of 15,000 men, of whom two-thirds were Manchus. +The walls were twenty miles in length, and hindered, more than they +promoted, an efficient defense; and the difficulties of the surrounding +country, covered with the debris of the buildings which constituted the +larger cities of Nankin at an earlier period of history, helped the +assailing party more than they did the defenders. Sir Hugh Gough drew up +an admirable plan for capturing this vast and not defenseless city with +his force of 5,000 men, and there is no reason to doubt that he would have +been completely successful; but by this the backbone of the Chinese +government had been broken, and even the proud and obstinate Taoukwang was +compelled to admit that it was imperative to come to terms with the +English, and to make some concessions in order to get rid of them. + +The minister Elepoo, who once enjoyed the closest intimacy with Taoukwang, +and who was the leader of the Peace party, which desired the cessation of +an unequal struggle, had begun informal negotiations several months before +they proved successful at Nankin. He omitted no opportunity of learning +the views of the English officers, and what was the minimum of concession +on which a stable peace could be based. He had endeavored also to give +something of a generous character to the struggle, and he had more than +once proved himself a courteous as well as a gallant foe. After the +capture of Chapoo and Woosung he sent back several officers and men who +had at different times been taken prisoners by the Chinese, and he +expressed at the same time the desire that the war should end. Sir Henry +Pottinger's reply to this letter was to inquire if he was empowered by the +emperor to negotiate. If he had received this authority the English +plenipotentiary would be very happy to discuss any matter with him, but if +not the operations of war must proceed. At that moment Elepoo had not the +requisite authority to negotiate, and the war went on until the victorious +English troops were beneath the walls of Nankin. At the same time as these +pourparlers were held with Elepoo at Woosung, Sir Henry Pottinger issued a +proclamation to the Chinese stating what the British Government required +to be done. In this document the equality of all nations as members of the +same human family was pointed out, and the right to hold friendly +intercourse insisted on as a matter of duty and common obligation. Sir +Henry said that "England, coming from the utmost west, has held +intercourse with China in this utmost east for more than two centuries +past, and during this time the English have suffered ill-treatment from +the Chinese officials, who, regarding themselves as powerful and us as +weak, have thus dared to commit injustice." Then followed a list of the +many high-handed acts of Commissioner Lin and his successors. The Chinese, +plainly speaking, had sought to maintain their exclusiveness and to live +outside the comity of nations, and they had not the power to attain their +wish. Therefore they were compelled to listen to and to accept the terms +of the English plenipotentiary, which were as follows:--The emperor was +first of all to appoint a high officer with full powers to negotiate and +conclude arrangements on his own responsibility, when hostilities would be +suspended. The three principal points on which these negotiations were to +be based were compensation for losses and expenses, a friendly and +becoming intercourse on terms of equality between officers of the two +countries, and the cession of insular territory for commerce and for the +residence of merchants, and as a security and guarantee against the future +renewal of offensive acts. The first step toward the acceptance of these +terms was taken when an imperial commission was formed of three members, +Keying, Elepoo, and Niu Kien, viceroy of the Two Kiang; and to the last +named, as governor of the provinces most affected, fell the task of +writing the first diplomatic communication of a satisfactory character +from the Chinese government to the English plenipotentiary. This letter +was important for more reasons than its being of a conciliatory nature. It +held out to a certain extent a hand of friendship, and it also sought to +assign an origin to the conflict, and Niu Kien could find nothing more +handy or convenient than opium, which thus came to give its name to the +whole war. With regard to the Chinese reverses, Niu Kien, while admitting +them, explained that "as the central nation had enjoyed peace for a long +time the Chinese were not prepared for attacking and fighting, which had +led to this accumulation of insult and disgrace." In a later communication +Niu Kien admitted that "the English at Canton had been exposed to insults +and extortions for a series of years, and that steps should be taken to +insure in future that the people of your honorable nation might carry on +their commerce to advantage, and not receive injury thereby." These +documents showed that the Chinese were at last willing to abandon the old +and impossible principle of superiority over other nations, for which they +had so long contended; and with the withdrawal of this pretension +negotiations for the conclusion of a stable peace became at once possible +and of hopeful augury. + +The first step of the Chinese commissioners was to draw up a memorial for +presentation to the emperor, asking his sanction of the arrangement they +suggested. In this document they covered the whole ground of the dispute, +and stated in clear and unmistakable language what the English demanded, +and they did not shrink from recommending compliance with their terms. +Keying and his colleagues put the only two alternatives with great +cogency. Which will be the heavier calamity, they said, to pay the English +the sum of money they demand (21,000,000 dollars, made up as follows: Six +million for the destroyed opium, 3,000,000 for the debts of the Hong +merchants, and 12,000,000 for the expenses of the war), or that they +should continue those military operations which seemed irresistible, and +from which China had suffered so grievously? Even if the latter +alternative were faced and the war continued, the evil day would only be +put off. The army expenses would be very great, the indemnity would be +increased in amount, and after all there would be only "the name of +fighting without the hope of victory." Similar arguments were used with +regard to the cession of Hongkong, and the right of trading at five of the +principal ports. The English no doubt demanded more than they ought, but +what was the use of arguing with them, as they were masters of the +situation? Moreover, some solace might be gathered in the midst of +affliction from the fact that the English were willing to pay certain +duties on their commerce which would in the end repay the war indemnity, +and contribute to "the expenditure of the imperial family." With regard to +the question of ceremonial intercourse on a footing of equality, they +declared that it might be "unreservedly granted." The reply of Taoukwang +to this memorial was given in an edict of considerable length, and he +therein assented to all the views and suggestions of the commissioners, +while he imposed on Keying alone the responsibility of making all the +arrangements for paying the large indemnity. All the preliminaries for +signing a treaty of peace had therefore been arranged before the English +forces reached Nankin, and as the Chinese commissioners were sincere in +their desire for peace, and as the emperor had sanctioned all the +necessary arrangements, there was no reason to apprehend any delay, and +much less a breakdown of the negotiations. + +It was arranged that the treaty should be signed on board a British man- +of-war, and the Chinese commissioners were invited to pay a visit for the +purpose to the "Cornwallis," the flagship of the admiral. The event came +off on the 20th of August, 1842, and the scene was sufficiently +interesting, if not imposing. The long line of English warships and +transports, drawn up opposite to and within short range of the lofty walls +of Nankin; the land forces so disposed on the raised causeways on shore as +to give them every facility of approach to the city gates, while leaving +it doubtful to the last which gate would be the real object of attack; and +then the six small Chinese boats, gayly decorated with flags, bearing the +imperial commissioners and their attendants, to sign for the first time in +history a treaty of defeat with a foreign power. The commissioners were +dressed in their plainest clothes, as they explained, because imperial +commissioners are supposed to proceed in haste about their business, and +have no time to waste on their persons, but there is reason to believe +that they thought such clothing best consorted with the inauspicious +character for China of the occasion. The ceremony passed off without a +hitch, and four days later Sir Henry Pottinger paid the Chinese officers a +return visit, when he was received by them in a temple outside the city +walls. A third and more formal reception was held on the 26th of August in +the College Hall, in the center of Nankin, when Sir Henry Pottinger, +twenty officers, and an escort of native cavalry rode through the streets +of one of the most famous cities of China. It was noted at the time that +on this date an event of great importance had happened in each of the +three previous years. On the 26th of August, 1839, Lin had expelled the +English from Macao, in 1840 the British fleet anchored off the Peiho, and +in 1841 Amoy was captured. Three days after this reception the treaty +itself was signed on board the "Cornwallis," when Keying and his +colleagues again attended for the purpose. The act of signing was +celebrated by a royal salute of twenty-one guns, and the hoisting of the +standards of England and China at the masthead of the man-of-war. The +Emperor Taoukwang ratified the treaty with commendable dispatch, and the +only incident to mar the cordiality of the last scene in this part of the +story of Anglo-Chinese relations was the barbarous and inexcusable injury +inflicted by a party of English officers and soldiers on the famous +Porcelain Tower, which was one of the finest specimens of Chinese art, +having been built 400 years before at great expense and the labor of +twenty years. + +The ports in addition to Canton to be opened to trade were Shanghai, +Ningpo, Amoy and Foochow, but these were not to be opened until a tariff +had been drawn up and consular officers appointed. As the installments of +the indemnity were paid the troops and fleet were withdrawn, but a +garrison was left for some time in Chusan and Kulangsu, the island off +Amoy. The attack and massacre of some shipwrecked crews on the coast of +Formosa gave the Chinese government an occasion of showing how marked a +change had come over its policy. An investigation was at once ordered, the +guilty officials were punished, and the emperor declared, "We will not +allow that, because the representation came from outside foreigners, it +should be carelessly cast aside without investigation. Our own subjects +and foreigners, ministers and people, should all alike understand that it +is our high desire to act with even-handed and perfect justice." Sir Henry +Pottinger's task was only half performed until he had drawn up the tariff +and installed consular officers in the new treaty ports. Elepoo was +appointed to represent China in the tariff negotiations, and Canton was +selected as the most convenient place for discussing the matter. Within +two months of the resumption of negotiations they seemed on the point of a +satisfactory termination, when the death of Elepoo, the most sincere and +straightforward of all the Chinese officials, caused a delay in the +matter. Elepoo was a member of the Manchu imperial family, being descended +from one of the brothers of Yung Ching, who had been banished by that +ruler and reinstated by Keen Lung. That the Pekin government did not wish +to make his death an excuse for backing out of the arrangement was shown +by the prompt appointment of Keying as his successor. At this stage of the +question the opium difficulty again rose up as of the first importance in +reference to the settlement of the commercial tariff. The main point was +whether opium was to appear in the tariff at all or to be relegated to the +category of contraband articles. Sir Henry Pottinger disclaimed all +sympathy with the traffic, and was quite willing that it should be +declared illicit; but at the same time he stated that the responsibility +of putting it down must rest with the Chinese themselves. The Chinese were +not willing to accept this responsibility, and said that "if the +supervision of the English representatives was not perfect, there will be +less or more of smuggling." Keying paid Sir Henry Pottinger a ceremonious +visit at Hongkong on the 2eth of June, 1843, and within one month of that +day the commercial treaty was signed. Sir Henry issued a public +proclamation calling upon British subjects to faithfully conform with its +provisions, and stating that he would adopt the most stringent and decided +measures against any offending persons. On his side Keying published a +notification that "trade at the five treaty ports was open to the men from +afar." The only weak point in the commercial treaty was that it contained +no reference to opium. Sir Henry Pottinger failed to obtain the assent of +the Chinese government to its legalization, and he refused to undertake +the responsibility of a preventive service in China, but at the same time +he publicly stated that the "traffic in opium was illegal and contraband +by the laws and imperial edicts of China." Those who looked further ahead +realized that the treaty of Nankin, by leaving unsettled the main point in +the controversy and the primary cause of difference, could not be +considered a final solution of the problem of foreign intercourse with +China. The opium question remained over to again disturb the harmony of +our relations. + +As has been said before, it would be taking a narrow view of the question +to affirm that opium was the principal object at stake during this war. +The real point was whether the Chinese government could be allowed the +possession of rights which were unrecognized in the law of nations and +which rendered the continuance of intercourse with foreigners an +impossibility. What China sought to retain was never claimed by any other +nation, and could only have been established by extraordinary military +power. When people talk, therefore, of the injustice of this war as +another instance of the triumph of might over right, they should recollect +that China in the first place was wrong in claiming an impossible position +in the family of nations. We cannot doubt that if the acts of Commissioner +Lin had been condoned the lives of all Europeans would have been at the +mercy of a system which recognizes no gradation in crime, which affords +many facilities for the manufacture of false evidence, and which inflicts +punishment altogether in excess of the fault. It is gratifying to find +that many unprejudiced persons declared at the time that the war which +resulted in the Nankin treaty was a just one, and so eminent an authority +on international law as John Quincy Adams drew up an elaborate treatise to +show that "Britain had the righteous cause against China." We may leave +the scene of contest and turn from the record of an unequal war with the +reflection that the results of the struggle were to be good. However +inadequately the work of far-seeing statesmanship may have been performed +in 1842, enough was done to make present friendship possible and a better +understanding between two great governing peoples a matter of hope and not +desponding expectancy. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII + +TAOUKWANG AND HIS SUCCESSOR + + +The progress and temporary settlement of the foreign question so +completely overshadows every other event during Taoukwang's reign that it +is difficult to extract anything of interest from the records of the +government of the country, although the difficult and multifarious task of +ruling three hundred millions of people had to be performed. More than one +fact went to show that the bonds of constituted authority were loosened in +China, and that men paid only a qualified respect to the imperial edict. +Bands of robbers prowled about the country, and even the capital was not +free from their presence. While one band made its headquarters within the +imperial city, another established itself in a fortified position in the +central provinces of China, whence it dominated a vast region. The police +were helpless, and such military forces as existed were unable to make any +serious attempt to crush an opponent who was stronger than themselves. The +foreign war had led to the recruiting of a large number of braves, and the +peace to their sudden disbandment, so that the country was covered with a +large number of desperate and penniless men, who were not particular as to +what they did for a livelihood. It is not surprising that the secret +societies began to look up again with so promising a field to work in, and +a new association, known as the Green Water Lily, became extremely +formidable among the truculent braves of Hoonan. But none of these +troubles assumed the extreme form of danger in open rebellion, and there +was still wanting the man to weld all these hostile and dangerous elements +into a national party of insurgents against Manchu authority, and so it +remained until Taoukwang had given up his throne to his successor. + +In Yunnan there occurred, about the year 1846, the first simmerings of +disaffection among the Mohammedans, which many years later developed into +the Panthay Rebellion, but on that occasion the vigor of the viceroy +nipped the danger in the bud. In Central Asia there was a revival of +activity on the part of the Khoja exiles, who fancied that the +discomfiture of the Chinese by the English and the internal disorders, of +which rumor had no doubt carried an exaggerated account into Turkestan, +would entail a very much diminished authority in Kashgar. As it happened, +the Chinese authority in that region had been consolidated and extended by +the energy and ability of a Mohammedan official named Zuhuruddin. He had +risen to power by the thoroughness with which he had carried out the +severe repressive measures sanctioned after the abortive invasion of +Jehangir, and during fifteen years he increased the revenue and trade of +the great province intrusted to his care. His loyalty to the Chinese +government seems to have been unimpeachable, and the only point he seems +to have erred in was an overconfident belief in the strength of his +position. He based this opinion chiefly on the fact of his having +constructed strong new forts, or yangyshahr, outside the principal towns. +But a new element of danger had in the meantime been introduced into the +situation in Kashgar by the appointment of Khokandian consuls, who were +empowered to raise custom dues on all Mohammedan goods. These officials +became the center of intrigue against the Chinese authorities, and +whenever the Khan of Khokand determined to take up the cause of the Khojas +he found the ground prepared for him by these emissaries. + +In 1842 Mahomed Ali, Khan of Khokand, a chief of considerable ability and +character, died, and his authority passed, after some confusion, to his +kinsman, Khudayar, who was a man of little capacity and indisposed to +meddle with the affairs of his neighbors. But the Khokandian chiefs were +loth to forego the turbulent adventures to which they were addicted for +the personal feelings of their nominal head, and they thought that a +descent upon Kashgar offered the best chance of glory and booty. Therefore +they went to the seven sons of Jehangir and, inciting them by the memory +of their father's death as well as the hope of a profitable adventure, to +make another attempt to drive the Chinese out of Central Asia, succeeded +in inducing them to unfurl once more the standard of the Khojas. The seven +Khojas--Haft Khojagan--issued their proclamation in the winter of 1845-46, +rallied all their adherents to their side, and made allies of the Kirghiz +tribes. + +When the Mohammedan forces left the hills they advanced with extreme +rapidity on Kashgar, to which they laid siege. After a siege of a +fortnight they obtained possession of the town through the treachery of +some of the inhabitants; but the citadel or yangyshahr continued to hold +out, and their excesses in the town so alienated the sympathy of the +Kashgarians, that no popular rising took place, and the Chinese were able +to collect all their garrisons to expel the invaders. The Khojas were +defeated in a battle at Kok Robat, near Yarkand, and driven out of the +country. The affair of the seven Khojas, which at one time threatened the +Chinese with the gravest danger, thus ended in a collapse, and it is +remarkable as being the only invasion in which the Mohammedan subjects of +China did not fraternize with her enemies. Notwithstanding the magnitude +of his services as an administrator, Zuhuruddin was disgraced and +dismissed from his post for what seemed his culpable apathy at the +beginning of the campaign. + +Another indication of the weakness of the Chinese executive was furnished +in the piratic confederacy which established itself at the entrance of the +Canton River, and defied all the efforts of the mandarins until they +enlisted in their behalf the powerful co-operation of the English navy. +The Bogue had never been completely free from those lawless persons who +are willing to commit any outrage if it holds out a certain prospect of +gain with a minimum amount of danger, and the peace had thrown many +desperate men out of employment who thought they could find in piracy a +mode of showing their patriotism as well as of profiting themselves. These +turbulent and dangerous individuals gathered round a leader named +Shapuntsai, and in the year of which we are speaking, 1849, they +controlled a large fleet and a well-equipped force, which levied blackmail +from Fochow to the Gulf of Tonquin, and attacked every trading ship, +European or Chinese, which did not appear capable of defending itself. If +they had confined their attacks to their own countrymen it is impossible +to say how long they might have gone on in impunity, for the empire +possessed no naval power; but, unfortunately for them, and fortunately for +China, they seized some English vessels and murdered some English +subjects. One man-of-war under Captain Hay was employed in operations +against them, and in the course of six months fifty-seven piratical +vessels were destroyed, and a thousand of their crews either slain or +taken prisoners. Captain Hay, on being joined by another man-of-war, had +the satisfaction of destroying the remaining junks and the depots in the +Canton River, whereupon he sailed to attack the headquarters of Shapuntsai +in the Gulf of Tonquin. After some search the piratical fleet was +discovered off an island which still bears the name of the Pirates' Hold, +and after a protracted engagement it was annihilated. Sixty junks were +destroyed, and Shapuntsai was compelled to escape to Cochin China, where +it is believed that he was executed by order of the king. The dispersion +of this powerful confederacy was a timely service to the Chinese, who were +informed that the English government would be at all times happy to afford +similar aid at their request. Even at this comparatively early stage of +the intercourse it was apparent that the long-despised foreigners would be +able to render valuable service of a practical kind to the Pekin +executive, and that if the Manchus wished to assert their power more +effectually over their Chinese subjects they would be compelled to have +recourse to European weapons and military and scientific knowledge. The +suppression of the piratical confederacy of the Bogue was the first +occasion of that employment of European force, which was carried to a much +more advanced stage during the Taeping rebellion, and of which we have +certainly not seen the last development. + +One of the last acts of Taoukwang's reign showed to what a depth of mental +hesitation and misery he had sunk. It seems that the Chinese New Year's +day--February 12, 1850--was to be marked by an eclipse of the sun, which +was considered very inauspicious, and as the emperor was especially +susceptible to superstitious influences, he sought to get out of the +difficulty, and to avert any evil consequences, by decreeing that the new +year should begin on the previous day. But all-powerful as a Chinese +emperor is, there are some things he cannot do, and the good sense of the +Chinese revolted against this attempt to alter the course of nature. The +imperial decree was completely disregarded, and received with expressions +of derision, and in several towns the placards were torn down and defaced. +Notwithstanding the eclipse, the Chinese year began at its appointed time. +Some excuse might be made for Taoukwang on the ground of ill-health, for +he was then suffering from the illness which carried him off a few weeks +later. His health had long been precarious, the troubles of his reign had +prematurely aged him, and he had experienced a rude shock from the death, +at the end of 1849, of his adopted mother, toward whom he seems to have +preserved the most affectionate feelings. From the first day of his +illness its gravity seems to have been appreciated, and an unfavorable +issue expected. On February 25, a grand council was held in the emperor's +bed-chamber, and the emperor wrote in his bed an edict proclaiming his +fourth son his heir and chosen successor. Taoukwang survived this +important act only a very short time, but the exact date of his death is +uncertain. There is some reason for thinking that his end was hastened by +the outbreak of a fire within the Imperial City, which threatened it with +destruction. The event was duly notified to the Chinese people in a +proclamation by his successor, in which he dilated on the virtues of his +predecessor, and expressed the stereotyped wish that he could have lived a +hundred years. + +Taoukwang was in his sixty-ninth year, having been born on September 12, +1781, and the thirty years over which his reign had nearly extended were +among the most eventful, and in some respects the most unfortunate, in the +annals of his country. When he was a young man, the power of his +grandfather, Keen Lung, was at its pinnacle, but the misfortunes of his +father's reign had prepared him for the greater misfortunes of his own, +and the school of adversity in which he had passed the greater portion of +his life had imbued him only with the disposition to bear calamity, and +not the vigor to grapple with it. Yet Taoukwang was not without many good +points, and he seems to have realized the extent of the national trouble, +and to have felt acutely his inability to retrieve what had been lost. He +was also averse to all unnecessary display, and his expenditure on the +court and himself was less than that of any of his predecessors or +successors. He never wasted the public money on his own person, and that +was a great matter. His habits were simple and manly. + +Although Taoukwang's reign had been marked by unqualified misfortune, he +seems to have derived consolation from the belief that the worst was over, +and that as his authority had recovered from such rude shocks it was not +likely to experience anything worse. He had managed to extricate himself +from a foreign war, which was attended with an actual invasion of a most +alarming character, without any diminution of his authority. The symptoms +of internal rebellion which had revealed themselves in more than one +quarter of the empire had not attained any formidable dimensions, and +seemed likely to pass away without endangering the Chinese constitution. +Taoukwang may have hoped that while he had suffered much he had saved his +family and dynasty from more serious calamities, and that on him alone had +fallen the resentment of an offended Heaven. The experience of the next +fifteen years was to show how inaccurately he had measured the situation, +and how far the troubles of the fifteen years following his death were to +exceed those of his reign; for just as he had inherited from his father, +Kiaking, a legacy of trouble, so did he pass on to his son an inheritance +of misfortune and difficulty, rendered all the more onerous by the +pretension of supreme power without the means to support it. + +The accession of Prince Yihchoo--who took the name of Hienfung, which +means "great abundance," or "complete prosperity"--to the throne +threatened for a moment to be disturbed by the ambition of his uncle, Hwuy +Wang, who, it will be remembered, had attempted to seize the throne from +his brother Taoukwang. This prince had lived in retirement during the last +years of his brother's reign, and the circumstances which emboldened him +to again put forward his pretensions will not be known until the state +history of the Manchu dynasty is published. His attempt signally failed, +but Hienfung spared his life, while he punished the ministers, Keying and +Muchangah, for their supposed apathy, or secret sympathy with the aspirant +to the imperial office, by dismissing them from their posts. When Hienfung +became emperor he was less than twenty years of age, and one of his first +acts was to confer the title of Prince on his four younger brothers, and +to associate them in the administration with himself. This was a new +departure in the Manchu policy, as all the previous emperors had +systematically kept their brothers in the background. Hienfung's brothers +became known in the order of their ages as Princes Kung, Shun, Chun, and +Fu, and as Hienfung was the fourth son of Taoukwang, they were also +distinguished numerically as the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth +princes. Although Hienfung became emperor at a time of great national +distress, he was so far fortunate that an abundant harvest, in the year +1850, tended to mitigate it, and by having recourse to the common Chinese +practice of "voluntary contributions," a sufficiently large sum was raised +to remove the worst features of the prevailing scarcity and suffering. But +these temporary and local measures could not improve a situation that was +radically bad, or allay a volume of popular discontent that was rapidly +developing into unconcealed rebellion. + +An imperial proclamation was drawn up by the Hanlin College in which +Hienfung took upon himself the whole blame of the national misfortunes, +but the crisis had got far beyond a remedy of words. The corruption of the +public service had gradually alienated the sympathies of the people. +Justice and probity had for a time been banished from the civil service of +China. The example of the few men of honor and capacity served but to +bring into more prominent relief the faults of the whole class. Justice +was nowhere to be found; the verdict was sold to the highest bidder. The +guilty, if well provided in worldly goods, escaped scot-free; the poor +suffered for their own frailties as well as the crimes of wealthier +offenders. There was seen the far from uncommon case of individuals +sentenced to death obtaining substitutes for the capital punishment. +Offices were sold to men who had never passed an examination, and who were +wholly illiterate, and the sole value of office was as the means of +extortion. The nation was heavily taxed, but the taxes to the state were +only the smaller part of the sums wrung from the people of the Middle +Kingdom. How was honor, or a sense of duty, to be expected from men who +knew that their term of office must be short, and who had to receive their +purchase money and the anticipated profit before their post was sold again +to some fresh and possibly higher bidder? The officials waxed rich on ill- +gotten wealth, and a few individuals accumulated enormous fortunes, while +the government sank lower and lower in the estimation of the people. It +lost also in efficiency and striking power. A corrupt and effeminate body +of officers and administrators can serve but as poor defenders for an +embarrassed prince and an assailed government against even enemies who are +in themselves insignificant and not free from the vices of a corrupt +society and a decaying age, and it was only on such that Hienfung had in +the first place to lean against his opponents. Even his own Manchus, the +warlike Tartars, who, despite the smallness of their numbers, had +conquered the whole of China, had lost their primitive virtue and warlike +efficiency in the southern climes which they had made their home. To them +the opulent cities of the Chinese had proved as fatal as Capua to the army +of the Carthaginian, and, as the self-immolations of Chapoo and +Chinkiangfoo proved to have no successors, they showed themselves unworthy +of the empire won by their ancestors. For the first time since the revolt +of Wou Sankwei, the Manchus were brought face to face with a danger +threatening their right of conquest; yet on the eve of the Taeping +Rebellion all Hienfung could think of to oppose his foes with was fine +words as to his shortcomings and lavish promises of amendment. + +Among the secret societies the Triads were the first to give a political +and dynastic significance to their propaganda. The opening sentence of the +oath of membership read as follows: "We combine everywhere to recall the +Ming and exterminate the barbarians, cut off the Tsing and await the right +prince." But as there were none of the Mings left, and as their name had +lost whatever hold it may have possessed on the minds of the Chinese +people, this proclaimed object tended rather to deter than to invite +recruits to the society. Yet if any secret society shared in the +origination of the Taeping Rebellion that credit belongs to the Triads, +whose anti-Manchu literature enjoyed a wide circulation through Southern +China, and they may have had a large share in drafting the programme that +the Taeping leader, Tien Wang, attempted to carry out. + +The individual on whom that exalted title was subsequently bestowed had a +very common origin, and sprang from an inferior race. Hung-tsiuen, such +was his own name, was the son of a small farmer near Canton, and he was a +_hakka_, a despised race of tramps who bear some resemblance to our +gypsies. He was born in the year 1813, and he seems to have passed all his +examinations with special credit; but the prejudice on account of his +birth prevented his obtaining any employment in the civil service of his +country. He was therefore a disappointed aspirant to office, and at such a +period it was not surprising that he should have become an enemy of the +constituted authorities and the government. As he could not be the servant +of the state he set himself the ambitious task of being its master, and +with this object in view he resorted to religious practices in order to +acquire a popular reputation, and a following among the masses. He took up +his residence in a Buddhist monastery; and the ascetic deprivations, the +loud prayers and invocations, the supernatural counsels and meetings, were +the course of training which every religious devotee adopts as the proper +novitiate for those honors based on the superstitious reverence of mankind +which are sometimes no inadequate substitute for temporal power and +influence, even when they fail to pave the way to their attainment. He +left his place of seclusion to place himself at the head of the largest +party of rebels, who had made their headquarters in the remote province of +Kwangsi, and he there proclaimed himself as Tien Wang, which means the +Heavenly Prince, and as an aspirant to the imperial dignity. Gradually the +rebels acquired possession of the whole of the territory south of the +Canton River, and when they captured the strong and important military +station at Nanning the emperor sent three commissioners, one of them being +his principal minister Saichangah, to bring them to reason, but the result +was not encouraging, and although the Taepings were repulsed in their +attempt on Kweiling, they remained masters of the open part of the +province. One of the Chinese officers had the courage to write and tell +the emperor that "the outlaws were neither exterminated nor made +prisoners." Notwithstanding the enormous expenditure on the war and the +collection of a large body of troops the imperial forces made no real +progress in crushing the rebels. Fear or inexperience prevented them from +coming at once to close quarters with the Taepings, when their superior +numbers must have decided the struggle in their favor and nipped a most +formidable rebellion in the bud. That some of Hienfung's officers realized +the position can be gathered from the following letter, written at this +period by a Chinese mandarin: "The whole country swarms with rebels. Our +funds are nearly at an end, and our troops few; our officers disagree, and +the power is not concentrated. The commander of the forces wants to +extinguish a burning wagonload of fagots with a cupful of water. I fear we +shall hereafter have some serious affair--that the great body will rise +against us, and our own people leave us." The military operations in +Kwangsi languished during two years, although the tide of war declared +itself, on the whole, against the imperialists; but the rebels themselves +were exposed to this danger--that they were exclusively dependent on the +resources of the province, and that these being exhausted, they were in +danger of being compelled to retire into Tonquin. It was at this +exceedingly critical moment that Tien Wang showed himself an able leader +of men by coming to the momentous decision to march out of Kwangsi, and +invade the vast and yet untouched provinces of Central China. If the step +was more the pressure of dire need than the inspiration of genius, it none +the less forms the real turning-point in the rebellion. + +Tien Wang announced his decision by issuing a proclamation, in the course +of which he declared that he had received "the Divine commission to +exterminate the Manchus, and to possess the empire as its true sovereign"; +and, as it was also at this time that his followers became commonly known +as Taepings, it may be noted that the origin of this name is somewhat +obscure. According to the most plausible explanation it is derived from +the small town of that name, situated in the southwest corner of the +province of Kwangsi, where the rebel movement seems to have commenced. +Another derivation gives it as the style of the dynasty which Tien Wang +hoped to found, and its meaning as "Universal peace." Having called in all +his outlying detachments and proclaimed his five principal lieutenants by +titles which have been rendered as the northern, southern, eastern, +western and assistant kings, Tien Wang began his northern march in April, +1852. At the town of Yungan, on the eastern borders of the province of +Kwangsi, where he seems to have hesitated between an attack on Canton and +the invasion of Hoonan, an event occurred which threatened to break up his +force. The Triad chiefs, who had allied themselves with Tien Wang, were +superior in knowledge and station to the immediate followers of the +Taeping leader, and they took offense at the arrogance of his lieutenants +after they had been elevated to the rank of kings. These officers, who +possessed no claim to the dignity they had received, assumed the yellow +dress and insignia of Chinese royalty, and looked down on all their +comrades, especially the Triad organizers, who thought themselves the true +originators of the rebellion. Irritated by this treatment, the Triads took +their sudden and secret departure from the Taeping camp, and hastened to +make their peace with the imperialists. Of these Triads one chief, named +Chang Kwoliang, received an important command, and played a considerable +part in the later stages of the struggle. + +The defection of the Triads put an end to the idea of attacking Canton, +and the Taepings marched to attack Kweiling, where the Imperial +Commissioners still remained. Tien Wang's assault was repulsed with some +loss, and, afraid of discouraging his troops by any further attempt to +seize so strong a place, he marched into Hoonan. Had the imperial +commanders, who had shown no inconsiderable capacity in defense, exhibited +as much energy in offensive measures, they might then and there have +annihilated the power of the Taepings. Had they pursued the Taeping army +they might have harassed its rear, delayed its progress, and eventually +brought it to a decisive engagement at the most favorable moment. But the +Imperial Commissioners did nothing, being apparently well satisfied with +having rid themselves of such troublesome neighbors. The advance of the +Taepings across the vast province of Hoonan was almost unopposed. The +towns were unprepared to resist an assailant, and it was not until Tien +Wang reached the provincial capital, Changsha, that he encountered any +resistance worthy of the name. Some vigorous preparations had been made +here to resist the rebels. Not merely was there a garrison in the place, +but it so happened that Tseng Kwofan, a man of considerable ability and of +an influential family, was residing near the town. Tseng had held several +offices in the public service, and, as a member of the Hanlin, enjoyed a +high position and reputation; but he happened to be at his own home in +retirement in consequence of the death of a near relation when tidings of +the approaching Taepings reached him, and he at once made himself +responsible for the defense of Changsha. He threw himself with all the +forces his influence or resources enabled him to collect into that town, +and at the same time he ordered all the militia of the province to collect +and harass the enemy. He called upon all those who had the means to show +their duty to the state and sovereign by raising recruits or by promising +rewards to those volunteers who would serve in the army against the +rebels. Had the example of Tseng Kwofan been generally followed, it is not +too much to say that the Taepings would never have got to Nankin. When the +rebels reached Changsha, therefore, they found the gates closed, the walls +manned, and the town victualed for a siege. They attempted to starve the +place into surrender, and to frighten the garrison into yielding by +threats of extermination; but when these efforts failed they delivered +three separate assaults, all of which were repulsed. After a siege of +eighty days, and having suffered very considerable losses, the Taepings +abandoned the attack, and on the 1st of December resumed their march +northward, which, if information could have been rapidly transmitted, +would have soon resulted in their overthrow. On breaking up from before +Changsha they succeeded in seizing a sufficient number of junks and boats +to cross the great inland lake of Tungting, and on reaching the +Yangtsekiang at Yochow they found that the imperial garrison had fled at +the mere mention of their approach. The capture of Yochow was important, +because the Taepings acquired there an important arsenal of much-needed +weapons and a large supply of gunpowder, which was said to have been the +property of Wou Sankwei. Thus, well equipped and supplying their other +deficiencies by celerity of movement, they attacked the important city of +Hankow, which surrendered without a blow. The scarcely less important town +of Wouchang, on the southern and opposite bank of the river, was then +attacked, and carried after a siege of a fortnight. The third town of +Hanyang, which forms, with the others, the most important industrial and +commercial hive in Central China, also surrendered without any attempt at +resistance, and this striking success at once restored the sinking courage +of the Taepings, and made the danger from them to the dynasty again wear +an aspect of the most pressing importance. + +It would be difficult to exaggerate the effect of this success on the +spirits of the Taepings, who had been seriously discouraged before they +achieved this gratifying result. The capture of these towns removed all +their most serious causes of doubt, and enabled them to repay themselves +for the losses and hardships they had undergone, while it also showed that +the enterprise they had in hand was not likely to prove unprofitable. +After one month's rest at Hankow, and having been joined by many thousands +of new followers, the Taepings resolved to pursue their onward course. To +tell the truth, they were still apprehensive of pursuit from Tseng Kwofan, +who had been joined by the Triad loader, Chang Kwoliang; but there was no +ground for the fear, as these officials considered themselves tied to +their own province, and unfortunately the report of the success of the +imperialists in Hoonan blinded people to the danger in the Yangtse Valley +from the Taepings. The Taepings resumed active operations with the capture +of Kiukiang and Ganking, and in March, 1853, they sat down before Nankin. +The siege continued for a fortnight, but notwithstanding that there was a +large Manchu force in the Tartar city, which might easily have been +defended against an enemy without artillery, the resistance offered was +singularly and unexpectedly faint-hearted. The Taepings succeeded in +blowing in one of the gates, the townspeople fraternized with the +assailants, and the very Manchus who had defied Sir Hugh Gough in 1842 +surrendered their lives and their honor to a force which was nothing more +than an armed rabble. The Tartar colony at Nankin, numbering 2,000 +families, had evidently lost the courage and discipline which could alone +enable them to maintain their position in China. Instead of dying at their +posts they threw themselves on the mercy of the Taeping leader, imploring +him for pity and for their lives when the gate was blown in by Tien Wang's +soldiery. Their cowardice helped them not; of 20,000 Manchus not one +hundred escaped. The tale rests on undoubted evidence. A Taeping who took +part in the massacre said, "We killed them all, to the infant in arms; we +left not a root to sprout from, and the bodies of the slain we cast into +the Yangtse." + +The acquisition of Nankin at once made the Taepings a formidable rival to +the Manchus, and Tien Wang a contestant with Hienfung for imperial honors. +The possession of the second city in the empire gave them the complete +control of the navigation of the Yangtsekiang, and thus enabled them to +cut off communications between the north and the south of China. To attain +this object in a still more perfect manner they occupied Chinkiangfoo at +the entrance to the Grand Canal. They also seized Yangchow on the northern +bank of the river immediately opposite the place where Sir Hugh Gough had +gained his decisive victory in 1842. Such was the terror of the Taepings +that the imperial garrisons did not attempt the least resistance, and town +after town was evacuated at their approach. Tien Wang, encouraged by his +success, transferred his headquarters from Hankow to Nankin, and +proclaimed the old Ming city his capital. By rapidity and an extraordinary +combination of fortunate circumstances, the Taepings had advanced from the +remote province of Kwangsi into the heart of the empire, but it was clear +that unless they could follow up their success by some blow to the central +government they would lose all they had gained as soon as the Manchus +recovered their confidence. At a council of war at Nankin it was decided +to send an army against Pekin as soon as Nankin had been placed in a +proper state to undergo a protracted siege. Provisions were collected to +stand a siege for six or seven years, the walls were repaired and fresh +batteries erected. By the end of May, 1853, these preparations were +completed, and as the Taeping army had then been raised to a total of +80,000 men, it was decided that a large part of it could be spared for +operations north of the Yangtsekiang. That army was increased to a very +large total by volunteers who thought an expedition to humble the Manchus +at the capital promised much glory and spoil. The progress of this +northern army very closely resembled that of the Taepings from Kwangsi to +Nankin. They overran the open country, and none of the imperial troops +ventured to oppose them, but when any Manchu officer showed valor in +defending a walled city they were fain to admit their inadequate +engineering skill and military capacity. They attacked Kaifong, the +capital of Honan, but were repulsed, and pursuing their former tactics +continued their march to Pekin. Having crossed the Hoangho they attacked +Hwaiking, where, after being delayed two months, they met with as signal a +repulse as at Kaifong. Notwithstanding this further reverse, the Taepings +pressed on, and defeating a Manchu force in the Lin Limming Pass, they +entered the metropolitan province of Pechihli in September, 1853. The +object of their march was plain. Not only did they mystify the emperor's +generals, but they passed through an untouched country where supplies were +abundant, and they thus succeeded in coming within striking distance of +Pekin in almost as fresh a state as when they left Nankin. Such was the +effect produced by their capture of the Limming Pass that none of the +towns in the southern part of the province attempted any resistance, and +they reached Tsing, only twenty miles south of Tientsin, and less than a +hundred from Pekin, before the end of October. This place marked the +northern limit of Taeping progress, and a reflex wave of Manchu energy +bore back the rebels to the Yangtse. + +The forcing of the Limming Pass carried confusion and terror into the +imperial palace and capital. The fate of the dynasty seemed to tremble in +the balance at the hands of a ruthless and determined enemy. There +happened to be very few troops in Pekin at the time, and levies had to be +hastily summoned from Mongolia. If the Taepings had only shown the same +enterprise and rapidity of movement that they had exhibited up to this +point, there is no saying that the central government would not have been +subverted and the Manchu family extinguished as completely as the Mings. +But fortunately for Hienfung, an unusual apathy fell upon the Taepings, +who remained halted at Tsing until the Mongol levies had arrived, under +their great chief, Sankolinsin. They seem to have been quite exhausted by +their efforts, and after one reverse in the open field they retired to +their fortified camp at Tsinghai, and sent messengers to Tien Wang for +succor. In this camp they were closely beleaguered by Sankolinsin from +October, 1853, to March, 1854, when their provisions being exhausted they +cut their way out and began their retreat in a southerly direction. They +would undoubtedly have been exterminated but for the timely arrival of a +relieving army from Nankin. The Taepings then captured Lintsing, which +remained their headquarters for some months; but during the remainder of +the year 1854 their successes were few and unimportant. They were +vigilantly watched by the imperial troops, which had expelled them from +the whole of the province of Shantung before March, 1855. Their numbers +were thinned by disease as well as loss in battle, and of the two armies +sent to capture Pekin only a small fragment ever regained Nankin. While +these events were in progress in the region north of Nankin, the Taepings +had been carrying their arms up the Yangtsekiang as far as Ichang, and +eastward from Nankin to the sea. These efforts were not always successful, +and Tien Wang's arms experienced as many reverses as successes. The +important city of Kanchang, the capital of the province of Kiangsi, was +besieged by them for four months, and after many attempts to carry it by +storm the Taepings were compelled to abandon the task. They were more +successful at Hankow, which they recovered after a siege of eighty days. +They again evacuated this town, and yet once again, in 1855, wrested it +from an imperial garrison. + +The establishment of Taeping power at Nankin and the rumor of its rapid +extension in every direction had drawn the attention of Europeans to the +new situation thus created in China, and had aroused opposite opinions in +different sections of the foreign community. While the missionaries were +disposed to regard the Taepings as the regenerators of China, and as the +champions of Christianity, the merchants only saw in them the disturbers +of peace and the enemies of commerce. To such an extent did the latter +anticipate the ruin of their trade that they petitioned the consuls to +suspend, if not withhold, the payment of the stipulated customs to the +Chinese authorities. This proposed breach of treaty was emphatically +rejected, and the consuls enjoined the absolute necessity of preserving a +strict neutrality between the Taepings and the imperial forces. But at the +same time it became necessary to acquaint the Taeping ruler with the fact +that he would be expected to observe the provisions of the Treaty of +Nankin as scrupulously as if he were sovereign of China or a Manchu +viceroy. Sir George Bonham, the superintendent of trade and the governor +of Hongkong, determined to proceed in person to Nankin, in order to +acquaint the Taepings with what would be expected from them, and also to +gain necessary information as to their strength and importance by personal +observation. But unfortunately this step of Sir George Bonham tended to +help the Taepings by increasing their importance and spreading about the +belief that the Europeans recognized in them the future ruling power of +China. It was not intended to be, but it was none the less, an unfriendly +act to the Pekin government, and as it produced absolutely no practical +result with the Taepings themselves, it was distinctly a mistaken measure. +Its only excuse was that the imperial authorities were manifesting an +increasing inclination to enlist the support of Europeans against the +rebels, and it was desirable that accurate information should be obtained +beforehand. The Taotai of Shanghai even presented a request for the loan +of the man-of-war at that port, and when he was informed that we intended +to remain strictly neutral, the decision was also come to to inform the +Taepings of this fact. Therefore in April, 1853, before the army had left +for the northern campaign, Sir George Bonham sailed for Nankin in the +"Hermes" man-of-war. On the twenty-seventh of that month the vessel +anchored off Nankin, and several interviews were held with the Taeping +Wangs, of whom the Northern King was at this time the most influential. +The negotiations lasted a week, and they had no result. It was soon made +apparent that the Taepings were as exclusive and impracticable as the +worst Manchu mandarin, and that they regarded the Europeans as an inferior +and subject people. Sir George Bonham failed to establish any direct +communication with Tien Wang, who had by this retired into private life, +and while it was given out that he was preparing sacred books he was +really abandoning himself to the pursuit of profligacy. There is nothing +to cause surprise in the fact that the apathy of Tien Wang led to attempts +to supersede him in his authority. The Eastern King in particular posed as +the delegate of Heaven. He declared that he had interviews with the +celestial powers when in a trance, he assumed the title of the Holy Ghost +or the Comforter, and he censured Tien Wang for his shortcomings, and even +inflicted personal chastisement upon him. If he had had a following he +might have become the despot of the Taepings, but as he offended all alike +his career was cut short by a conspiracy among the other Wangs, who, +notwithstanding his heavenly conferences, murdered him. + +At this period one of the most brilliant military exploits of the Taepings +was performed, and as it served to introduce the real hero of the whole +movement, it may be described in more detail than the other operations, +which were conducted in a desultory manner, and which were unredeemed by +any exhibition of courage or military capacity. The government had +succeeded in placing two considerable armies in the field. One numbering +40,000 men, under the command of Hochun and the ex-Triad Chang Kwoliang, +watched Nankin, while the other, commanded by a Manchu general, laid close +siege to Chankiang, which seemed on the point of surrender. The Taepings +at Nankin determined to effect its relief, and a large force was placed +under the orders of an officer named Li, but whom it will be more +convenient to designate by the title subsequently conferred on him of +Chung Wang, or the Faithful King. His energy and courage had already +attracted favorable notice, and the manner in which he executed the +difficult operation intrusted to him fully established his reputation. By +a concerted movement with the Taeping commandant of Chankiang, he attacked +the imperialist lines at the same time as the garrison made a sortie, and +the result was a decisive victory. Sixteen stockades were carried by +assault, and the Manchu army was driven away from the town which seemed to +lie at its mercy. But this success promised only to be momentary, for the +imperialist forces, collecting from all sides, barred the way back to +Nankin, while the other Manchu army drew nearer to that city, and its +general seemed to meditate attacking Tien Wang in his capital. An +imperative summons was sent to Chung Wang to return to Nankin. As the +imperialist forces were for the most part on the southern side of the +river, Chung Wang crossed to the northern bank and began his march to +Nankin. He had not proceeded far when he found that the imperialists had +also crossed over to meet him, and that his progress was arrested by their +main army under Chang Kwoliang. With characteristic decision and rapidity +he then regained the southern bank, and falling on the weakened +imperialists gained so considerable a victory that the Manchu commander +felt bound to commit suicide. After some further fighting he made good his +way back to Nankin. But when he arrived there the tyrant Tung Wang refused +to admit him into the city until he had driven away the main imperialist +army, which had been placed under the command of Hienfung's generalissimo, +Heang Yung, and which had actually seized one of the gates of the city. +Although Chung Wang's troops were exhausted they attacked the government +troops with great spirit, and drove them back as far as Tanyang, where, +however, they succeeded in holding their ground, notwithstanding his +repeated efforts to dislodge them. Heang Yung, taking his misfortune too +deeply to heart, committed suicide, and thus deprived the emperor of at +least a brave officer. But with this success the Taeping tide of victory +reached its end, for Chang Kwoliang arriving with the other imperialist +army, the whole force fell upon Chung Wang and drove him back into the +city with the loss of 700 of his best men, so that the result left of +Chung Wang's campaign was the relief of Chankiang and the return to the +status quo at Nankin. It was immediately after these events that Tung Wang +was assassinated, and scenes of blood followed which resulted in the +massacre of 20,000 persons and the disappearance of all, except one, of +the Wangs whom Tien Wang had created on the eve of his enterprise. Chung +Wang seems to have had no part in these intrigues and massacres, and there +is little doubt that if the imperialist commanders had taken prompt +advantage of them the Taepings might have been crushed at that moment, or +ten years earlier than proved to be the case. + +While the main Taeping force was thus causing serious danger to the +existing government of China, its offshoots or imitators were emulating +its example in the principal treaty ports, which brought the rebels into +contact with the Europeans. The Chinese officials, without any military +power on which they could rely, had endeavored to maintain order among the +turbulent classes of the population by declaring that the English were the +allies of the emperor, and that they would come to his aid with their +formidable engines of war if there were any necessity. Undoubtedly this +threat served its turn and kept the turbulent quiet for a certain period; +but when it could no longer be concealed that the English were determined +to take no part in the struggle, the position of the government was +weakened by the oft-repeated declaration that they mainly relied on the +support of the foreigners. The first outbreak occurred at Amoy in May, +1853, when some thousand marauders, under an individual named Magay, +seized the town and held it until the following November. The imperialists +returned in sufficient force in that month and regained possession of the +town, when, unfortunately for their reputation, they avenged their +expulsion in a particularly cruel and indiscriminating fashion Many +thousand citizens were executed without any form of trial, and the arrest +of the slaughter was entirely due to the intervention of the English naval +officer at Amoy. The rising at Shanghai was of a more serious character, +and took a much longer time to suppress. As the European settlement there +was threatened with a far more imminent danger than anywhere else, +preparations to defend it began in April, 1853, and under the auspices of +the consul, Mr. Rutherford Alcock, the residents were formed into a +volunteer corps, and the men-of-war drawn up so as to effectually cover +the whole settlement. These precautions were taken in good time, for +nothing happened to disturb the peace until the following September. The +Triads were undoubtedly the sole instigators of the rising, and the +Taepings of Nankin were in no sense responsible for, or participators in +it. They seized the Taotai's official residence, and as his guard deserted +him, that officer barely escaped with his life. Other officials were not +so fortunate, but on the whole Shanghai was acquired by the rebels with +very little bloodshed. In a few hours this important Chinese city passed +into the hands of a lawless and refractory mob, who lived on the plunder +of the townspeople, and who were ripe for any mischief. The European +settlement was placed meantime in a position of efficient defense, and +although the Triads wished to have the spoil of its rich factories, they +very soon decided that the enterprise would be too risky, if not +impossible. + +After some weeks' inaction the imperialist forces, gathering from all +quarters, proceeded to invest the marauders in Shanghai, and had the +attack been conducted with any degree of military skill and vigor they +must have succumbed at the first onset. But, owing to the pusillanimity of +the emperor's officers and their total ignorance of the military art, the +siege went on for an indefinite period, and twelve months after it began +seemed as far off conclusion as ever. + +While the imperialists laboriously constructed their lines and batteries +they never ceased to importune the Europeans for assistance, and as it +became clearer that the persons in possession of Shanghai were a mob +rather than a power, the desire increased among the foreigners generally +to put an end to what was an intolerable position. On this occasion the +French took an initiative which had previously been left to the English. +The French settlement at Shanghai consisted at this time of a consulate, a +cathedral, and one house, but as it was situated nearest the walls of the +Chinese city it was most exposed to the fire of the besiegers and +besieged. In consequence of this the French admiral, Laguerre, determined +to take a part in the struggle, and erecting a battery in the French +settlement, proceeded to bombard the rebels on one side of the city while +the imperialists attacked it on another. Although the bombardment was +vigorous and effective, the loss inflicted on the insurgents was +inconsiderable, because they had erected an earthwork behind the main wall +of the place, and every day the Triads challenged the French to come on to +the assault. At last a breach was declared to be practicable, and 400 +French sailors and marines were landed to carry it, while the +imperialists, wearing blue sashes to distinguish them from the rebels, +escaladed the walls at another point. But the assault was premature, for, +although the assailants gained the inside of the fortification, they could +not advance. The insurgents fought desperately behind the earthworks and +in the streets, and after four hours' fighting they put the whole +imperialist force to flight. The French were carried along by their +disheartened allies who, allowing race hatred to overcome a temporary +arrangement, even fired on them, and when Admiral Laguerre reckoned up the +cost of his intervention he found it amounted to four officers and sixty +men killed and wounded. Such was the result of the French attack on +Shanghai, and it taught the lesson that even good European troops cannot +ignore the recognized rules and precautions of war. After this engagement +the siege languished, and the French abstained from taking any further +part in it. But the imperialists continued their attack in their own +bungling but persistent fashion, and at last the insurgents, having failed +to obtain the favorable terms they demanded, made a desperate sortie, when +a few made their way to the foreign settlement, where they found safety, +but by far the greater number perished by the sword of the imperialists. +More than 1,500 insurgents were captured and executed along the highroads, +but the two leaders of the movement escaped, one of them to attain great +fortune as a merchant in Siam. The imperialists unfortunately sullied +their success by grave excesses and by the cruel treatment of the +unoffending townspeople, who were made to suffer for the original +incapacity and cowardice of the officials themselves. At Canton, which was +also visited by the Triads in June, 1854, matters took a different course. +The Chinese merchants and shopkeepers combined and raised a force for +their own protection, and these well-paid braves effectually kept the +insurgents out of Canton. They, however, seized the neighboring town of +Fatshan, where the manufacturing element was in strong force, and but for +the unexpected energy of the Cantonese they would undoubtedly have seized +the larger city too, as the government authorities were not less apathetic +here than at Shanghai. The disturbed condition of things continued until +February, 1855, when the wholesale executions by which its suppression was +marked, and during which a hundred thousand persons are said to have +perished, ceased. + +The events have now been passed in review which marked the beginning and +growth of the Taeping Rebellion, from the time of its being a local rising +in the province of Kwangsi to the hour of its leader being installed as a +ruling prince in the ancient city of Nankin. But from the growing Taeping +Rebellion, which we have now followed down to the year 1856, our attention +must be directed to the more serious and important foreign question which +had again reached a crisis, and which would not wait on the convenience of +the Celestial emperor and his advisers. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX + +THE SECOND FOREIGN WAR + + +The events which caused the second foreign war began to come into evidence +immediately after the close of the first; and for the sake of clearness +and brevity they have been left for consideration to the same chapter, +although they happened while Taoukwang was emperor. After the departure of +Sir Henry Pottinger, who was succeeded by Sir John Davis, and the arrival +of the representatives of the other European powers, who hastened to claim +the same rights and privileges as had been accorded to England, the main +task to be accomplished was to practically assert the rights that had been +theoretically secured, and to place the relations of the two nations on +what may be called a working basis. The consulates were duly appointed, +the necessary land for the foreign settlements was acquired, and the war +indemnity being honorably discharged, Chusan was restored to the Chinese. +With regard to the last matter there was some maneuvering of a not +altogether creditable nature, and although the Chinese paid the last +installment punctually to date, Chusan and Kulangsu were not evacuated for +some months after the stipulated time. It was said that our hesitation in +the former case was largely due to the fear that France would seize it; +but this has been permanently removed by the expressed assertion of our +prior right to occupy it. A far more gratifying subject is suggested by +the harmony of the relations which were established in Chusan between the +garrison under Sir Colin Campbell and the islanders, who expressed deep +regret at the departure of the English troops. The first members of the +consular staff in China were as follows: Mr. G. T. Lay was consul at +Canton, Captain George Balfour at Shanghai (where, however, he was soon +succeeded by Sir Rutherford Alcock), Mr. Henry Gribble at Ainoy, and Mr. +Robert Thorn at Ningpo. Among the interpreters were the future Sir Thomas +Wade and Sir Harry Parkes. Various difficulties presented themselves with +regard to the foreign settlements, and the island of Kulangsu at Amoy had +to be evacuated because its name was not mentioned in the treaty. At +Canton also an attempt was made to extend the boundaries of the foreign +settlement by taking advantage of a great conflagration, but in this +attempt the Europeans were baffled by the superior quickness of the +Chinese, who constructed their new houses in a single night. These +incidents showed that the sharpness was not all on one side, and that if +the Chinese were backward in conceding what might be legitimately +demanded, the Europeans were not averse to snatching an advantage if they +saw the chance. + +The turbulence of the Canton populace, over whom the officials possessed +but a nominal control, was a constant cause of disagreement and trouble. +In the spring of 1846 a riot was got up by the mob on the excuse that a +vane erected on the top of the flagstaff over the American Consulate +interfered with the Fung Shui, or spirits of earth and air; and although +it was removed to allay the excitement of the superstitious, the +disturbance continued, and several personal encounters took place, in one +of which a Chinese was killed. The Chinese mandarins, incited by the mob, +demanded the surrender of the man who fired the shot; and that they should +have made such a demand, after they had formally accepted and recognized +the jurisdiction of consular courts, furnished strong evidence that they +had not mastered the lessons of the late war or reconciled themselves to +the provisions of the Treaty of Nankin. The fortunate arrival of Keying to +"amicably regulate the commerce with foreign countries" smoothed over this +difficulty, and the excitement of the Canton mob was allayed without any +surrender. It was almost at this precise moment, too, that Taoukwang made +the memorable admission that the Christian religion might be tolerated as +one inculcating the principles of virtue. But the two pressing and +practical difficulties in the foreign question were the opening of the +gates of Canton and the right of foreigners to proceed beyond the limits +of their factories and compounds. The Chinese wished for many reasons, +perhaps even for the safety of the foreigners, to confine them to their +settlements, and it might be plausibly argued that the treaty supported +this construction. Of course such confinement was intolerable, and English +merchants and others would not be prevented from making boating or +shooting excursions in the neighborhood of the settlements. The Chinese +authorities opposed these excursions, and before long a collision occurred +with serious consequences. In March, 1847, a small party of Englishmen +proceeded in a boat to Fatshan, a manufacturing town near Canton which has +been called the Chinese Birmingham. On reaching the place symptoms of +hostility were at once manifested, and the Europeans withdrew for safety +to the yamen of the chief magistrate, who happened unfortunately to be +away. By this time the populace had got very excited, and the Englishmen +were with difficulty escorted in safety to their boat. The Chinese, +however, pelted them with stones, notwithstanding the efforts of the chief +officer, who had by this time returned and taken the foreigners under his +protection. It was due to his great heroism that they escaped with their +lives and without any serious injury. + +The incident, unpleasant in itself, might have been explained away and +closed without untoward consequences if Sir John Davis had not seized, as +he thought, a good opportunity of procuring greater liberty and security +for Englishmen at Canton. He refused to see in this affair an accident, +but denounced it as an outrage, and proclaimed "that he would exact and +require from the Chinese government that British subjects should be as +free from molestation and insult in China as they would be in England." +This demand was both unreasonable and unjust. It was impossible that the +hated foreigner, or "foreign devil," as he was called, could wander about +the country in absolute security when the treaty wrung from the emperor as +the result of an arduous war confined him to five ports, and limited the +emperor's capacity to extend protection to those places. But Sir John +Davis determined to take this occasion of forcing events, so that he might +compel the Chinese to afford greater liberty to his countrymen, and thus +hasten the arrival of the day for the opening of the gates of Canton. On +the 1st of April all the available troops at Hongkong were warned for +immediate service, and on the following day the two regiments in garrison +left in three steamers and escorted by one man-of-war to attack Canton. +They landed at the Bogue forts, seized the batteries without opposition +and spiked the guns. The Chinese troops, whether surprised or acting under +orders from Keying, made no attempt at resistance. Not a shot was fired, +not a man was injured among the assailants. The forts near Canton, the +very batteries on the island opposite the city, were captured without a +blow, and on the 3d of April, 1847, Canton again lay at the mercy of an +English force. Sir John Davis then published another notice, stating that +"he felt that the moderation and justice of all his former dealings with +the government of China lend a perfect sanction to measures which he has +been reluctantly compelled to adopt after a long course of misinterpreted +forbearance," and made certain demands of the Chinese authorities which +may be epitomized as follows: The City of Canton to be opened at two +years' date from April 6, 1847; Englishman to be at liberty to roam for +exercise or amusement in the neighborhood of the city on the one condition +that they returned the same day; and some minor conditions, to which no +exception could be taken. After brief consideration, and notwithstanding +the clamor of the Cantonese to be led against the foreigners, Keying +agreed to the English demands, although he delivered a side-thrust at the +high-handed proceedings of the English officer when he said, "If a mutual +tranquillity is to subsist between the Chinese and foreigners, the common +feelings of mankind, as well as the just principles of Heaven, must be +considered and conformed with." + +Keying, by the terms of his convention with Sir John Davis, had agreed +that the gates of Canton were to be opened on April 6, 1849, but the +nearer that day approached the more doubtful did it appear whether the +promise would be complied with, and whether, in the event of refusal, it +would be wise to have recourse to compulsion. The officials on both sides +were unfeignedly anxious for a pacific solution, but trade was greatly +depressed in consequence of the threatening demeanor of the Canton +populace. There was scarcely any doubt that the Chinese authorities did +not possess the power to compel obedience on the part of the Cantonese to +an order to admit Europeans into their city, and on the question being +referred to Taoukwang he made an oracular reply which was interpreted as +favoring the popular will. "That," he said, "to which the hearts of the +people incline is that on which the decree of Heaven rests. Now the people +of Kwantung are unanimous and determined that they will not have +foreigners enter the city; and how can I post up everywhere my imperial +order and force an opposite course on the people?" The English government +was disposed to show great forbearance and refrained from opposing +Taoukwang's views. But although the matter was allowed to drop, the right +acquired by the convention with Keying was not surrendered; and, as +Taoukwang had never formally ratified the promise of that minister, it was +considered that there had been no distinct breach of faith on the part of +the Chinese government. The Chinese continued to cling tenaciously to +their rights, and to contest inch by inch every concession demanded by the +Europeans, and sometimes they were within their written warrant in doing +so. Such a case happened at Foochow shortly after the accession of +Hienfung, when an attempt was made to prevent foreigners residing in that +town, and after a long correspondence it was discovered that the Chinese +were so far right, as the treaty specified as the place of foreign +residence the _kiangkan_ or mart at the mouth of the river, and not +the _ching_ or town itself. It was at this critical moment that the +Chinese were attracted in large numbers by the discovery of gold in +California and Australia to emigrate from China, and they showed +themselves well capable by their trade organization and close union of +obtaining full justice for themselves and an ample recognition of all +their rights in foreign countries. The effect of this emigration on +Chinese public opinion was much less than might have been expected, and +the settlement of the foreign question was in no way simplified or +expedited by their influence. + +The position of affairs at Canton could not, by the greatest stretch of +language, be pronounced satisfactory. The populace was unequivocally +hostile; the officials had the greatest difficulty in making their +authority respected, and the English government was divided between the +desire to enforce the stipulation as to the opening of the Canton gates, +and the fear lest insistence might result in a fresh and serious rupture. +Sir George Bonham, who succeeded Sir John Davis, gave counsels of +moderation, and when he found that some practical propositions which he +made for improved intercourse were rejected he became more convinced that +the question must wait for solution for a more convenient and promising +occasion. + +In 1852 Sir George Bonham returned to England on leave, and his place was +taken by Dr. John Bowring, who had officiated for a short period as consul +at Canton. His instructions were of a simple and positive character. They +were "to avoid all irritating discussions with the authorities of China." +He was also directed to avoid pushing arguments on doubtful points in a +manner that would fetter the free action of the government; but he was, at +the same time, to recollect that it was his duty to carefully watch over +and insist upon the performance by the Chinese authorities of their +engagements. The proper fulfillment of the latter duty necessarily +involved some infringement of the former recommendation; and while the +paramount consideration with the Foreign Office was to keep things quiet, +it was natural that the official on the spot should think a great deal, if +not altogether, of how best to obtain compliance to the fullest extent +with the pledges given in the treaty and the subsequent conventions. Dr. +Bowring was not an official to be deterred from expressing his opinions by +fear of headquarters. He sent home his view of the situation, expressed in +very clear and intelligible language. "The Pottinger treaties," he said, +"inflicted a deep wound upon the pride, but by no means altered the +policy, of the Chinese government.... Their purpose is now, as it ever +was, not to invite, not to facilitate, but to impede and resist the access +of foreigners. It must, then, ever be borne in mind, in considering the +state of our relations with these regions, that the two governments have +objects at heart which are diametrically opposed, except in so far that +both earnestly desire to avoid all hostile action, and to make its own +policy, as far as possible, subordinate to that desire." At this point a +Liberal administration gave place to a Conservative; but Lord Malmesbury +reiterated in stronger language the instructions of Lord Granville. "All +irritating discussions with the Chinese should be avoided, and the +existing good understanding must in no way be imperiled." One of Dr. +Bowring's first acts was to write a letter to the viceroy expressing a +desire for an interview, with the object of suggesting a settlement of +pending difficulties; but the viceroy made his excuses. The meeting did +not take place, and the whole question remained dormant for two years, by +which time not only had Sir John Bowring been knighted and confirmed in +the post of governor, but the viceroy had been superseded by the +subsequently notorious Commissioner Yeh. Up to this point all Sir John +Bowring's suggestions with regard to the settlement of the questions +pending with the Chinese had been received with the official reply that he +was to abstain from all action, and that he was not to press himself on +the Canton authorities. But, in the beginning of 1854, his instructions +were so far modified that Lord Clarendon wrote admitting the desirability +of "free and unrestricted intercourse with the Chinese officials," and of +"admission into some of the cities of China, especially Canton." + +Encouraged by these admissions in favor of the views he had been advancing +for some time, Sir John Bowring wrote an official letter to Commissioner +Yeh inviting him to an early interview, but stating that the interview +must be held within the city of Canton at the viceroy's yamen. It will be +noted that what Sir John asked fell short of what Keying had promised. The +opening of the gates of Canton was to have been to all Englishmen, but the +English government would at this point have been satisfied if its +representative had been granted admission for the purpose of direct +negotiation with the Chinese authorities. To the plain question put to him +Yeh returned an evasive answer. All his time was taken up with the +military affairs of the province, and he absolutely ignored the proposal +for holding an interview within the city. The matter had gone too far to +be put on one side in this manner, and Sir John Bowring sent his secretary +to overcome, if possible, the repugnance of Commissioner Yeh to the +interview, and in any case to gain some information as to his objections. +As the secretary could only see mandarins of very inferior rank he +returned to Hongkong without acquiring any very definite information, but +he learned enough to say that Yeh denied that Keying's arrangement +possessed any validity. The Chinese case was that it had been allowed to +drop on both sides, and the utmost concession Yeh would make was to agree +to an interview at the Jinsin Packhouse outside the city walls. This +proposition was declared to be inadmissible, when Yeh ironically remarked +that he must consequently assume that "Sir John Bowring did not wish for +an interview." It was hoped to overcome Chinese finesse with counter +finesse, and Sir John Bowring hastened to Shanghai with the object of +establishing direct relations with the viceroy of the Two Kiang. After +complaining of the want of courtesy evinced by Yeh throughout his +correspondence, he expressed the wish to negotiate with any of the other +high officials of the empire. The reply of Eleang, who held this post, and +who was believed to be well disposed to Europeans, did not advance +matters. He had no authority, he said, in the matter, and could not +interfere in what was not his concern. Commissioner Yeh was the official +appointed by the emperor to conduct relations with the foreigners, and no +other official could assume his functions. Sir John Bowring therefore +returned to Hongkong without having effected anything by his visit to +Shanghai, but at this moment the advance of the rebels to the neighborhood +of Canton seemed likely to effect a diversion that might have important +consequences. In a state of apprehension as to the safety of the town, Yeh +applied to Sir John Bowring for assistance against the rebels, but this +could not be granted, and Sir John Bowring only proceeded to Canton to +superintend the preparations made for the defense of the English +settlement at that place. All the consuls issued a joint proclamation +declaring their intention to remain neutral. The prompt suppression of the +rebellion, so far as any danger to Canton went, restored the confidence of +the Chinese authorities, and they reverted to their old position on the +question of the opening of the gates of Canton. + +In June, 1855, Sir John Bowring returned to the subject of official +interviews, and made an explicit demand for the reception if not of +himself, then at least of the consul at Canton. Yeh took his time before +he made any reply, and when he did send one it was to the effect that +there was no precedent for an interview with a consul, and that as Sir +John had refused to meet him outside the city there was an end of the +matter. Mr. Harry Parkes succeeded Mr. Alcock as consul at Canton, and no +inconsiderable amount of tact was required to carry on relations with +officials who refused to show themselves. But the evil day of open +collision could not be averted, and the antagonism caused by clashing +views and interests at last broke forth on a point which would have been +promptly settled, had there been direct intercourse between the English +and Chinese officials. + +On October 8, 1856, Mr. Parkes reported to Sir John Bowring at Hongkong +the particulars of an affair which had occurred on a British-owned lorcha +at Canton. The lorcha "Arrow," employed in the iron trade between Canton +and the mouth of the river, commanded by an English captain, and flying +the English flag, had been boarded by a party of mandarins and their +followers while at anchor near the Dutch Folly. The lorcha--a Portuguese +name for a fast sailing boat--had been duly registered in the office at +Hongkong, and although not entitled at that precise moment to British +protection, through the careless neglect to renew the license, this fact +was only discovered subsequently, and was not put forward by the Chinese +in justification of their action. The gravity of the affair was increased +by the fact that the English flag was conspicuously displayed, and that, +notwithstanding the remonstrances of the master, it was ostentatiously +hauled down. The crew were carried off prisoners with the exception of two +men, left at their own request to take charge of the vessel. Mr. Parkes at +once sent a letter to Yeh on the subject of this "very grave insult," +requesting that the captured crew of the "Arrow" should be returned to +that vessel without delay, and that any charges made against them should +be then examined into at the English consulate. In his reply Commissioner +Yeh justified and upheld the act of his subordinates. Of the twelve men +seized, he returned nine, but with regard to the three whom he detained, +he declared one to be a criminal, and the others important witnesses. Not +merely would he not release them, but he proceeded to justify their +apprehension, while he did not condescend to so much as notice the points +of the insult to the English flag, and of his having violated treaty +obligations. Yeh did not attempt to offer any excuse for the proceedings +taken in his name. He asserted certain things as facts which, in his +opinion, it was sufficient for him to accept that they should pass +current. But the evidence on which they were based was not sufficient to +obtain credence in the laxest court of justice; but even if it had been +conclusive it would not have justified the removal of the crew from the +"Arrow" when the British flag was flying conspicuously at her mast. What, +in brief, was the Chinese case? It was that one of the crew had been +recognized by a man passing in a boat as one of a band of pirates who had +attacked, ill-used, and plundered him several weeks before. He had +forthwith gone to the Taotai of Canton, presented a demand for redress, +and that officer had at once given the order for the arrest of the +offender, with the result described. There is no necessity to impugn the +veracity of the Chinaman's story, but it did not justify the breach of +"the ex-territorial rights of preliminary consular investigation before +trial" granted to all under the protection of the English flag. The plea +of delay did not possess any force either, for the man could have been +arrested just as well by the English consul as by the mandarins, but it +would have involved a damaging admission of European authority in the +matter of a Chinese subject, and the mandarins thought there was no +necessity to curtail their claim to jurisdiction. Commissioner Yeh did not +attempt any excuses, and he even declared that "the 'Arrow' is not a +foreign lorcha, and, therefore," he said, "there is no use to enter into +any discussion about her." + +The question of the nationality of the "Arrow" was complicated by the fact +that its registry had expired ten days before its seizure. The master +explained that this omission was due to the vessel having been at sea, and +that it was to have been rectified as soon as he returned to Hongkong. As +Lord Clarendon pointed out, this fact was not merely unknown to the +Chinese, but it was also "a matter of British regulation which would not +justify seizure by the Chinese. No British lorcha would be safe if her +crew were liable to seizure on these grounds." The history of the lorcha +"Arrow" was officially proved to be as follows: "The 'Arrow' was +heretofore employed in trading on the coast, and while so employed was +taken by pirates. By them she was fitted out and employed on the Canton +River during the disturbances between the imperialists and the insurgents. +While on this service she was captured by the braves of one of the +loyalist associations organized by the mandarins for the support of the +government. By this association she was publicly sold, and was purchased +by a Chin-chew Hong, a respectable firm at Canton, which also laid out a +considerable sum in repairing her and otherwise fitting her out. She +arrived at Hongkong about the month of June, 1855, at which time a treaty +was on foot (which ended in a bargain) between Fong Aming, Messrs. T. Burd +& Co.'s comprador, and Lei-yeong-heen, one of the partners in the Chin- +chew Hong, for the purchase of the lorcha by the former. Shortly after the +arrival of the vessel at Hongkong she was claimed by one Quantai, of +Macao, who asserted that she had been his property before she was seized +by the pirates. Of course, the then owner disputed his claim; upon which +he commenced a suit in the Vice-Admiralty Court. After a short time, by +consent of the parties, the question was referred to arbitration, but the +arbitrators could not agree and an umpire was appointed, who awarded that +the ownership of the lorcha should continue undisturbed. The ownership of +the vessel was then transferred to Fong Aming, and in his name she is +registered. These are the simple facts connected with the purchase of the +lorcha by a resident of the colony at Hongkong and her registry as a +British vessel, and it is from these facts that the Imperial Commissioner +Yeh has arrived at an erroneous conclusion as to the ownership of the +boat." As the first step toward obtaining the necessary reparation, a +junk, which was supposed to be an imperial war vessel, was seized as a +hostage, and Mr. Parkes addressed another letter to Yeh reminding him that +"the matter which has compelled this menace still remains unsettled." + +Had there been that convenient mode of communication between the governor +of Hongkong and the Chinese officials at Canton which was provided for by +the Nankin Treaty and the Keying Convention, the "Arrow" complication +would, in all probability, never have arisen, and it is also scarcely less +certain that it would not have produced such serious consequences as it +did but for the arrogance of Yeh. He even attempted to deny that the +"Arrow" carried the English flag, but this was so clearly proved to be a +fact by both English and Chinese witnesses that it ceased to hold a place +in the Chinese case. As it was clear that Commissioner Yeh would not give +way, and as delay would only encourage him, the admiral on the station, +Sir Michael Seymour, received instructions to attack the four forts of the +Barrier, and he captured them without loss. Thus, after an interval of +fourteen years, was the first blow struck in what may be called the third +act of Anglo-Chinese relations, but it would be a mistake to suppose that +the "Arrow" case was the sole cause of this appeal to arms. A blue book, +bearing the significant title of "Insults to Foreigners," gives a list and +narrative of the many outrages and indignities inflicted on Europeans +between 1842 and 1856. The evidence contained therein justifies the +statement that the position of Europeans in China had again become most +unsafe and intolerable. Those who persist in regarding the "Arrow" affair +as the only cause of the war may delude themselves into believing that the +Chinese were not the most blameworthy parties in the quarrel; but no one +who seeks the truth and reads all the evidence will doubt that if there +had been no "Arrow" case there would still have been a rupture between the +two countries. The Chinese officials, headed by Yeh, had fully persuaded +themselves that, as the English had put up with so much, and had +acquiesced in the continued closing of the gates of Canton, they were not +likely to make the "Arrow" affair a casus belli. Even the capture of the +Barrier forts did not bring home to their minds the gravity of the +situation. + +After dismantling these forts, Sir Michael Seymour proceeded up the river, +capturing the fort in Macao Passage, and arriving before Canton on the +same day. An ultimatum was at once addressed to Yeh, stating that unless +he at once complied with all the English demands the admiral would +"proceed with the destruction of all the defenses and public buildings of +this city and of the government vessels in the river." This threat brought +no satisfactory answer, and the Canton forts were seized, their guns +spiked and the men-of-war placed with their broadsides opposite the city. +Then Yeh, far from being cowed, uttered louder defiance than ever. He +incited the population to make a stubborn resistance; he placed a reward +of thirty dollars on the head of every Englishman slain or captured, and +he publicly proclaimed that there was no alternative but war. He seems to +have been driven to these extremities by a fear for his own personal +safety and official position. He had no warrant from his imperial master +to commit China to such a dangerous course as another war with the +English, and he knew that the only way to vindicate his proceedings was to +obtain some success gratifying to national vanity. While Yeh was counting +on the support of the people, the English admiral began the bombardment of +the city, directing his fire principally against Yeh's yamen and a part of +the wall, which was breached in two days. After some resistance the breach +was carried; a gate was occupied, and Sir Michael Seymour and Mr. Parkes +proceeded to the yamen of the viceroy, but as it was thought dangerous to +occupy so large a city with so small a force the positions seized were +abandoned, although still commanded by the fire of the fleet. After a few +days' rest active operations were resumed against the French Folly fort +and a large fleet of war junks which had collected up the river. After a +warm engagement the vessels were destroyed and the fort captured. +Undaunted by these successive reverses, Yeh still breathed nothing but +defiance, and refused to make the least concession. There remained no +alternative but to prosecute hostilities with renewed vigor. On the 12th +and 13th of November, Sir Michael attacked the Bogue forts on both sides +of the river and captured them with little loss. These forts mounted 400 +guns, but only contained 1,000 men. + +Notwithstanding these continuous reverses, the Chinese remained defiant +and energetic. As soon as the English admiral left Canton to attack the +Bogue forts the Chinese hastened to re-occupy all their positions and to +repair the breaches. They succeeded in setting fire to and thus destroying +the whole foreign settlement, and they carried off several Europeans, all +of whom were put to death and some of them tortured. The heads of these +Europeans treacherously seized and barbarously murdered were paraded +throughout the villages of Kwangtung, in order to stimulate recruiting and +to raise national enthusiasm to a high pitch. Notwithstanding their +reverses whenever it became a question of open fighting, the Chinese, by +their obstinacy and numbers, at last succeeded in convincing Sir Michael +Seymour that his force was too small to achieve any decisive result, and +he accordingly withdrew from his positions in front of the city, and sent +home a request for a force of 5,000 troops. Meantime the Chinese were much +encouraged by the lull in hostilities, and for the time being Yeh himself +was not dissatisfied with the result. The Cantonese saw in the destruction +of the foreign settlement and the withdrawal of the English fleet some +promise of future victory, and at all events sufficient reason for the +continued confidence of the patriot Yeh. Curiously enough, there was peace +and ostensible goodwill along the coast and at the other treaty ports, +while war and national animosity were in the ascendant at Canton. The +governor-generals of the Two Kiang and Fuhkien declared over and over +again that they wished to abide by the Treaty of Nankin, and they threw +upon Yeh the responsibility of his acts. Even Hienfung refrained from +showing any unequivocal support of his truculent lieutenant, although +there is no doubt that he was impressed by the reports of many victories +over the English barbarians with which Yeh supplied him. As long as Yeh +was able to keep the quarrel a local one, and to thus shield the central +government from any sense of personal danger, he enjoyed the good wishes, +if not the active support, of his sovereign. But, unfortunately for the +success of his schemes, only the most energetic support of the Pekin +government in money and men could have enabled him to hold his own; and as +he did nothing but report victories in order to gain a hearing for his +policy, he could not grumble when he was not sent the material aid of +which he stood most in need. His unreasonable action had done much to +unite all foreign nations against China. French, American and Spanish +subjects had been the victims of Chinese ignorance and cruelty, as well as +English, and they all saw that the success of Yeh's policy would render +their position untenable. + +On the receipt of Sir Michael Seymour's request for a force of 5,000 men, +it was at once perceived in London that the question of our relations with +China had again entered a most important and critical phase. It was at +once decided to send the force for which the admiral asked; and, while +1,500 men were sent from England and a regiment from the Mauritius, the +remainder was to be drawn from the Madras army. At the same time it was +considered necessary to send an embassador of high rank to acquaint the +Pekin authorities that, while such acts as those of Yeh would not be +tolerated, there was no desire to press too harshly on a country which was +only gradually shaking off its exclusive prejudices. Lord Elgin was +selected for the difficult mission, and his instructions contained the +following five categorical demands, the fourth of which was the most +important in its consequences: + +Those instructions were conveyed in two dispatches of the same date, April +20, 1857. We quote the following as the more important passages: "The +demands which you are instructed to make will be (1), for reparation of +injuries to British subjects, and, if the French officers should co- +operate with you, for those to French subjects also; (2) for the complete +execution at Canton, as well as at the other ports, of the stipulations of +the several treaties; (3) compensation to British subjects and persons +entitled to British protection for losses incurred in consequence of the +late disturbances; (4) the assent of the Chinese government to the +residence at Pekin, or to the occasional visit to that capital, at the +option of the British government, of a minister duly accredited by the +queen to the emperor of China, and the recognition of the right of the +British plenipotentiary and chief superintendent of trade to communicate +directly in writing with the high officers at the Chinese capital, and to +send his communications by messengers of his own selection, such +arrangements affording the best means of insuring the due execution of the +existing treaties, and of preventing future misunderstandings; (5) a +revision of the treaties with China with a view to obtaining increased +facilities for commerce, such as access to cities on the great rivers as +well as to Chapoo and to other ports on the coast, and also permission for +Chinese vessels to resort to Hongkong for purposes of trade from all ports +of the Chinese empire without distinction." These were the demands +formulated by the English government for the consent of China, and seven +proposals were made as to how they were to be obtained should coercion +become necessary. It was also stated that "it is not the intention of her +Majesty's government to undertake any land operations in the interior of +the country." + +An event of superior, and, indeed, supreme importance occurred to arrest +the movement of the expedition to Canton. When Lord Elgin reached +Singapore, on June 3, 1857, he found a letter waiting for him from Lord +Canning, then Governor-general of India, informing him of the outbreak of +the Indian Mutiny, and imploring him to send all his troops to Calcutta in +order to avert the overthrow of our authority in the valley of the Ganges, +where, "for a length of 750 miles, there were barely 1,000 European +soldiers." To such an urgent appeal there could only be one answer, and +the men who were to have chastised Commissioner Yeh followed Havelock to +Cawnpore and Lucknow. But while Lord Elgin sent his main force to +Calcutta, he himself proceeded to Hongkong, where he arrived in the first +week of July, and found that hostilities had proceeded to a still more +advanced stage than when Sir Michael Seymour wrote for re-enforcements. +The Chinese had become so confident during the winter that that officer +felt bound to resume offensive measures against them, and having been +joined by a few more men-of-war, and having also armed some merchant ships +of light draught, he attacked a main portion of the Chinese fleet +occupying a very strong position in Escape Creek. The attack was intrusted +to Commodore Elliott, who, with five gunboats and the galleys of the +larger men-of-war, carried out with complete success and little loss the +orders of his superior officer. Twenty-seven armed junks were destroyed, +and the thirteen that escaped were burned the next day. It was then +determined to follow up this success by attacking the headquarters of +Yeh's army at Fatshan, the place already referred to as being some +distance from Canton. By road it is six and by water twelve miles from +that city. The remainder of the Chinese fleet was drawn up in Fatshan +Channel, and the Chinese had made such extensive preparations for its +defense, both on land and on the river, that they were convinced of the +impregnability of its position. + +The Chinese position was unusually strong, and had been selected with +considerable judgment. An island named after the hyacinth lies in +midstream two miles from the entrance to the Fatshan Channel, which joins +the main course of the Sikiang a few miles above the town of that name. +The island is flat and presents no special advantages for defense, but it +enabled the Chinese to draw up a line of junks across the two channels of +the river, and to place on it a battery of six guns, thus connecting their +two squadrons. The seventy-two junks were drawn up with their sterns +facing down stream, and their largest gun bearing on any assailant +proceeding up it. On the left bank of the river an elevated and +precipitous hill had been occupied in force and crowned with a battery of +nineteen guns, and other batteries had been erected at different points +along the river. There seems no reason to question the accuracy of the +estimate that more than 300 pieces of artillery and 10,000 men were +holding this position, which had been admirably chosen and carefully +strengthened. The force which Sir Michael Seymour had available to attack +this formidable position slightly exceeded 2,000 men, conveyed to the +attack in six gunboats and a large flotilla of boats. The English advance +was soon known to the Chinese, who began firing from their junks and +batteries as soon as they came within range. Three hundred marines were +landed to attack the battery on the hill, which was found not to be so +strong as it appeared; for on the most precipitous side the Chinese, +believing it to be unscalable, had placed no guns, and those in position +could not be moved to bear on the assailants in that quarter. The marines +gained the top with scarcely any loss, and as they charged over the side +the Chinese retired with little loss, owing to the ill-directed fire of +the marines. + +Meantime the sailors had attacked the Chinese position on the river. The +tide was at low water, and the Chinese had barred the channel with a row +of sunken junks, leaving a narrow passage known only to themselves. The +leading English boat struck on the hidden barrier, but the passage being +discovered the other vessels got through. Those boats which ran aground +were gradually floated, one after the other, by the rising tide, and at +last the flotilla, with little damage, reached the line of stakes which +the Chinese had placed to mark the range of the guns in their junks. At +once the fire from the seventy-two junks and the battery on Hyacinth +Island became so furious and well-directed that it was a matter of +astonishment how the English boats passed through it. They reached and +pierced the line of junks, of which one after another was given to the +flames. Much of the success of the attack was due to the heroic example of +Commodore Harry Keppel, who led the advance party of 500 cutlasses, and +who gave the Chinese no time to rest or rally. Having broken the line of +junks, he took up the pursuit in his seven boats, having determined that +the only proof of success could be the capture of Fatshan, and after four +miles' hard rowing he came in sight of the elaborate defenses drawn up by +the Chinese for the security of that place. At the short range of a +quarter of a mile the fire of the Chinese guns was tremendous and +destructive. Keppel's own boat was reduced to a sinking state, and had to +be abandoned. Some of his principal officers were killed, three of his +boats ran aground, and things looked black for the small English force. At +this critical moment, the Chinese, thinking that they had checked the +English attack, and hearing of the magnitude of their reverse down stream, +thought their best course would be to retire. Then the few English boats +resumed the attack, and hung on to the retreating junks like bull-dogs. +Many junks were given to the flames, and five were carried off under the +teeth of the Fatshan populace; but Keppel's force was too small to hold +that town and put it to the ransom, so the worn-out, but still +enthusiastic force, retired to join the main body under Sir Michael +Seymour, who was satisfied that he had achieved all that was necessary or +prudent with his squadron. In these encounters thirteen men were killed +and forty wounded, of whom several succumbed to their wounds, for it was +noticed that the Chinese shot inflicted cruel injuries. The destruction of +the Chinese fleet on the Canton River could not be considered heavily +purchased at the cost, and the extent of the trepidation caused by +Commodore Keppel's intrepidity could not be accurately measured. + +Lord Elgin reached Hongkong very soon after this event, and, although he +brought no soldiers with him, he found English opinion at Hongkong very +pronounced in favor of an attack on Canton with a view of re-opening that +city to trade. But the necessary force was not available, and Lord Elgin +refused to commit himself to this risky course. Sir Michael Seymour said +the attack would require 5,000 troops, and General Ashburnham thought it +could be done with 4,000 men if all were effective, while the whole +Hongkong garrison numbered only 1,500, and of these one-sixth were +invalided. Lord Elgin decided to go to Calcutta, and ascertain when Lord +Canning would be able to spare him the troops necessary to bring China to +reason. He returned to Hongkong on September 20, and he found matters very +much as he had left them, and all the English force was capable of was to +blockade the river. To supplement the weakness of the garrison a coolie +corps of 750 Chinese was organized, and proved very efficient, and toward +the end of November troops, chiefly marines, began at last to arrive from +England. A fleet of useful gunboats of small draught, under Captain +Sherard Osborn, arrived for the purpose of operating against the junks in +shallow creeks and rivers. At the same time, too, came the French +embassador, Baron Gros, charged with a similar mission to Lord Elgin, and +bent on proving once for all that the pretensions of China to superiority +over other nations were absurd and untenable. + +On December 12 Lord Elgin sent Yeh a note apprising him of his arrival as +plenipotentiary from Queen Victoria, and pointing out the repeated insults +and injuries inflicted on Englishmen, culminating in the outrage to their +flag and the repeated refusal to grant any reparation for their wrongs. +But Lord Elgin went on to say that even at this eleventh hour there was +time to stay the progress of hostilities by making prompt redress. The +terms were plain and simple, and the English demands were confined to two +points--the complete execution at Canton of all treaty engagements, +including the free admission of British subjects to the city, and +compensation to British subjects and persons entitled to British +protection for losses incurred in consequence of the late disturbances. To +this categorical demand Yeh made a long reply, going over the ground of +controversy, reasserting what he wished to believe were the facts, and +curtly concluding that the trade might continue on the old conditions, and +that each side should pay its own losses. Mr. Wade said that his language +might bear the construction that the English consul, Mr. Harry Parkes, +should pay all the cost himself. If Commissioner Yeh was a humorist he +chose a bad time for indulging his proclivities, and, a sufficient force +being available, orders were at once given to attack Canton. On December +15 Honan was occupied, and ten days were passed in bringing up the troops +and the necessary stores, when, all being in readiness, an ultimatum was +sent to Yeh that if he would not give way within forty-eight hours the +attack would commence. At the same time every effort was made to warn the +unoffending townspeople, so that they might remove to a place of safety. +The attacking force numbered about 5,000 English, 1,000 French, and 750 of +the Chinese coolie corps, and it was agreed that the most vulnerable point +in the Chinese position was Lin's fort, on the eastern side of the city. +When the attack began, on December 28, this fort was captured in half an +hour, and the Chinese retired to the northern hills, which they had made +their chief position in 1842. The destruction of Lin's fort by the +accidental explosion of the magazine somewhat neutralized the advantage of +its capture. On the following day the order was given to assault the city +by escalade, and three separate parties advanced on the eastern wall. The +Chinese kept up a good fire until the troops were within a short distance, +but before the ladders were placed against the wall they abandoned their +defenses and fled. The English troops reformed on the wide rampart of the +wall and pursued the Chinese to the north gate, where, being joined by +some Manchu troops, the latter turned and charged up to the bayonets of an +English regiment. But they were repulsed and driven out of the city, and +simultaneously with this success the fort on Magazine Hill, commanding +both the city and the Chinese position on the northern hills, was captured +without loss. In less than two hours the great city of Canton was in the +possession of the allies, and the Chinese resistance was far less vigorous +and worse directed than on any occasion of equal importance. Still, the +English loss was fourteen killed and eighty-three wounded, while the +French casualties numbered thirty-four. The Chinese had, however, to +abandon their positions north of the city, and their elaborate +fortifications were blown up. + +Although all regular resistance had been overcome, the greater part of the +city remained in possession of the Chinese and of Yeh in person. That +official, although in the lowest straits, had lost neither his fortitude +nor his ferocity. He made not the least sign of surrender, and his last +act of authority was to order the execution of 400 citizens, whom he +denounced as traitors to their country. From his yamen in the interior of +the city, when he found that the English hesitated to advance beyond the +walls, he incited the populace to fresh efforts of hostility, and, in +order to check their increasing audacity, it was resolved to send a force +into the city to effect the capture of Yeh. On January 5, 1858, three +detachments were sent into the native city, and they advanced at once upon +the official residences of Yeh and Pihkwei, the governor. The Chinese were +quite unprepared for this move, and being taken unawares they offered +scarcely any resistance. The yamen was occupied and the treasury captured, +while Pihkwei was made prisoner in his own house. The French at the same +time attacked and occupied the Tartar city--a vast stone-built suburb +which had been long allowed to fall into decay, and which, instead of +being occupied, as was believed, by 7,000 Manchu warriors, was the +residence of bats and nauseous creatures. But the great object of the +attack was unattained, for Yeh still remained at large, and no one seemed +to know where he ought to be sought, for all the official buildings had +been searched in vain. But Mr. Parkes, by indefatigable inquiry, at last +gained a clew from a poor scholar whom he found poring over an ancient +classic at the library, undisturbed in the midst of the turmoil. From him +he learned that Yeh would probably be found in a yamen situated in the +southwest quarter of the city. Mr. Parkes hastened thither with Captain +(afterward Admiral) Cooper Key and a party of sailors. They arrived just +in time, for all the preparations for flight had been made, and Captain +Key caught Yeh with his own hand as he was escaping over the wall. One of +his assistants came forward with praiseworthy devotion and declared +himself to be Yeh, in the hope of saving his superior; but the deception +was at once detected by Mr. Parkes, who assured Yeh that no harm would be +done him. The capture of Yeh completed the effect of the occupation of +Canton, and the disappearance of the most fanatical opponent of the +foreigners insured the tranquillity of the Canton region, which had been +the main seat of disorder, during the remainder of the war. The government +of Canton was then intrusted to Pihkwei and a commission of one Frenchman +and two Englishmen, and the Chinese admitted it had never been better +governed. Yeh himself was sent to Calcutta, where he died two years later, +and, considering the abundant evidence of his cruel treatment of +defenseless prisoners, he had every reason to consider his punishment +lenient. + +Having thus settled the difficulty at Canton, it remained for Lord Elgin +to carry out the other part of his task, and place diplomatic relations +between England and China on a satisfactory basis by obtaining the right +of direct communication with Pekin. A letter dated February 11, 1858, was +sent to the senior Secretary of State at Pekin describing what had +occurred in the south, and summarizing what would be required from the +Chinese government. The English and French plenipotentiaries also notified +that they would proceed to Shanghai for the purpose of conducting further +negotiations. This letter was duly forwarded to Pekin by the Governor of +Kiangsu, and when Lord Elgin reached Shanghai on March 30 he found the +reply of Yu-ching, the chief adviser of Hienfung, waiting for him. +Yuching's letter was extremely unsatisfactory. It was arrogant in its +terms and impracticable as to its proposals. Lord Elgin was told that "no +imperial commissioner ever conducts business at Shanghai," and that it +behooved the English minister to wait at Canton until the arrival of a new +imperial commissioner from Pekin. The only concession the Chinese made was +to dismiss Yeh from his posts, and as he was a prisoner in the hands of +the English this did not mean much. Lord Elgin's reply to this +communication was to announce his intention of proceeding to the Peiho, +and there negotiating direct with the imperial government. Lord Elgin +reached the Gulf of Pechihli about the middle of April, and he again +addressed Yuching in the hope of an amicable settlement, and requested +that the emperor would appoint some official to act as his +plenipotentiary. Three minor officials were appointed, more out of +curiosity than from a desire to promote business, but on Lord Elgin +discovering that they were of inferior rank and that their powers were +inadequate, he declined to see them. But Yuching refused to appoint any +others; stating curtly that their powers were ample for the adjustment of +affairs, and then Lord Elgin announced that he would proceed up the Peiho +to Tientsin. Some delay was caused by the non-arrival of the fleet, which +was not assembled in the Gulf of Pechihli, through different causes of +delay, until the end of May, or about three weeks after Lord Elgin +announced his intention of forcing his way up to Tientsin. There is no +doubt that Sir Michael Seymour was in no sense to blame for this delay, +but unfortunately it aroused considerable irritation in the mind of Lord +Elgin, who sent home a dispatch, without informing his colleague, stating +that the delay was "a most grievous disappointment," and attributing it to +the supineness of the admiral. + +On May 19 the allied fleet proceeded to the mouth of the river, and +summoned the commandant to surrender the Taku forts on the following +morning. No reply being received, the attack commenced, and after the +bombardment had gone on at short range for an hour and a quarter the +Chinese gunners were driven from their batteries, and the troops landed, +occupying the whole line of forts and intrenched camps. An attempt to +injure our fleet by fire-ships miscarried, and considering that the +Chinese had some of their best troops present, including a portion of the +Imperial Guard, their resistance was not as great as might have been +expected. Their general committed suicide, and the Chinese lost the best +part of their artillery, which had been removed from Pekin and Tientsin +for the defense of the entrance to the Peiho. The fleet proceeded up the +river to Tientsin, and Lord Elgin took up his quarters in that city. The +Chinese government was brought to reason by this striking success, and, +with his capital menaced, the emperor hastened to delegate full powers to +two high commissioners, Kweiliang and Hwashana, both Manchus and +dignitaries of the highest birth and rank. Their powers were superior to +those granted to Keying at the time of the old war, and they were +commanded with affectionate earnestness to show the foreigners that they +were competent and willing to grant anything not injurious to China. +Nothing could be more satisfactory than the proposals of the new Chinese +representatives, and they were anxious to settle everything with the least +possible delay. At this point there reappeared upon the scene a man whose +previous experience and high position entitled him to some consideration. +Less than a week after his first interview with the imperial +representatives, Lord Elgin received a letter from Keying, who, it was +soon found, had come on a self-appointed mission to induce the English by +artifice and plausible representation to withdraw their fleet from the +river. His zeal was increased by the knowledge that the penalty of failure +would be death, and as his reputation had been very great among Europeans +there is no saying but that he might have succeeded had there not been +discovered in Yeh's yamen at Canton some of his papers, which showed that +he had played a double part throughout, and that at heart he was bitterly +anti-foreign. When he found that the English possessed this information he +hastened back to Pekin, where he was at once summoned before the Board of +Punishment for immediate judgment, and, being found guilty, it was ordered +that as he had acted "with stupidity and precipitancy" he should be +strangled forthwith. As an act of extreme grace the emperor allowed him to +put an end to his existence in consideration of his being a member of the +imperial family. + +After the departure of Keying, negotiations proceeded very satisfactorily +with Kweiliang and Hwashana, and all the points were practically agreed +upon, excepting the right to have a resident minister at Pekin. This claim +was opposed on several grounds. It was not merely something that had never +been heard of, but it would probably be attended with peril to the envoy +as well as to the Chinese government. Then the commissioners wanted to +know if he would wear the Chinese dress, if all the powers would have only +one minister, and if he would make the kotow? Finding such arguments fail +they asked that the visit of an English embassador to Pekin should be +postponed till a more favorable occasion. They made the admission that +"there is properly no objection to the permanent residence at Pekin of a +plenipotentiary minister of her Britannic Majesty," and they even spoke of +sending a return mission to London; but they deprecated the proposal as +novel and as specially risky at this moment in consequence of the +formidable Taeping Rebellion. These representations did not fail to +produce their effect, for it was not to the interest of Europeans +generally that the emperor's authority should be subverted on the morrow +of his signing a treaty with us. In consequence of these feelings, and +with a wish to reciprocate the generally conciliatory attitude of the +Chinese officials, Kweiliang and Hwashana were informed that the right +would be waived for the present, except that it would be necessary for the +English minister to visit Pekin twelve months later, on the occasion of +exchanging the ratifications of the treaty; and so the matter was left +pending the arrival of that occasion. While the Treaty of Tientsin +provided for the conclusion of a peace that promised to be enduring, and +arranged for the future diplomatic relations of the two countries, +commissioners were duly appointed to meet at Shanghai and draw up a +tariff. But at Tientsin the great crux in the commercial relations between +us and the Chinese had been settled by the legalization of opium. It was +agreed that opium might be imported into China on payment of thirty taels, +or about fifty dollars, per chest. Experience had shown that leaving the +most largely imported article into China contraband had been both futile +and inconvenient, while the Chinese government was a direct loser by not +enjoying a legitimate source of revenue. How general the view had become +that the evils of the use of opium were exaggerated, and, even admitting +them, that there was no better way of diminishing their effect than by +legalizing the import of opium, can be judged by the ready acquiescence of +the Chinese commissioners; and here, from many other matured opinions, we +may quote the final and deliberate conviction of Sir Henry Pottinger: + +"I take this opportunity to advert to one important topic on which I have +hitherto considered it right to preserve a rigid silence--I allude to the +trade in opium; and I now unhesitatingly declare in this public manner +that after the most unbiased and careful observations I have become +convinced during my stay in China that the alleged demoralizing and +debasing evils of opium have been and are vastly exaggerated. Like all +other indulgences, excesses in its use are bad and reprehensible; but I +have neither myself seen such vicious consequences as are frequently +ascribed to it, nor have I been able to obtain authentic proofs or +information of their existence. The great, and perhaps I might say sole, +objection to the trade, looking at it morally and abstractedly, that I +have discovered, is that it is at present contraband and prohibited by the +laws of China, and therefore to be regretted and disavowed; but I have +striven--and I hope with some prospect of eventual success--to bring about +its legalization; and were that point once effected, I am of opinion that +its most objectionable feature would be altogether removed. Even as it now +exists it appears to me to be unattended with a hundredth part of the +debasement and misery which may be seen in our native country from the +lamentable abuse of ardent spirits, and those who so sweepingly condemn +the opium trade on that principle need not, I think, leave the shores of +England to find a far greater and more besetting evil." + +The ink on the Tientsin treaty was scarcely dry before reasons began to be +furnished against the sincerity of the emperor and his desire for peace. +Before the fleet left the Peiho workmen were already engaged repairing and +re-arming the Taku forts, and the morrow of Lord Elgin's departure from +Hongkong witnessed the revival of disturbances round Canton, where the new +imperial commissioner Hwang, instead of seeking to restore harmony, had +devoted himself to inciting the population to patriotic deeds in emulation +of Commissioner Yeh. It was found necessary to take strenuous measures +against the turbulent patriots of Kwantung, and to break up their main +force in their strong and well-chosen position at Shektsin, which was +accomplished by a vigorous attack both on land and water. The suspicion +that the Chinese were not absolutely straightforward in their latest +dealings with us was confirmed by the discovery at Shektsin of secret +imperial edicts, breathing defiance to the foreigners and inciting the +people to resistance. These and other facts warned the European +authorities on the spot that there was no certainty that the Treaty of +Tientsin would be ratified, or that a British envoy would be admitted into +the capital for even the temporary business of a diplomatic ceremony. +While people in Europe were assuming that the Chinese question might be +dismissed for twenty years, the English consuls and commanders in the +treaty ports were preparing themselves for a fresh and more vigorous +demonstration of Chinese hostility and animosity. The matter that was to +prove the sincerity and good faith of the Chinese government was the +reception at Pekin of the English officer intrusted with the duty of +exchanging the ratified copies of the treaty. If he were allowed to +proceed to Pekin there would be reason for accepting the assurances of the +emperor that a permanent arrangement should be effected later on, when it +would not injure his dignity or authority. + +Mr. Frederick Bruce, who had been secretary to his brother, Lord Elgin, +and who had previously served at Hongkong, was appointed her Majesty's +representative for the purpose of exchanging the ratifications of the +treaty. He was instructed to inform the Chinese officials that, while the +British government would not renounce the right of having a permanent +resident minister at Pekin, they were prepared to waive it for a time by +allowing diplomatic intercourse to be carried on at Shanghai. But no +deviation was to be permitted from the arrangement that the ratifications +were to be exchanged at Pekin, and Lord Malmesbury warned the new envoy +that "all the arts at which the Chinese are such adepts will be put in +practice to dissuade you from repairing to the capital." Mr. Bruce +received his instructions on March 1, 1859, and the exchange of +ratifications had to be effected before June 26. Mr. Bruce reached +Hongkong in April, and he found the air full of unsatisfactory rumors; and +when he reached Shanghai the uncertainty was intensified by the presence +of Kweiliang and Hwashana, who seemed to think that everything might be +settled without a journey to Pekin. They endeavored to get up a discussion +on some unsettled details of minor importance, in the hope that the period +for the ratification of the treaty might be allowed to expire. Mr. Bruce +announced his imminent departure for the Peiho to Kweiliang, and expressed +the hope that arrangements would be made for his safe conveyance to and +appropriate accommodation at Pekin. Neither Mr. Bruce's instructions nor +his own opinion justified any delay in proceeding to the north, and the +fleet sent on in advance under the command of Admiral Hope reached the +mouth of the Peiho on June 17, three days before Mr. Bruce. The admiral on +arrival sent a notification to the Chinese officers in command of the +forts that the English envoy was coming. But the reception given to the +officers who conveyed this intimation was distinctly unfavorable and even +hostile. The two boats sent ashore found that the entrance to the river +was effectually barred by a row of iron stakes and by an inner boom, and +that a large and excited crowd forbade them to land. A vague promise was +given that an opening would be made in the obstructions to admit the +passage of the English ships; but on the boats repeating their visit on +the succeeding day they found that the small passages had been more +effectually secured, and that there could no longer be any doubt that the +Chinese did not intend to admit the English envoy. It was therefore +determined to make a demonstration with the fleet, and if necessary to +resort to force, which it was never doubted would be attended with little +risk and crowned With complete success. + +On June 25 the attack on the Taku forts began with the removal of the iron +stakes forming the outer barrier by the steamer "Opossum," and this part +of the operations was performed without a shot being fired. When, +however, the eleven ships forming the English fleet reached the inner boom +all the Chinese forts and batteries began to fire with an accuracy which +showed that the guns had been trained to bear on this precise spot. The +result of this unexpectedly vigorous bombardment was soon shown in the +damaged condition of our ships. Two gunboats were sunk, all the vessels +were more or less damaged, and when, after three hours' cannonade, it was +sought to retrieve the doubtful fortune of the day by a land attack, the +result only went to accentuate the ill results of the naval engagement. In +this disastrous affair more than 300 men were killed and wounded, which, +added to the loss of three gunboats, represented a very serious disaster. +But the worst of it was that it convinced the emperor and his advisers +that they could hold their own against Europeans, and that it placed the +extreme party once more in the ascendant at Pekin. Sankolinsin, the Mongol +prince who had checked the advance of the Taepings, became master of the +situation, and declared that there was nothing to fear from an enemy who +had been repulsed by the raw levies of the province while he held the flat +country between the Peiho and Pekin with the flower of the Banner army. +Mr. Bruce returned to Shanghai, the fleet to Hongkong, and the matter +remained suspended until fresh instructions and troops could be received +from Europe. + +After some hesitation and delay, a plan of joint action was agreed upon in +November, 1859, between France and England, and it was hoped that the +whole expeditionary force would have reached its destination by April, +1860. Pending its arrival Mr. Bruce was instructed to present an ultimatum +with thirty days' grace demanding an immediate apology, the payment of a +large indemnity amounting to $12,000,000 to both England and France, and +the ratification of the Treaty of Tientsin. The minister, Pang Wanching, +replied, categorically refusing all these requests; and, as neither +indemnity nor apology was offered, there remained no alternative but the +inevitable and supreme appeal to arms. + +The troops which were to form the expedition were mainly drawn from India, +and Sir Hope Grant, who had not merely distinguished himself during the +Mutiny, but who had served in the first English war with China during the +operations round Canton, was appointed to the command of the army; while +Admiral Hope, strongly re-enforced in ships, retained the command of the +naval forces. A force of five batteries of artillery, six regiments of +infantry, two squadrons of cavalry, together with a body of horse and foot +from the native army of India, amounting in all to about 10,000 men, was +placed at the general's disposal in addition to the troops already in +China. The French government agreed to send another army of about two- +thirds this strength to co-operate on the Peiho, and General Montauban was +named for the command. The collection of this large expedition brought +into prominence the necessity of employing as embassador a diplomatist of +higher rank than Mr. Bruce; and accordingly, in February Lord Elgin and +Baron Gros were commissioned to again proceed to China for the purpose of +securing the ratification of their own treaty. Sir Hope Grant reached +Hongkong in March, 1860, and by his recommendation a stronger native +contingent (one Sikh regiment, four Punjab regiments, two Bombay +regiments, one Madras regiment of foot, and two irregular regiments of +Sikh cavalry, known as Fane's and Probyn's Horse; Sir John Michel and Sir +Robert Napier commanding divisions under Sir Hope Grant) was added, +raising the English force in the field to more than 13,000 men. A lease +was obtained in perpetuity, through the skillful negotiation of Mr. +Parkes, of Kowlun and Stonecutter Island, where, from their salubrious +position, it was proposed to place the troops on their arrival from India +or England. Chusan was occupied the following month without opposition by +an English brigade of 2,000 men. + +The summer had commenced before the whole of the expedition assembled at +Hongkong, whence it was moved northward to Shanghai about a year after the +failure of the attack on the forts on the Peiho. A further delay was +caused by the tardiness of the French, and July had begun before the +expedition reached the Gulf of Pechihli. Then opposite opinions led to +different suggestions, and while the English advocated proceeding to +attack Pehtang, General Montauban drew up another plan of action. But the +exigencies of the alliance compelled the English, who were ready, to wait +for the French, who were not, in order that the assault might be made +simultaneously. Before that time arrived the French commander had been +brought round to the view that the proper plan of campaign was that +suggested by the English commander; viz., to attack and capture Pehtang, +whence the Taku forts might be taken in the rear. It is somewhat +remarkable to observe that no one suggested a second time endeavoring to +carry by a front attack these forts, which had in the interval since +Admiral Hope's failure been rendered more formidable. + +At Pehtang the Chinese had made few preparations for defense, and nothing +of the same formidable character as at Taku. The forts on both sides of +the river were neither extensive nor well-armed. The garrison consisted +largely of Tartar cavalry, more useful for watching the movements of the +foreigners than for working artillery when exposed to the fire of the new +Armstrong guns of the English. The attacking force landed in boats and by +wading, Sir Hope Grant setting his men the example. No engagement took +place on the night of disembarkation. When morning broke, a suspicious +silence in the enemy's quarters strengthened the belief that Pehtang would +not be defended. While the garrison had resolved not to resist an attack, +they had contemplated causing their enemy as much loss as if he had been +obliged to carry the place by storm by placing shells in the magazine +which would be exploded by the moving of some gunlocks put in a spot where +they could not fail to be trodden upon. This plot, which was thoroughly in +accordance with the practices of Chinese warfare, was fortunately divulged +by a native more humane than patriotic, and Pehtang was captured and +occupied without the loss of a single man. This success at the +commencement enabled the whole of the expedition to land without further +delay or difficulty. Three days after the capture of Pehtang, +reconnoitering parties were sent out to ascertain what the Chinese were +doing, and whether they had made any preparations to oppose an advance +toward Taku or Tientsin. Four miles from Pehtang they came in sight of a +strongly intrenched camp, where several thousand men opened fire upon the +reconnoitering parties with their gingalls, and several men were wounded. +The object being only to find out what the Celestial army was doing, and +where it was, the Europeans withdrew on discovering the proximity of so +strong a force. The great difficulty was to discover a way of getting from +Pehtang on to some of the main roads leading to the Peiho; for the whole +of the surrounding country had been under water, and was more or less +impassable. In fact, the region round Pehtang consisted of nothing but +mud, while the one road, an elevated causeway, was blocked by the +fortified camp just mentioned as having been discovered by the +reconnoitering party. A subsequent reconnaissance, conducted by Colonel +(now Lord) Wolseley, revealed the presence of a cart-track which might +prove available for the march of troops. This track was turned to +advantage for the purpose of taking the Chinese position in flank, and to +Sir Robert Napier's division was assigned this, as it proved, difficult +operation. When the maneuver of out-flanking had been satisfactorily +accomplished, the attack was commenced in front. Here the Chinese stood to +their position, but only for a brief time, as the fire from eighteen guns, +including some forty-pounders, soon silenced their gingalls, and they +precipitately abandoned their intrenchments. While the engagement in front +had reached this favorable termination Sir Robert Napier had been engaged +on the right hand with a strong body of Tartar cavalry, which attacked +with considerable valor, and with what seemed a possibility of success, +until the guns opening upon them and the Sikh cavalry charging them +dispelled their momentary dream of victory. The prize of this battle was +the village of Sinho with its line of earthworks, one mile north of the +Peiho, and about seven miles in the rear of the Taku forts. + +The next day was occupied in examining the Chinese position and in +discovering, what was more difficult than its capture, how it might be +approached. It was found that the village, which formed a fortified square +protected by batteries, could be best approached by the river bank, and +the only obstacle in this quarter was that represented by the fire of the +guns of two junks, supported by a battery on the opposite side of the +river. These, however, were soon silenced by the superior fire directed +upon them, and the guns were spiked by Captain Willis and a few sailors, +who crossed the river for the purpose. The flank of the advance being thus +protected, the attack on Tangku itself began with a cannonade from thirty- +six pieces of the best artillery of that age. The Chinese fire was soon +rendered innocuous, and their walls and forts were battered down. Even +then, however, the garrison gave no signs of retreat, and it was not until +the Armstrongs had been dragged within a very short distance of the walls, +and the foot-soldiers had absolutely effected an entrance, that the +garrison thought of their personal safety and turned in flight. + +Some days before the battle and capture of Tangku, Lord Elgin received +several communications from Hang, the Governor-general of Pechihli, +requesting a cessation of hostilities, and announcing the approach of two +imperial commissioners appointed for the express purpose of ratifying the +Treaty of Tientsin. But Lord Elgin very wisely perceived that it would be +impossible to negotiate on fair terms unless the Taku forts were in his +possession. The capture of Tangku placed the allied forces in the rear of +the northern forts on the Peiho; and those forts once occupied, the others +on the southern side would be practically untenable and obliged to +surrender at discretion. Several days were passed in preliminary +observations and skirmishing. On the one side, the whole of the Tartar +cavalry was removed to the southern bank; on the other, a bridge of boats +was thrown across the Peiho, and the approach to the northern fort +carefully examined up to 600 yards from the wall. At this point the views +of the allied generals again clashed. General Montauban wished to attack +the southern forts. Sir Hope Grant was determined to begin by carrying the +northern. The attack on the chief northern fort commenced on the morning +of August 21 with a heavy cannonade; the Chinese, anticipating the plans +of the English, were the first to fire. The Chinese fought their guns with +extraordinary courage. A shell exploded their principal magazine, which +blew up with a terrible report; but as soon as the smoke cleared off they +recommenced their fire with fresh ardor. Although even this fort had not +been constructed with the same strength in the rear as they all presented +in the front, the resistance was most vigorous. A premature attempt to +throw a pontoon across the ditch was defeated with the loss of sixteen +men. The coolie corps here came to the front, and, rushing into the water, +held up the pontoons while the French and some English troops dashed +across. But all their efforts to scale the wall were baffled, and it +seemed as if they had only gone to self-destruction. While the battle was +thus doubtfully contested, Major Anson, who had shown the greatest +intrepidity on several occasions, succeeded in cutting the ropes that held +up a drawbridge, and an entrance was soon effected within the body of the +works. The Chinese still resisted nobly, and it was computed that out of a +garrison of 500 men but 100 escaped. The English loss was 22 killed, and +179, including 21 officers, were wounded. To these figures must be added +the French loss. + +There still remained four more forts on the northern side of the river, +and it seemed as if these would offer further resistance, as the garrisons +uttered threats of defiance to a summons to surrender. But appearances +were deceptive, and for the good reason that all of these forts were only +protected in the rear by a slight wall. The French rushed impetuously to +the attack, only to find that the garrison had given up the defense, while +a large number had actually retired. Two thousand prisoners were made, and +the fall of the forts on the northern bank was followed by an immediate +summons to those on the southern to surrender; and as they were commanded +by the guns in the former they yielded with as good a grace as they could +muster. The following day formal occupation was made, and the spoil +included more than 600 cannon of various sizes and degrees of efficiency. +On that day also the fleet, which had during these operations been riding +at anchor off the mouth of the river, proceeded across the bar, removed +the different obstacles that had been intended to hinder its approach, and +Admiral Hope anchored in security off those very forts which had repulsed +him in the previous year, and which would in all probability have +continued to defy any direct attack from the sea. Let it not be said, +therefore, that Sir Hope Grant's capture of the Taku forts reflected in +any way on the courage or capacity of Admiral Hope for the failure in +1859. + +By this decisive success the road to Tientsin was opened both by land and +by the river. The fleet of gunboats, which had participated as far as they +could without incurring any undue danger in the attack on the forts, were +ordered up the Peiho; and the English embassador, escorted by a strong +naval and military force, proceeded to Tientsin, where it would be +possible, without any loss of dignity, to resume negotiations with the +Pekin government. The advanced gunboats arrived at Tientsin on August 23, +and three days later the greater portion of the expedition had entered +that city. No resistance was attempted, although several batteries and +intrenched camps were passed on the way. Precautions were at once taken to +make the position of the troops as secure as possible in the midst of a +very large and presumably hostile population. The people showed, according +to the ideas of Europe, an extraordinary want of patriotic fervor, and +were soon engaged, on the most amicable terms, in conducting a brisk trade +with the invaders of their country; but there was never any doubt that on +the first sign of a reverse they would have turned upon the foreign +troops, and completed by all the means in their power their discomfiture. +Several communications passed between the opposite camps during these +days; and when Hang announced the withdrawal of all Chinese troops from +Tientsin he expressed a wish that the English embassador would not bring +many vessels of war with him. But such requests were made more with the +desire to save appearances than from any hope that they would be granted. +The reality of their fears, and of their consequent desire to negotiate, +was shown by the appointment of Kweiliang, who had arranged the Treaty of +Tientsin, as high commissioner to provide for the necessary ceremonies in +connection with its ratification. Kweiliang apparently possessed powers of +the most extensive character; and he hastened to inform Lord Elgin, who +had taken up his residence in a beautiful yamen in Tientsin, that he had +received the emperor's authority to discuss and decide everything. In +response to this notification the reply was sent that the three conditions +of peace were an apology for the attack on the English flag at Peiho, the +payment of an indemnity, including the costs of the war, and, thirdly, the +ratification and execution of the Treaty of Tientsin, including, of +course, the reception at Pekin of the representative of the Queen of +England on honorable terms adequate to the dignity of that great +sovereign. To none of these was Kweiliang himself disposed to raise any +objection. Only in connection with the details of the last named point was +there likely that any difference of opinion would arise; and that +difference of opinion speedily revealed itself when it became known that +the English insisted on the advance of their army to the town of Tungchow, +only twelve miles distant from the walls of Pekin. To the Chinese +ministers this simple precaution seemed like exacting the extreme rights +of the conqueror, before, too, the act of conquest had been consummated; +for already fresh troops were arriving from Mongolia and Manchuria, and +the valor of Sankolinsin was beginning to revive. That the Chinese +government had under the hard taskmaster, necessity, made great progress +in its views on foreign matters was not to be denied, but somehow or other +its movements always lagged behind the requirements of the hour, and the +demands of the English were again ahead of what it was disposed to yield. + +If the Chinese government had promptly accepted the inevitable, and if +Kweiliang had negotiated with as much celerity as he pretended to be his +desire, peace might have been concluded and the Chinese saved some further +ignominy. But it soon became clear that all the Chinese were thinking +about was to gain time, and as the months available for active campaigning +were rapidly disappearing, it was imperative that not the least delay +should be sanctioned. On September 8, Lord Elgin and Sir Hope Grant left +Tientsin with an advance force of about 1,500 men; and, marching by the +highroad, reached the pretty village of Hosiwu, half-way between that town +and the capital. A few days later this force was increased by the +remainder of one division, while to Sir Robert Napier was left the task of +guarding with the other Tientsin and the communications with the sea. At +Hosiwu negotiations were resumed by Tsai, Prince of I, a nephew of the +emperor, who declared that he had received authority to conclude all +arrangements; but he was curtly informed that no treaty could be concluded +save at Tung-chow, and the army resumed its advance beyond Hosiwu. The +march was continued without molestation to a point beyond the village of +Matow, but when Sir Hope Grant approached a place called Chan-chia-wan he +found himself in presence of a large army. This was the first sign of any +resolve to offer military opposition to the invaders since the capture of +the Taku forts, and it came to a great extent in the manner of a surprise, +for by a special agreement with Mr. Parkes the settlement of the +difficulty was to be concluded at Chan-chia-wan in an amicable manner. +Instead, however, of the emperor's delegates, the English commander found +Sankolinsin and the latest troops drawn from Pekin and beyond the wall in +battle array, and occupying the very ground which had been assigned for +the English encampment. + +The day before the English commander perceived that he was in face of a +strong force Mr. Parkes and some other officers and civilians had been +sent ahead with an escort of Sikh cavalry to arrange the final +preliminaries with the imperial commissioners at Tungchow, both as to +where the camp was to be pitched and also as to the interview between the +respective plenipotentiaries of the opposing powers. This party proceeded +to Tungchow without encountering any opposition or perceiving any +exceptional military precautions. Troops were indeed observed at several +points, and officers in command of pickets demanded the nature of their +business and where they were going, but the reply "To the Commissioners" +at once satisfied all inquiries and opened every barrier. The one incident +that happened was of happy augury for a satisfactory issue if the result +went to prove the fallaciousness of human expectations. A change had in +the meanwhile come over the minds of the imperial commissioners, whether +in accordance with the working of a deep and long-arranged policy, or from +the confidence created by the sight of the numerous warriors drawn from +the cradle of the Manchu race for the defense of the capital and dynasty, +can never be ascertained with any degree of certainty, Their tone suddenly +assumed greater boldness and arrogance. To some of the Englishmen it +appeared "almost offensive," and it was only after five hours' discussion +between Mr. Parkes and the commissioners at Tungchow that some sign was +given of a more yielding disposition. The final arrangements were hastily +concluded in the evening of September 17 for the arrival of the troops at +the proposed camping ground on the morrow, and for the interview that was +to follow as soon after as possible. While Mr. Parkes and some of his +companions were to ride forward in the morning to apprise Sir Hope Grant +of what had been agreed upon, and to point out the site for his camp, the +others were to remain in Tungchow with the greater part of the Sikh +escort. + +On their return toward the advancing English army in the early morning of +the following day, Mr. Parkes and his party met with frequent signs of +military movement in the country between Tungchow and Chan-chia-wan. Large +bodies of infantry and gingall-men were seen marching from all quarters to +the town. At Chan-chia-wan itself still more emphatic tokens were visible +of a coming battle. Cavalry were drawn up in dense bodies, but under +shelter. In a nullah one regiment of a thousand sabers was stationed with +the men standing at their horses' heads ready for instant action. At +another point a number of men were busily engaged in constructing a +battery and in placing twelve guns in position. When the Englishmen gained +the plain they found the proposed site of the English camp in the actual +possession of a Chinese army, and a strong force of Tartar cavalry, alone +reckoned to number six or seven thousand men, scouring the plain. To all +inquiries as to what these warlike arrangements betokened no reply was +made by the soldiers, and when the whereabout of the responsible general +was asked there came the stereotyped answer that "he was many li away." To +the most obtuse mind these arrangements could convey but one meaning. They +indicated that the Chinese government had resolved to make another +endeavor to avert the concessions demanded from them by the English and +their allies, and to appeal once more to the God of Battles ere they +accepted the inevitable. When the whole truth flashed across the mind of +Mr. Parkes, the army of Sir Hope Grant might be, and indeed was, marching +into the trap prepared for it, with such military precautions perhaps as a +wise general never neglected, but still wholly unprepared for the +extensive and well-arranged opposition planned for its reception by a +numerous army established in a strong position of its own choosing. It +became, therefore, of the greatest importance to communicate the actual +state of affairs to him, and to place at his disposal the invaluable +information which the Englishmen returning from Tungchow had in their +possession. But Mr. Parkes had still more to do. It was his duty to bring +before the Chinese imperial commissioners at the earliest possible moment +the knowledge of this flagrant breach of the convention he had concluded +the day before, to demand its meaning, and to point out the grave +consequences that must ensue from such treacherous hostility; and in that +supreme moment, as he had done on the many other critical occasions of his +career in China--at Canton and Taku in particular--the one thought in the +mind of Mr. Parkes was how best to perform his duty. He did not forget +also that, while he was almost in a place of safety near the limits of the +Chinese pickets, and not far distant from the advancing columns of Sir +Hope Grant, there were other Englishmen in his rear possibly in imminent +peril of their lives amid the Celestials at Tungchow. + +Mr. Parkes rode back, therefore, to that town, and with him went one +English dragoon, named Phipps, and one Sikh sowar carrying a flag of truce +on his spear-point. We must leave them for the moment to follow the +movements of the others. To Mr. Loch was intrusted the task of +communicating with Sir Hope Grant; while the remainder of the party were +to remain stationary, in order to show the Chinese that they did not +suspect anything, and that they were full of confidence. Mr. Loch, +accompanied by two Sikhs, rode at a hard canter away from the Chinese +lines. He passed through one body of Tartar cavalry without opposition, +and reached the advanced guard of the English force in safety. To tell his +news was but the work of a minute. It confirmed the suspicions which +General Grant had begun to feel at the movements of some bodies of cavalry +on the flank of his line of march. Mr. Loch had performed his share of the +arrangement. He had warned Sir Hope Grant. But to the chivalrous mind duty +is but half-performed if aid is withheld from those engaged in fulfilling +theirs. What he had done had proved unexpectedly easy; it remained for him +to assist those whose share was more arduous and perilous. So Mr. Loch +rode back to the Chinese lines, Captain Brabazon insisting on following +him, again accompanied by two Sikhs but not the same who had ridden with +him before. + +Sir Hope Grant had given him the assurance that unless absolutely forced +to engage he would postpone the action for two hours. This small party of +four men rode without hesitation, and at a rapid pace, through the +skirmishers of the Chinese army. The rapidity of their movements +disconcerted the Chinese, who allowed them to pass without opposition and +almost without notice. They rode through the Streets of Chan-chia-wan +without meeting with any molestation, although they were crowded with the +mustering men of the imperial army. They gained Tungchow without let or +hinderance, after having passed through probably not less than 30,000 men +about to do battle with the long hated and now feared foreigners. It may +have been, as suggested, that they owed their safety to a belief that they +were the bearers of their army's surrender! Arrived at Tungchow, Mr. Loch +found the Sikh escort at the temple outside the gates unaware of any +danger--all the Englishmen being absent in the town, where they were +shopping--and a letter left by Mr. Parkes warning them on return to +prepare for instant flight, and saying that he was off in search of Prince +Tsai. In that search he was at last successful. He found the high +commissioner, he asked the meaning of the change that had taken place, and +was told in curt and defiant tones that "there could be no peace, there +must be war." + +The last chance of averting hostilities was thus shown to be in vain. +Prince Tsai indorsed the action of Sankolinsin. Mr. Parkes had only the +personal satisfaction of knowing that he had done everything he could to +prove that the English did not wish to press their military superiority +over an antagonist whose knowledge of war was slight and out of date. He +had done this at the greatest personal peril. It only remained to secure +his own safety and that of his companions. By this time the whole party of +Englishmen had re-assembled in the temple; and Mr. Loch, anxious for Mr. +Parkes, had gone into the city and met him galloping away from the yamen +of the commissioner. There was no longer reason for delay. Not an +Englishman had yet been touched, but between this small band and safety +lay the road back through the ranks of Sankolinsin's warriors. From +Tungchow to the advanced post of Sir Hope Grant's army was a ten mile +ride; and most of the two hours' grace had already expired. Could it be +done? By this time most of the Chinese troops had reached Chan-chia-wan, +where they had been drawn up in battle array among the maize-fields and in +the nullahs as already described. From Tungchow to that place the country +was almost deserted; and the fugitives proceeded unmolested along the road +till they reached that town. The streets were crowded partly with armed +citizens and peasants, but chiefly with panic-stricken householders; and +by this time the horses were blown, and some of them almost exhausted. +Through this crowd the seven Englishmen and twenty Sikhs walked their +horses, and met not the least opposition. They reached the eastern side +without insult or injury, passed through the gates, and descending the +declivity found themselves in the rear of the whole Chinese army. The +dangers through which they had passed were as nothing compared with those +they had now to encounter. A shell burst in the air at this moment, +followed by the discharge of the batteries on both sides. The battle had +begun. The promised two hours had expired. The fugitives were some ten +minutes too late. + +The position of this small band in the midst of an Asiatic army actually +engaged in mortal combat with their kinsmen may be better imagined than +described. They were riding down the road which passed through the center +of the Chinese position, and the banks on each side of them were lined +with matchlock-men, among whom the shells of the English guns were already +bursting. Parties of cavalry were not wanting here, but out in the plain +where the Tartar horsemen swarmed in thousands the greatest danger of all +awaited them. Their movements were slow, painfully slow, and the progress +was delayed by the necessity of waiting for those who were the worst +mounted; but they were "all in the same boat, and, like Englishmen, would +sink or swim together." In the accumulation of difficulties that stared +them in the face not the least seemed to be that they were advancing in +the teeth of their own countrymen's fire, which was growing fiercer every +minute. In this critical moment men turned to Mr. Parkes, and Captain +Barbazon expressed the belief of those present in a cool brave man in +arduous extremity when he cried out, "I vote Parkes decides what is to be +done." To follow the main road seemed to be certain destruction and death +without the power of resisting; for even assuming that some of them could +have cut their way through the Tartar cavalry, and escaped from the +English shell, they could hardly have avoided being shot down by the long +lines of matchlock-men who were ready to fire on them the instant they saw +their backs. There was only one possible avenue of escape, and that was to +gain the right flank of the army, and endeavor to make their way by a +detour round to the English lines. Assuredly this was not a very promising +mode of escape, but it seemed to have the greatest chances of success. But +when the Chinese, who had up to this regarded their movements without +interfering, saw this change in their course, they at once took measures +to stop it. A military mandarin said if they persisted in their attempt +they would be treated as enemies and fired upon; but that he was willing +to respect their flag of truce, and that if they would accompany him to +the general's presence he would obtain a safe conduct for them. The offer +was accepted, partly no doubt because it could not be refused, but still +also on its own merits. Safe conducts during the heat of battle, even with +civilized European peoples, are, however, not such easy things either to +grant or to carry out. Mr. Parkes accepted his offer, therefore, and he, +Mr. Loch, and the Sikh trooper Nalsing, bearing a flag of truce, rode off +with the mandarin in search of the general, while the five other Europeans +and the Sikh escort remained on the road awaiting their return. They +proceeded to the left, where it was understood that Sankolinsin commanded +in person. They met with some adventures even on this short journey. +Coming suddenly upon a large body of infantry, they were almost pulled +from their horses, and would have been killed but for the mandarin rushing +between them and shouting to the men "not to fire." A short distance +beyond this they halted, when the approach of Sankolinsin was announced by +loud shouts of his name from the soldiery. Mr. Parkes at once addressed +him, saying that they had come under a flag of truce, and that they wished +to regain their army. The Chinese commander replied to his remarks on the +usages of war in true Tartar fashion--with laughter and abuse. The +soldiers pressed round the unfortunate Englishmen and placed their +matchlocks against their bodies. Escape was hopeless, and death seemed +inevitable. But insult was more the object of the Mongol general than +their death. They were dragged before him and forced to press the ground +with their heads at the feet of Sankolinsin. They were subjected to +numerous other indignities, and at last, when it became evident that the +battle was going against the Chinese, they were placed in one of the +country carts and sent off to Pekin. While Mr. Parkes and Mr. Loch were +thus ill-used, their comrades waiting on the road had fared no better. +Shortly after their departure the Chinese soldiers began to hustle and +jeer at the Englishmen and their native escort. As the firing increased +and some of the Chinese were hit they grew more violent. When the news was +received of what had happened to Mr. Parkes, and of how Sankolinsin had +laughed to scorn their claim to protection, the soldiers could no longer +be restrained. The Englishmen and the natives were dragged from their +horses, cruelly bound, and hurried to the rear, whence they followed at no +great distance their companions in misfortune. While the greater portion +of these events had been in progress, Colonel Walker, Mr. Thompson, and +the men of the King's Dragoon Guards, had been steadily pacing up and down +on the embankment as arranged, in order to show the Chinese that they +suspected no treachery and had no fears. They continued doing this until a +French officer joined them; but on his getting into a dispute with some of +the Chinese about his mule, he drew his pistol and fired at them. He was +immediately killed. There was then no longer the least hope of restraining +the Chinese, so the whole of the party spurred their horses and escaped to +the English army under a heavy but ineffectual fire from matchlocks and +gingalls. Their flight was the signal for the commencement of the battle, +although at that very moment, had they only known it, the chief party of +Englishmen had gained the road east of Chan-chia-wan, and, if the battle +had only been delayed a quarter of an hour, they might all have escaped. + +But the two hours of grace were up, and Sir Hope Grant saw no further use +in delay. General Montauban was still more impatient, and the men were +eager to engage. They had to win their camping-ground that night, and the +day was already far advanced. The French occupied the right wing, that is +the position opposite the spot where we have seen Sankolinsin commanding +in person, and a squadron of Fane's Horse had been lent them to supply +their want of cavalry. The battle began with the fire of their batteries, +which galled the Chinese so much that the Tartar cavalry were ordered up +to charge the guns, and right gallantly they did so. A battery was almost +in their hands, its officers had to use their revolvers, when the Sikhs +and a few French dragoons, led by Colonel Foley, the English commissioner +with the French force, gallantly charged them in turn, and compelled them +to withdraw. Neither side derived much advantage from this portion of the +contest, but the repulse of the Tartar cavalry enabled the French guns to +renew their fire with great effect on the line of Chinese infantry. While +the French were thus engaged on the right, the English troops had begun a +vigorous attack on both the center and their left. The Chinese appeared in +such dense masses, and maintained so vigorous, but fortunately so ill- +directed, a fire, that the English force made but little progress at +either point. The action might have been indefinitely prolonged and left +undecided, had not Sir Hope Grant suddenly resolved to re-enforce his left +with a portion of his center, and to assail the enemy's right vigorously. +This latter part of the battle began with a charge of some squadrons of +Probyn's Horse against the bodies of mounted Tartars moving in the plain, +whom they, with their gallant leader at their head, routed in the sight of +the two armies. This overthrow of their chosen fighting-men greatly +discouraged the rest of the Chinese soldiers, and when the infantry +advanced with the Sikhs in front they slowly began to give ground. But +even then there were none of the usual symptoms of a decisive victory. The +French were so exhausted by their efforts that they had been compelled to +halt, and General Montauban was obliged to curb his natural impetuosity, +and to admit that he could take no part in the final attack on Chan-chia- +wan. Sir Hope Grant, however, pressed on and occupied the town. He did not +call in his men until they had seized without resistance a large camp +about one mile west of the town, where they captured several guns. Thus +ended the battle of Chan-chia-wan with the defeat and retreat of the +strong army which Sankolinsin had raised in order to drive the barbarians +into the sea. + +Although the battle was won, Sir Hope Grant, measuring the resistance with +the eye of an experienced soldier, came to the conclusion that his force +was not sufficiently strong to overawe so obstinate a foe; and accordingly +ordered Sir Robert Napier to join him with as many troops as he could +spare from the Tientsin garrison. Having thus provided for the arrival of +re-enforcements at an early date, he was willing to resume his onward +march for Tungchow, where it was hoped some tidings would be obtained of +the missing officers and men. Two days intervened before any decisive move +was made, but Mr. Wade was sent under a flag of truce into Tungchow to +collect information. But he failed to learn anything more about Mr. Parkes +than that he had quitted the town in safety after his final interview with +Prince Tsai. Lord Elgin now hastened up from Hosiwu to join the military +headquarters, and on September 21, the French having been joined by +another brigade, offensive operations were recommenced. The delay had +encouraged the Chinese to make another stand, and they had collected in +considerable force for the defense of the Palikao bridge, which affords +the means of crossing the Peiho west of Tungchow. Here again the battle +commenced with a cavalry charge which, despite an accident that might have +had more serious results, was completely successful. This achievement was +followed up by the attack on several fortified positions which were not +defended with any great amount of resolution, and while these matters were +in progress on the side where the English were engaged, the French had +carried the bridge with its twenty-five guns in position in very gallant +style. The capture of this bridge and the dispersion of the troops, +including the Imperial Guard, which had been intrusted with its defense, +completed the discomfiture of the Chinese. Pekin itself lay almost at the +mercy of the invader, and, unless diplomacy could succeed better than +arms, nothing would prevent the hated foreigners violating its privacy not +merely with their presence, but in the most unpalatable guise of armed +victors. + +The day after the battle at the Palikao bridge came a letter from Prince +Kung the emperor's next brother, stating that Prince Tsai and his +colleagues had not managed matters satisfactorily, and that he had been +appointed with plenipotentiary powers for the discussion and decision of +the peace question. But the prince went on to request a temporary +suspension of hostilities--a demand with which no general or embassador +could have complied so long as officers were detained who had been seized +in violation of the usages of war. Lord Elgin replied in the clearest +terms that there could be no negotiations for peace until these prisoners +were restored, and that if they were not sent back in safety the +consequences would be most serious for the Chinese government. But even at +this supreme moment of doubt and danger, the subtlety of Chinese diplomacy +would have free play. Prince Kung was young in years and experience, but +his finesse would have done credit to a gray-haired statesman. +Unfortunately for him, the question had got beyond the stage for +discussion: the English embassador had stated the one condition on which +negotiations would be renewed, and until that had been complied with there +was no need to give ear to the threats, promises and entreaties even of +Prince Kung. As the prince gave no sign of yielding this point during the +week's delay in bringing up the second division from Tientsin, Lord Elgin +requested Sir Hope Grant to resume his march on Pekin, from which the +advanced guard of the allied forces was distant little more than ten +miles. The cavalry had reconnoitered almost up to the gates, and had +returned with the report that the walls were strong and in good condition. +The danger to a small army of attempting to occupy a great city of the +size and population of Pekin is almost obvious; and, moreover, the +consistent policy of the English authorities had been to cause the Chinese +people as little injury and suffering as possible. Should an attack on the +city become unavoidable, it was decided that the point attacked should be +the Tartar quarter, including the palace, which occupied the northern half +of the city. By this time it had become known that Parkes and Loch were +living, that they were confined in the Kaou Meaou Temple, near the Tehshun +Gate, and that latterly they had been fairly well treated. + +In execution of the plan of attack that had been agreed upon, the allied +forces marched round Pekin to the northwest corner of the walls, having as +their object the Summer Palace of the emperor at Yuen Min Yuen, not quite +four miles distant from the city. + +On the approach of the foreign army, Hienfung fled in terror from his +palace, and sought shelter at Jehol, the hunting residence of the emperors +beyond the Wall. His flight was most precipitate; and the treasures of the +Summer Palace were left at the mercy of the Western spoilers. The French +soldiers had made the most of the start they had obtained, and left +comparatively little for their English comrades, who, moreover, were +restrained by the bonds of a stricter discipline. But the amount of prize +property that remained was still considerable, and, by agreement between +the two generals, it was divided in equal shares between the armies. The +capture and occupation of the Summer Palace completed the European +triumph, and obliged Prince Kung to promptly acquiesce in Lord Elgin's +demand for the immediate surrender of the prisoners, if he wished to avoid +the far greater calamity of a foreign occupation of the Tartar quarter of +Pekin and the appropriation of its vaster collection of treasures. + +On October 6 Mr. Parkes wrote from his place of confinement that the +French and English detained were to be returned on the 8th of the month, +and that the imperial commanders had been ordered at the same time to +retire for a considerable distance from Pekin. These promises were carried +out. Prince Kung was at last resolved to make all the concessions +requisite to insure the speedy conclusion of peace. The restoration of +these captives removed what was thought to be the one obstacle to Lord +Elgin's discussing the terms on which the invading force would retire and +to the respective governments resuming diplomatic relations. It was +fortunate for China that the exact fate of the other prisoners was +unknown, and that Lord Elgin felt able, in consequence of the more +friendly proceedings of Prince Kung, to overlook the earlier treatment of +those now returned to him, for the narrative of Mr. Parkes and his fellow +prisoners was one that tended to heighten the feeling of indignation at +the original breach of faith. To say that they were barbarously ill-used +is to employ a phrase conveying a very inadequate idea of the numerous +indignities and the cruel personal treatment to which they were subjected. +Under these great trials neither of these intrepid Englishmen wavered in +their refusal to furnish any information or to make any concession +compromising their country. Mr. Loch's part was in one sense the more +easy, as his ignorance of the language prevented his replying, but in +bodily suffering he had to pay a proportionately greater penalty. The +incidents of their imprisonment afford the most creditable testimony to +the superiority which the pride of race as well as "the equal mind in +arduous circumstance" gives weak humanity over physical suffering. They +are never likely to pass out of the public memory; and those who remember +the daring and the chivalry which had inspired Mr. Parkes and Mr. Loch on +the day when Prince Tsai's treachery and Sankolinsin's mastery were +revealed, will not be disposed to consider it exaggerated praise to say +that, for an adventure so honorably conceived and so nobly carried out, +where the risk was never reckoned and where the penalty was so patiently +borne, the pages of history may be searched almost in vain for an event +that, in the dramatic elements of courage and suffering, presents such a +complete and consistent record of human gallantry and devotion as the +capture and subsequent captivity of these English gentlemen and their Sikh +companion. + +The further conditions as preliminary to the ratification of the Treaty of +Tientsin were gradually, if reluctantly, complied with. On October 13 the +northeast gate was handed over to the allied troops, but not before Sir +Hope Grant had threatened to open fire on the walls. At the same time +Prince Kung returned eight sowars of Fane's Horse and one Frenchman, all +the survivors, besides those already surrendered, of the small band which +had ridden from Tungchow nearly a month before. The Chinese prince stated +in explanation that "a certain number were missing after the fight, or +have died of their wounds or of sickness." But the narrative of the Sikhs +was decisive as to the fate of the five Englishmen and their own comrades. +They had been brutally bound with ropes which, although drawn as tight as +human force could draw them, were tightened still more by cold water being +poured upon the bands, and they had been maltreated in every form by a +cruel enemy, and provided only with food of the most loathsome kind. Some +of the prisoners were placed in cages. Lieutenant Anderson, a gallant +young officer for whom future renown had been predicted, became delirious +and died on the ninth day of his confinement. Mr. De Normann died a week +later. What fate befell Captain Barbazon and his French companion, the +Abbe de Luc, is uncertain, but the evidence on the subject inclines us to +accept as accurate the statement that the Chinese commander in the fight +at Palikao, enraged at his defeat, caused them to be executed on the +bridge. The soldier Phipps endured for a longer time than Mr. Bowlby the +taunts and ill-usage of their jailers, but they at last shared the same +fate, dying from the effects of their ill-treatment. The bodies of all the +Englishmen, with the exception of Captain Barbazon, were restored, and of +most of the Sikhs also. The Chinese officials were more barbarous in their +cruelty than even the worst scum among their malefactors; for the +prisoners in the jails, far from adding to the tortures of the unfortunate +Europeans, did everything in their power to mitigate their sufferings, +alleviate their pains, and supply their wants. + +The details of these cruel deeds raised a feeling of great horror in men's +minds, and, although the desire to arrange the question of peace without +delay was uppermost with Lord Elgin, still it was felt that some grave +step was necessary to express the abhorrence with which England regarded +this cruel and senseless outrage, and to bring home to the Chinese people +and government the fact that Englishmen could not be murdered with +impunity. Lord Elgin refused to hold any further intercourse with the +Chinese government until this great crime had been purged by some signal +punishment. Sir Hope Grant and he had little difficulty in arriving at the +decision that the best mode of expiation was to destroy the Summer Palace. +The French commander refused to participate in the act which carried a +permanent lesson of political necessity to the heart of the Pekin +government, and which did more than any other incident of the campaign to +show Hienfung that the hour had gone by for trifling. On October 18 the +threat was carried into execution. The Summer Palace was destroyed by +fire, and the sum of $500,000 was demanded and obtained from the Chinese +as some compensation for the families of the murdered men. The palace of +Yuen Min Yuen had been the scene of some of the worst sufferings of the +English prisoners. From its apartments the high mandarins and the +immediate courtiers of the emperor had gloated over and enjoyed the +spectacle of their foreign prisoners' agony. The whole of Pekin witnessed +in return the destruction wrought to the sovereign's abode by the +indignant English, and the clouds of smoke hung for days like a vast black +pall over the city. + +That act of severe but just vengeance consummated, the negotiations for +the ratification of the treaty were resumed. The Hall of Ceremonies was +selected as the place in which the ratifying act should be performed, +while, as some punishment for the hostile part he had played, the palace +of Prince Tsai was appropriated as the temporary official residence of +Lord Elgin and Baron Gros. The formal act of ratification was performed in +this building on October 24. Lord Elgin proceeded in a chair of state, +accompanied by his suite, and also by Sir Hope Grant with an escort of 100 +officers and 500 troops, through the streets from the Anting Gate to the +Hall of Ceremonies. Prince Kung, attended by a large body of civil and +military mandarins, was there in readiness to produce the imperial edict +authorizing him to attach the emperor's seal to the treaty, and to accept +the responsibility for his country of conforming with its terms and +carrying out its stipulations. Some further delay was caused by the +necessity of waiting until the edict should be received from the emperor +at Jehol authorizing the publication of the treaty, not the least +important point in connection with its conclusion if the millions of China +were to understand and perform what their rulers had promised for them. +That closing act was successfully achieved, and more rapidly than had been +expected. The Pekinese beheld English troops and officers in residence in +their midst for the first time, and when the army was withdrawn and the +plenipotentiary, Lord Elgin, transferred to his brother, Mr. Frederick +Bruce, the charge of affairs in China as Resident Minister, the ice had +been broken in the relations between the officials of the two countries, +and the greatest, if not the last, barrier of Chinese exclusiveness had +been removed. The last of the allied troops turned their backs upon Pekin +on November 9, and the greater portion of the expedition departed for +India and Europe just before the cold weather set in. A few days later the +rivers were frozen and navigation had become impossible, which showed how +narrow was the margin left for the completion of the operations of war. + +The object which the more far-seeing of the English residents had from the +first hour of difficulty stated to be necessary for satisfactory +relations--direct intercourse with the Pekin government--was thus obtained +after a keen and bitter struggle of thirty years. Although vanquished, the +Chinese may be said to have come out of this war with an increased +military reputation. The war closed with a treaty enforcing all the +concessions made by its predecessor. The right to station an embassador in +Pekin signified that the greatest barrier of all had been broken down; the +old school of politicians were put completely out of court, and a young +and intelligent prince, closely connected with the emperor, assumed the +personal charge of the foreign relations of the country. As one who had +seen with his own eyes the misfortunes of his countrymen, Prince Kung was +the more disposed to adhere to what he had promised to perform. Under his +direction the ratified Treaty of Tientsin became a bond of union instead +of an element of discord between the cabinets of London and Pekin; and a +termination was put, by an arrangement carried at the point of the sword, +to the constant friction and recrimination which had been the prevailing +characteristics of the intercourse for a whole generation. The Chinese had +been subjected to a long and bitter lesson. They had at last learned the +virtue of submitting to necessity; but although they have profited to some +extent both in peace and war by their experience, it requires some +assurance to declare that they have even now accepted the inevitable. That +remains the problem of the future; but in 1860 Prince Kung came to the +sensible conclusion that for that period, and until China had recovered +from her internal confusion, there was nothing to be gained and much to be +lost by protracted resistance to the peoples of the West. Whatever could +be retained by tact and finesse were to form part of the natural rights of +China; but the privileges only to be asserted in face of Armstrong guns +and rifles were to be abandoned with as good a grace as the injured +feeling of a nation can ever display. + + + + +CHAPTER XX + +THE TAEPING REBELLION + + +We left the Taepings supreme at Nankin, but maintaining themselves there +with some difficulty against two imperial armies raised by the loyal +efforts of the inhabitants of the central provinces. This was at the +beginning of 1857; and there is no doubt that if the government had +avoided a conflict with the Europeans, and concentrated its efforts and +power on the contest with the Taeping rebels, they would have speedily +annihilated the tottering fabric of Tien Wang's authority. But the respite +of four years secured by the attention of the central government being +monopolized by the foreign question enabled the Taepings to consolidate +their position, augment their fighting forces, and present a more +formidable front to the imperial authorities. When Prince Kung learned +from Lord Elgin the full extent of the success of the Taepings on the +Yangtse, of which the officials at Pekin seemed to possess a very +imperfect and inaccurate knowledge, the Manchu authorities realized that +it was a vital question for them to reassert their authority without +further delay, but on beginning to put their new resolve into practice +they soon experienced that the position of the Taepings in 1861 differed +materially from what it was in 1857. + +The course of events during that period must be briefly summarized. In +1858 the imperialists under Tseng Kwofan and Chang Kwoliang renewed the +siege of Nankin, but as the city was well supplied with provisions, and as +the imperialists were well known to have no intention of delivering an +assault, the Taepings did not feel any apprehension. After the investment +had continued for nearly a year, Chung Wang, who had now risen to the +supreme place among the rebels, insisted on quitting the city before it +was completely surrounded, with the object of beating up levies and +generally relieving the pressure caused by the besiegers. In this endeavor +he more than once experienced the unkindness of fortune, for when he had +collected 5,000 good troops he was defeated in a vigorous attempt to cut +his way through a far larger imperial force. Such, however, was his +reputation that the imperial commanders before Nankin sent many of their +men to assist the officers operating against him, and Chung Wang, seizing +the opportunity, made his way by forced marches back to Nankin, overcoming +such resistance as the enfeebled besiegers were able to offer. The whole +of the year 1859 was passed in practical inaction, but at its close the +Taepings only retained possession of four towns, besides Nankin, on the +Yangtse. It again became necessary for Chung Wang to sally forth and +assume the offensive in the rear and on the line of supplies of the +beleaguering imperialists. His main difficulty was in obtaining the +consent of Tien Wang, who was at this time given over to religious +pursuits or private excesses, and Chung Wang states that he only consented +when he found that he could not stop him. In January, 1860, Chung Wang +began what proved to be a very remarkable campaign. He put his men in good +humor by distributing a large sum of money among them, and he succeeded in +eluding the imperial commanders and in misleading them as to his +intentions. While they thought he had gone off to relieve Ganking, he had +really hastened to attack the important city of Hangchow, where much spoil +and material for carrying on the war might be secured by the victor. He +captured the city with little or no loss, on March 19, 1860, but the +Tartar city held out until relieved by Chang Kwoliang, who hastened from +Nankin for the purpose. Once again the imperial commanders in their +anxiety to crush Chung Wang had reduced their force in front of Nankin to +an excessively low condition, and the Taeping leader, placed in a +desperate position, seized the only chance of safety by hastening from +Hangchow to Nankin at full speed, and attacking the imperial lines. This +battle was fought early in the morning of a cold snowy day--May 3, 1860-- +and resulted in the loss of 5,000 imperialists, and the compulsory raising +of the siege. The Taeping cause might have been resuscitated by this +signal victory if Tien Wang had only shown himself able to act up to the +great part he assumed, but not merely was he incapable of playing the part +of either a warrior or a statesman, but his petty jealousy prevented his +making use of the undoubted ability of his lieutenant Chung Wang, who +after the greatest of his successes was forbidden to re-enter Nankin. + +The energy and spirit of Chung Wang impelled him to fresh enterprises, and +seeing the hopelessness of Tien Wang, he determined to secure a base of +operations for himself, which should enable him to hold his own in the +warring strife of the realm, and perhaps to achieve the triumph of the +cause with which he was associated. It says much for his military energy +and skill that he was able to impart new vigor to the Taeping system, and +to sustain on a new field his position single-handed against the main +forces of the empire. He determined to obtain possession of the important +city of Soochow, on the Grand Canal, and not very far distant from +Shanghai. On his way to effect this object he gained a great victory over +Chang Kwoliang, who was himself killed in the battle. As the ex-Triad +chief possessed great energy, his loss was a considerable one for the +government, but his troops continued to oppose the advance of the +Taepings, and fought and lost three battles before Chung Wang reached +Soochow. That place was too large to be successfully defended by a small +force, and the imperialists hastily abandoned it. At this critical moment +--May, 1860--Ho Kweitsin, the viceroy of the Two Kiang, implored the aid +of the English and French, who were at this moment completing their +arrangements for the march on Pekin, against these rebels, and the French +were so far favorable to the suggestion that they offered to render the +assistance provided the English would combine with them. Mr. Bruce, +however, declined the adventure, which is not surprising, considering that +we were then engaged in serious hostilities with the Chinese, but the +incident remains unique of a country asking another for assistance during +the progress of a bitter and doubtful war. The utmost that Mr. Bruce would +do was to issue a notification that Shanghai would not be allowed to again +fall into the hands of an insurgent force. The viceroy who solicited the +aid was at least consistent. He memorialized the Throne, praying that the +demands of the Europeans should be promptly granted, and that they should +then be employed against the Taepings. His memorial was ill-timed. He was +summoned to Pekin and executed for his very prudent advice. With the +possession of Soochow, Chung Wang obtained fresh supplies of money, +material, and men, and once more it was impossible to say to what height +of success the Taepings might not attain. But Chung Wang was not satisfied +with Soochow alone; he wished to gain possession of Shanghai. + +Unfortunately for the realization of his project, the Europeans had +determined to defend Shanghai at all hazards, but Chung Wang believed +either that they would not, or that their army being absent in the north +they had not the power to carry out this resolve. The necessity of +capturing Shanghai was rendered the greater in the eyes of Chung Wang by +its being the base of hostile measures against himself, and by a measure +which threatened him with a new peril. The wealthy Chinese merchants of +Shanghai had formed a kind of patriotic association, and provided the +funds for raising a European contingent. Two Americans, Ward and +Burgevine, were taken into their pay, and in July, 1860, they, having +raised a force of 100 Europeans and 200 Manila men, began operations with +an attack on Sunkiang, a large walled town about twenty miles from +Shanghai. This first attack was repulsed with some loss, but Ward, afraid +of losing the large reward he was promised for its capture, renewed the +attack, and with better success, for he gained possession of a gate, and +held it until the whole imperial army had come up and stormed the town. +After this success Ward was requested to attack Tsingpu, which was a far +stronger place than Sunkiang, and where the Taepings had the benefit of +the advice and leading of several Englishmen who had joined them. Ward +attacked Tsingpu on August 2, 1860, but he was repulsed with heavy loss. +He returned to Shanghai for the purpose of raising another force and two +larger guns, and then renewed the attack. It is impossible to say whether +the place would have held out or not, but after seven days' bombardment +Chung Wang suddenly appeared to the rescue, and, surprising Ward's force, +drove it away in utter confusion, and with the loss of all its guns and +stores. Encouraged by this success, Chung Wang then thought the time +opportune for attacking Shanghai, and he accordingly marched against it, +burning and plundering the villages along the road. The imperialists had +established a camp or stockade outside the western gate, and Chung Wang +carried this without any difficulty, but when he reached the walls of the +town he found a very different opponent in his path. The walls were lined +with English and French troops, and when the Taepings attempted to enter +the city they were received with a warm fire, which quickly sent them to +the right-about. Chung Wang renewed the attack at different points during +the next four or five days, but he was then obliged to retreat. Before +doing so, however, he sent a boasting message that he had come at the +invitation of the French, who were traitors, and that he would have taken +the city but for the foreigners, as "there was no city which his men could +not storm." At this moment the attention of Chung Wang was called off to +Nankin, which the imperialists were investing for a sixth time, under +Tseng Kwofan, who had been elevated to the viceroyalty of the Two Kiang. +Tien Wang, in despair, sent off an urgent summons to Chung Wang to come to +his assistance, and although he went with reluctance he felt that he had +no course but to obey. + +Having done what he could to place Nankin in an efficient state of +defense, Chung Wang hastened back to Soochow to resume active operations. +It is unnecessary to describe these in detail; but although Chung Wang was +twice defeated by a Manchu general named Paochiaou, he succeeded, by +rapidity of movement, in holding his own against his more numerous +adversaries. In the meantime an important change had taken place in the +situation. The peace between China and the foreign powers compelled a +revision of the position at Shanghai. Admiral Hope sailed up to Nankin, +interviewed the Wangs, and exacted from them a pledge that Shanghai should +not be attacked for twelve months, and that the Taeping forces should not +advance within a radius of thirty miles of that place. In consequence of +this arrangement Ward and Burgevine were compelled to desist from +recruiting Europeans; but after a brief interval they were taken into the +Chinese service for the purpose of drilling Chinese soldiers, a measure +from which the most important consequences were to flow, for it proved to +be the origin of the Ever-Victorious Army. These preparations were not far +advanced when Chung Wang, elated by his capture of Ningpo and Hangchow, +resolved to disregard Tien Wang's promise, and make a second attack on +Shanghai, the possession of which he saw to be indispensable if his cause +was to attain any brilliant triumph. He issued a proclamation that "the +hour of the Manchus had come! Shanghai is a little place, and we have +nothing to fear from it. We must take Shanghai to complete our dominions." +The death of Hienfung seems to have encouraged Chung Wang to take what he +hoped would prove a decisive step. + +On January 14, 1862, the Taepings reached the immediate vicinity of the +town and foreign settlement. The surrounding country was concealed by the +smoke of the burning villages, which they had ruthlessly destroyed. The +foreign settlement was crowded with thousands of fugitives, imploring the +aid of the Europeans to save their houses and property. Their sufferings, +which would at the best have been great, were aggravated by the +exceptional severity of the winter. The English garrison of two native +regiments and some artillery, even when supported by the volunteers, was +far too weak to attempt more than the defense of the place; but this it +was fortunately able to perform. The rebels, during the first week after +their reappearance, plundered and burned in all directions, threatening +even to make an attack on Woosung, the port at the mouth of the river, +where they were repulsed by the French. Sir John Michel arrived at +Shanghai with a small re-enforcement of English troops, and Ward, having +succeeded in disciplining two Chinese regiments of about one thousand +strong in all, sallied forth from Sunkiang for the purpose of operating on +the rear of the Taeping forces. Ward's capture of Quanfuling, with several +hundred rebel boats which were frozen up in the river, should have warned +the Taepings that it was nearly time for them to retire. However, they did +not act as prudence would have dictated, and during the whole of February +their raids continued round Shanghai. The suburbs suffered from their +attacks, the foreign factories and boats were not secure, and several +outrages on the persons of foreigners remained unatoned for. It was +impossible to tolerate any longer their enormities. The English and French +commanders came to the determination to attack the rebels, to enforce the +original agreement with Tien Wang, and to clear the country round Shanghai +of the presence of the Taepings for the space of thirty miles. + +On February 21, therefore, a joint force composed of 336 English sailors +and marines, 160 French seamen, and 600 men from Ward's contingent, +accompanied by their respective commanders, with Admiral Hope in chief +charge, advanced upon the village of Kachiaou, where the Taepings had +strengthened their position and placed guns on the walls. After a sharp +engagement the place was stormed, Ward's men leading the attack with +Burgevine at their head. The drilled Chinese behaved with great +steadiness, but the Taepings were not to be dismayed by a single defeat. +They even resumed their attacks on the Europeans. On one occasion Admiral +Hope himself was compelled to retire before their superior numbers, and to +summon fresh troops to his assistance. The re-enforcements consisted of +450 Europeans and 700 of Ward's force, besides seven howitzers. With these +it was determined to attack Tseedong, a place of great strength, +surrounded by stone walls and ditches seven feet deep. The Taepings stood +to their guns with great spirit, receiving the advancing troops with a +very heavy fire. When, however, Ward's contingent, making a detour, +appeared in the rear of the place, they hastily evacuated their positions; +but the English sailors had carried the walls, and, caught between two +fires, they offered a stubborn but futile resistance. More than 700 were +killed and 300 were taken prisoners. The favorable opinion formed of "the +Ever-Victorious Army" by the action at Kachiaou was confirmed by the more +serious affair at Tseedong; and Mr. Bruce at Pekin brought it under the +favorable notice of Prince Kung and the Chinese government. Having taken +these hostile steps against the rebels, it necessarily followed that no +advantage would accrue from any further hesitation with regard to allowing +Europeans to enter the imperial service for the purpose of opposing them. +Ward was officially recognized, and allowed to purchase weapons and to +engage officers. An Englishman contracted to convey 9,000 of the troops +who had stormed Ganking from the Yangtse to Shanghai. These men were Honan +braves, who had seen considerable service in the interior of China, and it +was proposed that they should garrison the towns of Kiangsu accordingly as +they were taken from the rebels. The arrival of General Staveley from +Tientsin at the end of March, with portions of two English regiments (the +31st and 67th), put a new face on affairs, and showed that the time was at +hand when it would be possible to carry out the threat of clearing the +country round Shanghai for the space of thirty miles. + +The first place to be attacked toward the realization of this plan was the +village of Wongkadza, about twelve miles west of Shanghai. Here the +Taepings offered only a brief resistance, retiring to some stronger +stockades four miles further west. General Staveley, considering that his +men had done enough work for that day, halted them, intending to renew the +attack the next morning. Unfortunately Ward was carried away by his +impetuosity, and attacked this inner position with some 500 of his own +men. Admiral Hope accompanied him. The Taepings met them with a tremendous +fire, and after several attempts to scale the works they were repulsed +with heavy loss. Admiral Hope was wounded in the leg, seven officers were +wounded, and seventy men killed and wounded. The attack was repeated in +force on the following day, and after some fighting the Taepings evacuated +their stockades. The next place attacked was the village of Tsipoo; and, +notwithstanding their strong earthworks and three wide ditches, the rebels +were driven out in a few hours. It was then determined to attack Kahding, +Tsingpu, Nanjao, and Cholin, at which places the Taepings were known to +have mustered in considerable strength. + +The first place was taken with little resistance, and its capture was +followed by preparations for the attack on Tsingpu, which were hastened +rather than delayed by a desperate attempt to set fire to Shanghai. The +plot was fortunately discovered in time, and the culprits captured and +summarily executed to the number of two hundred. Early in May a strong +force was assembled at Sunkiang, and proceeded by boat, on account of the +difficulties of locomotion, to Tsingpu. The fire of the guns, in which the +expedition was exceptionally strong, proved most destructive, and two +breaches being pronounced practicable the place was carried by assault. +The rebels fought well and up to the last, when they found flight +impossible. The Chinese troops slew every man found in the place with arms +in his hands. A few days later Nanjao was captured, but in the attack the +French commander, Admiral Protet, a gallant officer who had been to the +front during the whole of these operations, was shot dead. The rebels, +disheartened by these successive defeats, rallied at Cholin, where they +prepared to make a final stand. The allied force attacked Cholin on May +20, and an English detachment carried it almost at the point of the +bayonet. With this achievement the operations of the English troops came +for the moment to an end, for a disaster to the imperial arms in their +rear necessitated their turning their attention to a different quarter. + +The troops summoned from Ganking had at last arrived to the number of five +or six thousand men; and the Futai Sieh, who was on the point of being +superseded to make room for Li Hung Chang, thought to employ them before +his departure on some enterprise which should redound to his credit and +restore his sinking fortunes. The operation was as hazardous as it was +ambitious. The resolution he came to was to attack the city and forts of +Taitsan, a place northwest of Shanghai, and not very far distant from +Chung Wang's headquarters at Soochow. The imperialist force reached +Taitsan on May 12, but less than two days later Chung Wang arrived in +person at the head of 10,000 chosen troops to relieve the garrison. A +battle ensued on the day following, when, notwithstanding their great +superiority in numbers, the Taepings failed to obtain any success. In this +extremity Chung Wang resorted to a stratagem. Two thousand of his men +shaved their heads and pretended to desert to the imperialists. When the +battle was renewed at sunrise on the following morning this band threw +aside their assumed character and turned upon the imperialists. A dreadful +slaughter ensued. Of the 7,000 Honan braves and the Tartars from Shanghai, +5,000 fell on the field. The consequences of this disaster were to undo +most of the good accomplished by General Staveley and his force. The +imperialists were for the moment dismayed, and the Taepings +correspondingly encouraged. General Staveley's communications were +threatened, and he had to abandon his intended plan and retrace his steps +to Shanghai. + +Chung Wang then laid regular siege to Sunkiang, where Ward was in person, +and he very nearly succeeded in carrying the place by escalade. The +attempt was fortunately discovered by an English sailor just in time, and +repulsed with A loss to the rebels of 100 men. The Taepings continued to +show great daring and activity before both Sunkiang and Tsingpu; and +although the latter place was bravely defended, it became clear that the +wisest course would be to evacuate it. A body of troops was therefore sent +from Shanghai to form a junction with Ward at Sunkiang, and to effect the +safe retreat of the Tsingpu garrison. The earlier proceedings were +satisfactorily arranged, but the last act of all was grossly mismanaged +and resulted in a catastrophe. Ward caused the place to be set on fire, +when the Taepings, realizing what was being done, hastened into the town, +and assailed the retiring garrison. A scene of great confusion followed; +many lives were lost, and the commandant who had held it so courageously +was taken prisoner. Chung Wang could therefore appeal to some facts to +support his contention that he had got the better of the Europeans and the +imperialists in the province of Kiangsu. + +From the scene of his successes Chung Wang was once more called away by +the timidity or peril of Tien Wang, who was barely able to maintain his +position at Nankin, but when he hastened off to assist the chief of the +Taepings he found that he was out of favor, and that the jealousy or fear +of his colleagues had brought about his temporary disgrace and loss of +title. Shortly after Chung Wang's departure Ward was killed in action and +Burgevine succeeded to the command, but it soon became apparent that his +relations with the Chinese authorities would not be smooth. General Ching +was jealous of the Ever-Victorious Army and wished to have all the credit +for himself. Li Hung Chang, who had been appointed Futai or Governor of +Kiangsu, entertained doubts of the loyalty of this adventurer. Burgevine +was a man of high temper and strong passions, who met the wiles of the +Futai with peremptory demands to recognize the claims of himself and his +band. Nor was this all. Burgevine had designs of his own. Although the +project had not taken definite form in his mind the inclination was strong +within him to play the part of military dictator with the Chinese; or +failing that, to found an independent authority on some convenient spot of +Celestial territory. The Futai anticipated, perhaps, more than divined his +wishes. In Burgevine he saw, very shortly after their coming into contact, +not merely a man whom he disliked and distrusted, but one who, if allowed +to pursue his plans unchecked, would in the end form a greater danger to +the imperial authority than even the Taepings. It is not possible to deny +Li's shrewdness in reading the character of the man with whom he had to +deal. + +The Futai Li, in order to test his obedience, proposed that Burgevine and +his men should be sent round by sea to Nankin to take part in the siege of +that city. The ships were actually prepared for their conveyance, and the +Taotai Wou, who had first fitted out a fleet against the rebels, was in +readiness to accompany Burgevine, when Li and his colleague, as suspicious +of Burgevine's compliance as they would have been indignant at his +refusal, changed their plans and countermanded the expedition. Instead of +carrying out this project, therefore, they laid a number of formal +complaints before General Staveley as to Burgevine's conduct, and +requested the English government to remove him from his command, and to +appoint an English officer in his place. The charges against Burgevine did +not at this time amount to more than a certain laxness in regard to the +expenditure of the force, a disregard for the wishes and prejudices of the +Chinese government, and the want of tact, or of the desire to conciliate, +in his personal relations with the Futai. If Burgevine had resigned, all +would have been well, but he regarded the position from the standpoint of +the adventurer who believes that his own interests form a supreme law and +are the highest good. As commander of the Ever-Victorious Army he was a +personage to be considered even by foreign governments. He would not +voluntarily surrender the position which alone preserved him from +obscurity. Having come to this decision it was clear that even the partial +execution of his plans must draw him into many errors of judgment which +could not but imbitter the conflict. The reply of the English commander +was to the effect that personally he could not interfere, but that he +would refer the matter to London as well as to Mr. Bruce at Pekin. In +consequence of the delay thus caused the project of removing the force to +Nankin was revived, and, the steamers having been chartered, Burgevine was +requested to bring down his force from Sunkiang and to embark it at +Shanghai. This he expressed his willingness to do on payment of his men, +who were two months in arrear, and on the settlement of all outstanding +claims, Burgevine was supported by his troops. Whatever his dislike to the +proposed move, theirs was immeasurably greater. They refused to move +without the payment of all arrears; and on January 2 they even went so far +as to openly mutiny. Two days later Burgevine went to Shanghai and had an +interview with Takee. The meeting was stormy. Burgevine used personal +violence toward the Shanghai merchant, whose attitude was at first +overbearing, and he returned to his exasperated troops with the money, +which he carried off by force. The Futai Li, on hearing of the assault on +Takee, hastened to General Staveley to complain of Burgevine's gross +insubordination in striking a mandarin, which by the law of China was +punishable with death. Burgevine was dismissed the Chinese service, and +the notice of this removal was forwarded by the English general, with a +recommendation to him to give up his command without disturbance. This +Burgevine did, for the advice of the English general was equivalent to a +command, and on January 6, 1863, Burgevine was back at Shanghai. Captain +Holland was then placed in temporary command, while the answer of the home +government was awaited to General Staveley's proposition to intrust the +force to the care of a young captain of engineers, named Charles Gordon. +Chung Wang returned at this moment to Soochow, and in Kiangsu the cause of +the Taepings again revived through his energy. In February a detachment of +Holland's force attacked Fushan, but met with a check, when the news of a +serious defeat at Taitsan, where the former Futai Sieh had been defeated, +compelled its speedy retreat to Sunkiang. Li had some reason to believe +that Taitsan would surrender on the approach of the imperialists, and he +accordingly sent a large army, including 2,500 of the contingent, to +attack it. The affair was badly managed. The assaulting party was stopped +by a wide ditch; neither boats nor ladders arrived. The Taepings fired +furiously on the exposed party, several officers were killed, and the men +broke into confusion. The heavy guns stuck in the soft ground and had to +be abandoned; and despite the good conduct of the contingent the Taepings +achieved a decisive success (February 13). Chung Wang was able to feel +that his old luck had not deserted him, and the Taepings of Kiangsu +recovered all their former confidence in themselves and their leader. This +disaster inflicted a rude blow on the confidence of Li and his assistants; +and it was resolved that nothing should be attempted until the English +officer, at last appointed, had assumed the active command. + +Such was the position of affairs when on March 24, 1863, Major Gordon took +over the command of the Ever-Victorious Army. At that moment it was not +merely discouraged by its recent reverses, but it was discontented with +its position, and when Major Gordon assumed the command at Sunkiang there +was some fear of an immediate mutiny. The new commander succeeded in +allaying their discontent, and believing that active employment was the +best cure for insubordination resolved to relieve Chanzu without delay. +The Taepings were pressing the siege hard and would probably have captured +the place before many days when Major Gordon attacked them in their +stockades and drove them out with no inconsiderable loss. Having thus +gained the confidence of his men and the approbation of the Chinese +authorities Major Gordon returned to Sunkiang, where he employed himself +in energetically restoring the discipline of his force, and in preparing +for his next move, which at the request of Li Hung Chang was to be the +capture of Quinsan. On April 24 the force left Sunkiang to attack Quinsan, +but it had not proceeded far when its course had to be altered to Taitsan, +where, through an act of treachery, a force of 1,500 imperialists had been +annihilated. It became necessary to retrieve this disaster without delay, +more especially as all hope of taking Quinsan had for the moment to be +abandoned. Major Gordon at once altered the direction of his march, and +joining _en route_ General Ching, who had, on the news, broken up his +camp before Quinsan, hastened as rapidly as possible to Taitsan, where he +arrived on April 29. Bad weather obliged the attack to be deferred until +May 1, when two stockades on the west side were carried, and their +defenders compelled to flee, not into the town as they would have wished, +but away from it toward Chanzu. On the following day, the attack was +resumed on the north side, while the armed boats proceeded to assault the +place from the creek. The firing continued from nine in the morning until +five in the evening, when a breach seemed to be practicable, and two +regiments were ordered to the assault. The rebels showed great courage and +fortitude, swarming in the breach and pouring a heavy and well-directed +fire upon the troops. The attack was momentarily checked; but while the +stormers remained under such cover as they could find, the shells of two +howitzers were playing over their heads and causing frightful havoc among +the Taepings in the breach. But for these guns, Major Gordon did not think +that the place would have been carried at all; but after some minutes of +this firing at such close quarters, the rebels began to show signs of +wavering. A party of troops gained the wall, a fresh regiment advanced +toward the breach, and the disappearance of the snake flag showed that the +Taeping leaders had given up the fight. Taitsan was thus captured, and the +three previous disasters before it retrieved. + +On May 4 the victorious force appeared before Quinsan, a place of +considerable strength and possessing a formidable artillery directed by a +European. The town was evidently too strong to be carried by an immediate +attack, and Major Gordon's movements were further hampered by the conduct +of his own men, who, upon their arrival at Quinsan, hurried off in +detachments to Sunkiang for the purpose of disposing of their spoil. +Ammunition had also fallen short, and the commander was consequently +obliged to return to refit and to rally his men. At Sunkiang worse +confusion followed, for the men, or rather the officers, broke out into +mutiny on the occasion of Major Gordon appointing an English officer with +the rank of lieutenant-colonel to the control of the commissariat, which +had been completely neglected. The men who had served with Ward and +Burgevine objected to this, and openly refused to obey orders. Fortunately +the stores and ammunition were collected, and Major Gordon announced that +he would march on the following morning, with or without the mutineers. +Those who did not answer to their names at the end of the first half-march +would be dismissed, and he spoke with the authority of one in complete +accord with the Chinese authorities themselves. The soldiers obeyed him as +a Chinese official, because he had been made a tsungping or brigadier- +general, and the officers feared to disobey him as they would have liked +on account of his commanding the source whence they were paid. The +mutineers fell in, and a force of nearly 3,000 men, well-equipped and +anxious for the fray, returned to Quinsan, where General Ching had, in the +meanwhile, kept the rebels closely watched from a strong position defended +by several stockades and supported by the "Hyson" steamer. Immediately +after his arrival, Major Gordon moved out his force to attack the +stockades which the rebels had constructed on their right wing. These were +strongly built; but as soon as the defenders perceived that the assailants +had gained their flank they precipitately withdrew into Quinsan itself. +General Ching wished the attack to be made on the eastern gate, opposite +to which he had raised his own intrenchments, and by which he had +announced his intention of forcing his way; but a brief inspection showed +Major Gordon that that was the strongest point of the town, and that a +direct attack upon it could only succeed, if at all, by a very +considerable sacrifice of men. Like a prudent commander Major Gordon +determined to reconnoiter; and, after much grumbling on the part of +General Ching, he decided that the most hopeful plan was to carry some +stockades situated seven miles west of the town, and thence assail Quinsan +on the Soochow side, which was weaker than the others. These stockades +were at a village called Chumze. On May 30 the force detailed for this +work proceeded to carry it out. The "Hyson" and fifty imperial gunboats +conveyed the land force, which consisted of one regiment, some guns, and a +large body of imperialists. The rebels at Chumze offered hardly the least +resistance; whether it was that they were dismayed at the sudden +appearance of the enemy, or, as was stated at the time, because they +considered themselves ill-treated by their comrades in Quinsan. The +"Hyson" vigorously pursued those who fled toward Soochow, and completed +the effect of this success by the capture of a very strong and well-built +fort covering a bridge at Ta Edin. An imperialist garrison was installed +there, and the "Hyson" continued the pursuit to within a mile of Soochow +itself. + +The defenders of Quinsan itself were terribly alarmed at the cutting off +of their communications. They saw themselves on the point of being +surrounded, and they yielded to the uncontrollable impulse of panic. +During the night, after having suffered severely from the "Hyson" fire, +the garrison evacuated the place, which might easily have held out; and +General Ching had the personal satisfaction, on learning from some +deserters of the flight of the garrison, of leading his men over the +eastern walls which he had wished to assault. The importance of Quinsan +was realized on its capture. Major Gordon pronounced it to be the key of +Soochow, and at once resolved to establish his headquarters there, partly +because of its natural advantages, but also and not less on account of its +enabling him to gradually destroy the evil associations which the men had +contracted at Sunkiang. + +The change was not acceptable, however, to the force itself; and the +artillery in particular refused to obey orders, and threatened to shoot +their officers. Discipline was, however, promptly reasserted by the energy +of the commander, who ordered the principal ringleader to be shot, and +"the Ever-Victorious Army" became gradually reconciled to its new position +at Quinsan. After the capture of Quinsan there was a cessation of active +operations for nearly two months. It was the height of summer and the new +troops had to be drilled. The difficulty with Ching, who took all the +credit for the capture of Quinsan to himself, was arranged through the +mediation of Dr. Macartney, who had just left the English army to become +Li's right-hand man. Two other circumstances occurred to embarrass the +young commander. There were rumors of some meditated movement on the part +of Burgevine, who had returned from Pekin with letters exculpating him, +and who endeavored to recover the command in spite of Li Hung Chang, and +there was a further manifestation of insubordination in the force, which, +as Gordon said, bore more resemblance to a rabble than the magnificent +army it was popularly supposed to be. The artillery had been cowed by +Major Gordon's vigor, but its efficiency remained more doubtful than could +be satisfactory to the general responsible for its condition, and also +relying upon it as the most potent arm of his force. He resolved to remove +the old commander, and to appoint an English officer, Major Tapp, in his +place. On carrying his determination into effect the officers sent in "a +round robin," refusing to accept a new officer. This was on July 25, and +the expedition which had been decided upon against Wokong had consequently +to set out the following morning without a single artillery officer. In +face of the inflexible resolve of the leader, however, the officers +repented, and appeared in a body at the camp begging to be taken back, and +expressing their willingness to accept "Major Tapp or any one else" as +their colonel. + +With these troops, part of whom had only just returned to a proper sense +of discipline, Gordon proceeded to attack Kahpoo, on the Grand Canal south +of Soochow, where the rebels held two strongly-built stone forts. The +force had beep strengthened by the addition of another steamer, the +"Firefly," a sister vessel to the "Hyson." Major Gordon arrived before +Kahpoo on July 27; and the garrison, evidently taken by surprise, made +scarcely the least resistance. The capture of Kahpoo placed Gordon's force +between Soochow and Wokong, the next object of attack. At Wokong the +rebels were equally unprepared. The garrison at Kahpoo, thinking only of +its own safety, had fled to Soochow, leaving their comrades at Wokong +unwarned and to their fate. So heedless were the Taepings at this place of +all danger from the north, that they had even neglected to occupy a strong +stone fort situated about 1,000 yards north of the walls. The Taepings +attempted too late to repair their error, and the loss of this fort caused +them that of all their other stockades. Wokong itself was too weak to +offer any effectual resistance; and the garrison on the eve of the assault +ordered for July 29 sent out a request for quarter, which was granted, and +the place surrendered without further fighting. Meanwhile an event of far +greater importance had happened than even the capture of these towns, +although they formed the necessary preliminary to the investment of +Soochow. Burgevine had come to the decision to join the Taepings. + +Disappointed in his hope of receiving the command, Burgevine remained on +at Shanghai, employing his time in watching the varying phases of a +campaign in which he longed to take part, and of which he believed that it +was only his due to have the direction, but still hesitating as to what +decision it behooved him to take. His contempt for all Chinese officials +became hatred of the bitterest kind of the Futai, by whom he had been not +merely thwarted but overreached, and predisposed him to regard with no +unfavorable eye the idea of joining his fortunes to those of the rebel +Taepings. To him in this frame of mind came some of the dismissed officers +and men of the Ward force, appealing to his vanity by declaring that his +soldiers remembered him with affection, and that he had only to hoist his +flag for most of his old followers to rally round him. There was little to +marvel at if he also was not free from some feeling of jealousy at the +success and growing fame of Major Gordon, for whom he simulated a warm +friendship. The combination of motives proved altogether irresistible as +soon as he found that several hundred European adventurers were ready to +accompany him into the ranks of the Taepings, and to endeavor to do for +them what they had failed to perform for the imperialists. On July 15, Dr. +Macartney wrote to Major Gordon stating that he had positive information +that Burgevine was enlisting men for some enterprise, that he had already +collected about 300 Europeans, and that he had even gone so far as to +choose a special flag, a white diamond on a red ground, and containing a +black star in the center of the diamond. On the 21st of the same month +Burgevine wrote to Major Gordon saying that there would be many rumors +about him, but that he was not to believe any of them, and that he would +come and see him shortly. This letter was written as a blind, and, +unfortunately, Major Gordon attached greater value to Burgevine's word +than he did to the precise information of Dr. Macartney. He was too much +disposed to think that, as the officer who had to a certain extent +superseded Burgevine in the command, he was bound to take the most +favorable view of all his actions, and to trust implicitly in his good +faith. Major Gordon, trusting to his word, made himself personally +responsible to the Chinese authorities for his good faith, and thus +Burgevine escaped arrest. Burgevine's plans had been deeply laid. He had +been long in correspondence with the Taepings, and his terms had been +accepted. He proclaimed his hostility to the government by seizing one of +their new steamers. + +At this very moment Major Gordon came to the decision to resign, and he +hastened back to Shanghai in order to place his withdrawal from the force +in the hands of the Futai. He arrived there on the very day that Burgevine +seized the "Kajow" steamer at Sunkiang, and on hearing the news he at once +withdrew his resignation, which had been made partly from irritation at +the irregular payment of his men, and also on account of the cruelty of +General Ching. Not merely did he withdraw his resignation, but he hastened +back to Quinsan, into which he rode on the night of the very same day that +had witnessed his departure. The immediate and most pressing danger was +from the possible defection of the force to its old leader, when, with the +large stores of artillery and ammunition at Quinsan in their possession, +not even Shanghai, with its very weak foreign garrison, could be +considered safe from attack. As a measure of precaution Major Gordon sent +some of his heavy guns and stores back to Taitsan, where the English +commander, General Brown, consented to guard them, while he hastened off +to Kahpoo, now threatened both by the Soochow force and by the foreign +adventurers acting under Burgevine. He arrived at a most critical moment. +The garrison was hard pressed. General Ching had gone back to Shanghai, +and only the presence of the "Hyson" prevented the rebels, who were well- +armed and possessed an efficient artillery, from carrying the fort by a +rush. The arrival of Major Gordon with 150 men on board his third steamer, +the "Cricket," restored the confidence of the defenders, but there was no +doubt that Burgevine had lost a most favorable opportunity, for if he had +attacked this place instead of proceeding to Soochow it must have fallen. + +General Ching, who was a man of almost extraordinary energy and +restlessness, resolved to signalize his return to the field by some +striking act while Major Gordon was completing his preparations at Quinsan +for a fresh effort. His headquarters were at the strong fort of Ta Edin, +on the creek leading from Quinsan to Soochow, and having the "Hyson" with +him he determined to make a dash to some point nearer the great rebel +stronghold. On August 30 he had seized the position of Waiquaidong, where, +in three days, he threw up stockades, admirably constructed, and which +could not have been carried save by a great effort on the part of the +whole of the Soochow garrison. Toward the end of September, Major Gordon, +fearing lest the rebels, who had now the supposed advantage of Burgevine's +presence and advice, might make some attempt to cut off General Ching's +lengthy communications, moved forward to Waiquaidong to support him; but +when he arrived he found that the impatient mandarin, encouraged either by +the news of his approach or at the inaction of the Taepings in Soochow, +had made a still further advance of two miles, so that he was only 1,000 +yards distant from the rebel stockades in front of the east gate. Major +Gordon had at this time been re-enforced by the Franco Chinese corps, +which had been well disciplined, under the command of Captain Bonnefoy, +while the necessity of leaving any strong garrison at Quinsan had been +obviated by the loan of 200 Belooches from General Brown's force. The +rebel position having been carefully reconnoitered, both on the east and +on the south, Major Gordon determined that the first step necessary for +its proper beleaguerment was to seize and fortify the village of +Patachiaou, about one mile south of the city wall. The village, although +strongly stockaded, was evacuated by the garrison after a feeble +resistance, and an attempt to recover it a few hours later by Mow Wang in +person resulted in a rude repulse chiefly on account of the effective fire +of the "Hyson." Burgevine, instead of fighting the battles of the failing +cause he had adopted, was traveling about the country: at one moment in +the capital interviewing Tien Wang and his ministers, at another going +about in disguise even in the streets of Shanghai. But during the weeks +when General Ching might have been taken at a disadvantage, and when it +was quite possible to recover some of the places which had been lost, he +was absent from the scene of military operations. After the capture of +Patachiaou most of the troops and the steamers that had taken it were sent +back to Waiquaidong, but Major Gordon remained there with a select body of +his men and three howitzers. The rebels had not resigned themselves to the +loss of Patachiaou, and on October 1 they made a regular attempt to +recover it. They brought the "Kajow" into action, and, as it had found a +daring commander in a man named Jones, its assistance proved very +considerable. They had also a 32-pounder gun on board a junk, and this +enabled them to overcome the fire of Gordon's howitzers and also of the +"Hyson," which arrived from Waiquaidong during the engagement. But +notwithstanding the superiority of their artillery, the rebels hesitated +to come to close quarters, and when Major Gordon and Captain Bonnefoy led +a sortie against them at the end of the day they retired precipitately. + +At this stage Burgevine wrote to Major Gordon two letters--the first +exalting the Taepings, and the second written two days later asking for an +interview, whereupon he expressed his desire to surrender on the provision +of personal safety. He assigned the state of his health as the cause of +this change, but there was never the least doubt that the true reason of +this altered view was dissatisfaction with his treatment by the Taeping +leaders and a conviction of the impossibility of success. Inside Soochow, +and at Nankin, it was possible to see with clearer eyes than at Shanghai +that the Taeping cause was one that could not be resuscitated. But +although Burgevine soon and very clearly saw the hopelessness of the +Taeping movement, he had by no means made up his mind to go over to the +imperialists. With a considerable number of European followers at his beck +and call, and with a profound and ineradicable contempt for the whole +Chinese official world, he was both to lose or surrender the position +which gave him a certain importance. He vacillated between a number of +suggestions, and the last he came to was the most remarkable, at the same +time that it revealed more clearly than any other the vain and +meretricious character of the man. In his second interview with Major +Gordon he proposed that that officer should join him, and combining the +whole force of the Europeans and the disciplined Chinese, seize Soochow, +and establish an independent authority of their own. It was the old +filibustering idea, revived under the most unfavorable circumstances, of +fighting for their own hand, dragging the European name in the dirt, and +founding an independent authority of some vague, undefinable and +transitory character. Major Gordon listened to the unfolding of this +scheme of miserable treachery, and only his strong sense of the utter +impossibility, and indeed the ridiculousness of the project, prevented his +contempt and indignation finding forcible expression. Burgevine, the +traitor to the imperial cause, the man whose health would not allow him to +do his duty to his new masters in Soochow, thus revealed his plan for +defying all parties, and for deciding the fate of the Dragon Throne. The +only reply he received was the cold one that it would be better and wiser +to confine his attention to the question of whether he intended to yield +or not, instead of discussing idle schemes of "vaulting ambition." + +Meantime, Chung Wang had come down from Nankin to superintend the defense +of Soochow; and in face of a more capable opponent he still did not +despair of success, or at the least of making a good fight of it. He +formed the plan of assuming the offensive against Chanzu while General +Ching was employed in erecting his stockades step by step nearer to the +eastern wall of Soochow. In order to prevent the realization of this +project Major Gordon made several demonstrations on the western side of +Soochow, which had the effect of inducing Chung Wang to defer his +departure. At this conjuncture serious news arrived from the south. A +large rebel force, assembled from Chekiang and the silk districts south of +the Taho Lake, had moved up the Grand Canal and held the garrison of +Wokong in close leaguer. On October 10 the imperialists stationed there +made a sortie, but were driven back with the loss of several hundred men +killed and wounded. Their provisions were almost exhausted, and it was +evident that unless relieved they could not hold out many days longer. On +October 12 Major Gordon therefore hastened to their succor. The rebels +held a position south of Wokong, and, as they felt sure of a safe retreat, +they fought with great determination. The battle lasted three hours; the +guns had to be brought up to within fifty yards of the stockade, and the +whole affair is described as one of the hardest fought actions of the war. +On the return of the contingent to Patachiaou, about thirty Europeans +deserted the rebels, but Burgevine and one or two others were not with +them. Chung Wang had seized the opportunity of Gordon's departure for the +relief of Wokong to carry out his scheme against Chanzu. Taking the +"Kajow" with him, and a considerable number of the foreign adventurers, he +reached Monding, where the imperialists were strongly intrenched at the +junction of the main creek from Chanzu with the Canal. He attacked them, +and a severely contested struggle ensued, in which at first the Taepings +carried everything before them. But the fortune of the day soon veered +round. The "Kajow" was sunk by a lucky shot, great havoc was wrought by +the explosion of a powder-boat, and the imperialists remained masters of a +hard fought field. The defection of the Europeans placed Burgevine in +serious peril, and only Major Gordon's urgent representations and acts of +courtesy to the Mow Wang saved his life. The Taeping leader, struck by the +gallantry and fair dealing of the English officer, set Burgevine free, and +the American consul thanked Major Gordon for his great kindness to that +misguided officer. Burgevine came out of the whole complication with a +reputation in every way tarnished. He had not even the most common courage +which would have impelled him to stay in Soochow and take the chances of +the party to which he had attached himself. Whatever his natural talents +might have been, his vanity and weakness obscured them all. With the +inclination to create an infinity of mischief, it must be considered +fortunate that his ability was so small, for his opportunities were +abundant. + +The conclusion of the Burgevine incident removed a weight from Major +Gordon's mind. Established on the east and south of Soochow, he determined +to secure a similar position on its western side, when he would be able to +intercept the communications still held by the garrison across the Taho +Lake. In order to attain this object it was necessary, in the first place, +to carry the stockades at Wuliungchow, a village two miles west of +Patachiaou. The place was captured at the first attack and successfully +held, notwithstanding a fierce attempt to recover it under the personal +direction of Chung Wang, who returned for the express purpose. This +success was followed by others. Another large body of rebels had come up +from the south and assailed the garrison of Wokong. On October 26 one of +Gordon's lieutenants, Major Kirkham, inflicted a severe defeat upon them, +and vigorously pursued them for several miles. The next operation +undertaken was the capture of the village of Leeku, three miles north of +Soochow, as the preliminary to investing the city on the north. Here Major +Gordon resorted to his usual flanking tactics, and with conspicuous +success. The rebels fought well; one officer was killed at Gordon's side, +and the men in the stockade were cut down with the exception of about +forty, who were made prisoners. Soochow was then assailed on the northern +as well as on the other sides, but Chung Wang's army still served to keep +open communications by means of the Grand Canal. That army had its +principal quarters at Wusieh, where it was kept in check by a large +imperialist force under Santajin, Li's brother, who had advanced from +Kongyin on the Yangtse. Major Gordon's main difficulty now arose from the +insufficiency of his force to hold so wide an extent of country; and in +order to procure a re-enforcement from Santajin, he agreed to assist that +commander against his able opponent Chung Wang. With a view to +accomplishing this the Taeping position at Wanti, two miles north of +Leeku, was attacked and captured. + +At this stage of the campaign there were 13,500 men round Soochow, and of +these 8,500 were fully occupied in the defense of the stockades, leaving +the very small number of 5,000 men available for active measures in the +field. On the other hand, Santajin had not fewer than 20,000, and possibly +as many as 30,000 men under his orders. But the Taepings still enjoyed the +numerical superiority. They had 40,000 men in Soochow, 20,000 at Wusieh, +and Chung Wang occupied a camp, half-way between these places, with 18,000 +followers. The presence of Chung Wang was also estimated to be worth a +corps of 5,000 soldiers. Had Gordon been free to act, his plan of campaign +would have been simple and decisive. He would have effected a junction of +his forces with Santajin, he would have overwhelmed Chung Wang's 18,000 +with his combined army of double that strength, and he would have appeared +at the head of his victorious troops before the bewildered garrison of +Wusieh. It would probably have terminated the campaign at a stroke. Even +the decisive defeat of Chung Wang alone might have entailed the collapse +of the cause now tottering to its fall. But Major Gordon had to consider +not merely the military quality of his allies, but also their jealousies +and differences. General Ching hated Santajin on private grounds as well +as on public. He desired a monopoly of the profit and honor of the +campaign. His own reputation would be made by the capture of Soochow. It +would be diminished and cast into the shade were another imperial +commander to defeat Chung Wang and close the line of the Grand Canal. Were +Gordon to detach himself from General Ching he could not feel sure what +that jealous and impulsive commander would do. He would certainly not +preserve the vigilant defensive before Soochow necessary to insure the +safety of the army operating to the north. The commander of the Ever- +Victorious Army had consequently to abandon the tempting idea of crushing +Chung Wang and to have recourse to slower methods. + +On November 19 Major Gordon collected the whole of his available force to +attack Fusaiquan, a place on the Grand Canal six miles north of Soochow. +Here the rebels had barred the Canal at three different points, while on +the banks they occupied eight earthworks, which were fortunately in a very +incomplete state. A desperate resistance was expected from the rebels at +this advantageous spot, but they preferred their safety to their duty, and +retreated to Wusieh with hardly any loss. In consequence of this reverse +Chung Wang withdrew his forces from his camp in face of Santajin, and +concentrated his men at Monding and Wusieh for the defense of the Grand +Canal. The investment of Soochow being now as complete as the number of +troops under the imperial standard would allow of, Major Gordon returned +to General Ching's stockades in front of that place, with the view of +resuming the attack on the eastern gate. General Ching and Captain +Bonnefoy had met with a slight repulse there on October 14. The stockade +in front of the east gate was known by the name of the Low Mun, and had +been strengthened to the best knowledge of the Taeping engineers. Their +position was exceedingly formidable, consisting of a line of breastworks +defended at intervals with circular stockades. Major Gordon decided upon +making a night attack and he arranged his plans from the information +provided by the European and other deserters who had been inside. The +Taepings were not without their spies and sympathizers also, and the +intended attempt was revealed to them. The attack was made at two in the +morning of November 27, but the rebels had mustered in force and received +Major Gordon's men with tremendous volleys. Even then the disciplined +troops would not give way, and encouraged by the example of their leader +who seemed to be at the front and at every point at the same moment, +fairly held their own on the edge of the enemy's position. Unfortunately +the troops in support behaved badly, and got confused from the heavy fire +of the Taepings, which never slackened. Some of them absolutely retired +and others were landed at the wrong places. Major Gordon had to hasten to +the rear to restore order, and during his absence the advanced guard were +expelled from their position by a forward movement led by Mow Wang in +person. The attack had failed, and there was nothing to do save to draw +off the troops with as little further loss as possible. This was Major +Gordon's first defeat, but it was so evidently due to the accidents +inseparable from a night attempt, and to the fact that the surprise had +been revealed, that it produced a less discouraging effect on officers and +men than might have seemed probable. Up to this day Major Gordon had +obtained thirteen distinct victories besides the advantage in many minor +skirmishes. + +Undismayed by this reverse Major Gordon collected all his troops and +artillery from the other stockades, and resolved to attack the Low Mun +position with his whole force. He also collected all his heavy guns and +mortars and cannonaded the rebel stockade for some time; but on an advance +being ordered the assailants were compelled to retire by the fire which +the Taepings brought to bear on them from every available point. Chung +Wang had hastened down from Wusieh to take part in the defense of what was +rightly regarded as the key of the position at Soochow, and both he and +Mow Wang superintended in person the defense of the Low Mun stockade. +After a further cannonade the advance was again sounded, but this second +attack would also have failed had not the officers and men boldly plunged +into the moat or creek and swum across. The whole of the stockades and a +stone fort were then carried, and the imperial forces firmly established +at a point only 900 yards from the inner wall of Soochow. Six officers and +fifty men were killed, and three officers, five Europeans, and 128 men +were wounded in this successful attack. The capture of the Low Mun +stockades meant practically the fall of Soochow. Chung Wang then left it +to its fate, and all the other Wangs except Mow Wang were in favor of +coming to terms with the imperialists. Even before this defeat Lar Wang +had entered into communications with General Ching for coming over, and as +he had the majority of the troops at Soochow under his orders Mow Wang was +practically powerless, although resolute to defend the place to the last. +Several interviews took place between the Wangs and General Ching and Li +Hung Chang. Major Gordon also saw the former, and had one interview with +Lar Wang in person. The English officer proposed as the most feasible plan +his surrendering one of the gates. During all this period Major Gordon had +impressed on both of his Chinese colleagues the imperative necessity there +was, for reasons of both policy and prudence, to deal leniently and +honorably by the rebel chiefs. All seemed to be going well. General Ching +took an oath of brotherhood with Lar Wang, Li Hung Chang agreed with +everything that fell from Gordon's lips. The only one exempted from this +tacit understanding was Mow Wang, always in favor of fighting it out and +defending the town; and his name was not mentioned for the simple reason +that he had nothing to do with the negotiations. For Mow Wang Major Gordon +had formed the esteem due to a gallant enemy, and he resolved to spare no +effort to save his life. His benevolent intentions were thwarted by the +events that had occurred within Soochow. Mow Wang had been murdered by the +other Wangs, who feared that he might detect their plans and prevent their +being carried out. The death of Mow Wang removed the only leader who was +heartily opposed to the surrender of Soochow, and on the day after this +chief's murder the imperialists received possession of one of the gates. +The inside of the city had been the scene of the most dreadful confusion. +Mow Wang's men had sought to avenge their leader's death, and on the other +hand the followers of Lar Wang had shaved their heads in token of their +adhesion to the imperialist cause. Some of the more prudent of the Wangs, +not knowing what turn events might take amid the prevailing discord, +secured their safety by a timely flight. Major Gordon kept his force well +in hand, and refused to allow any of the men to enter the city, where they +would certainly have exercised the privileges of a mercenary force in +respect of pillage. Instead of this Major Gordon endeavored to obtain for +them two months' pay from the Futai, which that official stated his +inability to procure. Major Gordon thereupon resigned in disgust, and on +succeeding in obtaining one month's pay for his men, he sent them back to +Quinsan without a disturbance. + +The departure of the Ever-Victorious Army for its headquarters was +regarded by the Chinese officials with great satisfaction, and for several +reasons. In the flush of the success at Soochow both that force and its +commander seemed in the way of the Futai, and to diminish the extent of +his triumph. Neither Li nor Ching also had the least wish for any of the +ex-rebel chiefs, men of ability and accustomed to command, to be taken +into the service of the government. Of men of that kind there were already +enough. General Ching himself was a sufficiently formidable rival to the +Futai, without any assistance and encouragement from Lar Wang and the +others. Li had no wish to save them from the fate of rebels; and although +he had promised, and General Ching had sworn to, their personal safety, he +was bent on getting rid of them in one way or another. He feared Major +Gordon, but he also thought that the time had arrived when he could +dispense with him and the foreign-drilled legion in the same way as he had +got rid of Sherard Osborn and his fleet. The departure of the Quinsan +force left him free to follow his own inclination. The Wangs were invited +to an entertainment at the Futai's boat, and Major Gordon saw them both in +the city and subsequently when on their way to Li Hung Chang. The exact +circumstances of their fate were never known; but nine headless bodies +were discovered on the opposite side of the creek, and not far distant +from the Futai's quarters. It then became evident that Lar Wang and his +fellow Wangs had been brutally murdered. Major Gordon was disposed to take +the office of their avenger into his own hands, but the opportunity of +doing so fortunately did not present itself. He hastened back to Quinsan, +where he refused to act any longer with such false and dishonorable +colleagues. The matter was reported to Pekin. Both the mandarins sought to +clear themselves by accusing the other; and a special decree came from +Pekin conferring on the English officer a very high order and the sum of +10,000 taels. Major Gordon returned the money, and expressed his regret at +being unable to accept any token of honor from the emperor in consequence +of the Soochow affair. + +A variety of reasons, all equally creditable to Major Gordon's judgment +and single-mindedness, induced him after two months' retirement to abandon +his inaction and to sink his difference with the Futai. He saw very +clearly that the sluggishness of the imperial commanders would result in +the prolongation of the struggle with all its attendant evils, whereas, if +he took the field, he would be able to bring it to a conclusion within two +months. Moreover, the Quinsan force, never very amenable to discipline, +shook off all restraint when in quarters, and promised to become as +dangerous to the government in whose pay it was as to the enemy against +whom it was engaged to fight. Major Gordon, in view of these facts, came +to the prompt decision that it was his duty, and the course most +calculated to do good, for him to retake the field and strive as +energetically as possible to expel the rebels from the small part of +Kiangsu still remaining in their possession. On February 18, 1864, he +accordingly left Quinsan at the head of his men, who showed great +satisfaction at the return to active campaigning. Wusieh had been +evacuated on the fall of Soochow, and Chung Wang's force retired to +Changchow, while that chief himself returned to Nankin. A few weeks later +General Ching had seized Pingwang, thus obtaining the command of another +entrance into the Taho Lake. Santajin established his force in a camp not +far distant from Changchow, and engaged the rebels in almost daily +skirmishes. This was the position of affairs when Major Gordon took the +field toward the end of February, and he at once resolved to carry the war +into a new country by crossing the Taho Lake and attacking the town of +Yesing on its western shores. By seizing this and the adjoining towns he +hoped to cut the rebellion in two, and to be able to attack Changchow in +the rear. The operations at Yesing occupied two days; but at last the +rebel stockades were carried with tremendous loss not only to the +defenders, but also to a relieving force sent from Liyang. Five thousand +prisoners were also taken. Liyang itself was the next place to be +attacked; but the intricacy of the country, which was intersected by +creeks and canals, added to the fact that the whole region had been +desolated by famine, and that the rebels had broken all the bridges, +rendered this undertaking one of great difficulty and some risk. However, +Major Gordon's fortitude vanquished all obstacles, and when he appeared +before Liyang he found that the rebel leaders in possession of the town +had come to the decision to surrender. At this place Major Gordon came +into communication with the general Paochiaou, who was covering the siege +operations against Nankin, which Tseng Kwofan was pressing with ever- +increasing vigor. The surrender of Liyang proved the more important, as +the fortifications were found to be admirably constructed, and as it +contained a garrison of fifteen thousand men and a plentiful supply of +provisions. From Liyang Major Gordon marched on Kintang, a town due north +of Liyang, and about half-way between Changchow and Nankin. The capture of +Kintang, by placing Gordon's force within striking distance of Changchow +and its communications, would have compelled the rebels to suspend these +operations and recall their forces. Unfortunately the attack on Kintang +revealed unexpected difficulties. The garrison showed extraordinary +determination; and although the wall was breached by the heavy fire, two +attempts to assault were repulsed with heavy loss, the more serious +inasmuch as Major Gordon was himself wounded below the knee, and compelled +to retire to his boat. This was the second defeat Gordon had experienced. + +In consequence of this reverse, which dashed the cup of success from +Gordon's hands when he seemed on the point of bringing the campaign to a +close in the most brilliant manner, the force had to retreat to Liyang, +whence the commander hastened back with one thousand men to Wusieh. He +reached Wusieh on the 25th of March, four days after the repulse at +Kintang, and he there learned that Fushan had been taken and that Chanzu +was being closely attacked. The imperialists had fared better in the +south. General Ching had captured Kashingfoo, a strong place in Chekiang, +and on the very same day as the repulse at Kintang, Tso Tsung Tang had +recovered Hangchow. Major Gordon, although still incapacitated by his +wound from taking his usual foremost place in the battle, directed all +operations from his boat. He succeeded, after numerous skirmishes, in +compelling the Taepings to quit their position before Chanzu; but they +drew up in force at the village of Waisso, where they offered him battle. +Most unfortunately, Major Gordon had to intrust the conduct of the attack +to his lieutenants, Colonels Howard and Rhodes, while he superintended the +advance of the gunboats up the creek. Finding the banks were too high to +admit of these being usefully employed, and failing to establish +communications with the infantry, he discreetly returned to his camp, +where he found everything in the most dreadful confusion owing to a +terrible disaster. The infantry, in fact, had been outmaneuvered and +routed with tremendous loss. Seven officers and 265 men had been killed, +and one officer and sixty-two men wounded. Such an overwhelming disaster +would have crushed any ordinary commander, particularly when coming so +soon after such a rude defeat as that at Kintang. It only roused Major +Gordon to increased activity. He at once took energetic measures to +retrieve this disaster. He sent his wounded to Quinsan, collected fresh +troops, and, having allowed his own wound to recover by a week's rest, +resumed in person the attack on Waisso. On April 10 Major Gordon pitched +his camp within a mile of Waisso, and paid his men as the preliminary to +the resumption of the offensive. The attack commenced on the following +morning, and promised to prove of an arduous nature; but by a skillful +flank movement Major Gordon carried two stockades in person, and rendered +the whole place no longer tenable. The rebels evacuated their position and +retreated, closely pursued by the imperialists. The villagers, who had +suffered from their exactions, rose upon them, and very few rebels +escaped. The pursuit was continued for a week, and the lately victorious +army of Waisso was practically annihilated. The capture of Changchow was +to be the next and crowning success of the campaign. For this enterprise +the whole of the Ever-Victorious Army was concentrated, including the ex- +rebel contingent of Liyang. On April 23 Major Gordon carried the stockades +near the west gate. In their capture the Liyang men, although led only by +Chinese, showed conspicuous gallantry, thus justifying Major Gordon's +belief that the Chinese would fight as well under their own countrymen as +when led by foreigners. Batteries were then constructed for the +bombardment of the town itself. Before these were completed the +imperialists assaulted, but were repulsed with loss. On the following day +(April 27) the batteries opened fire, and two pontoon bridges were thrown +across, when Major Gordon led his men to the assault. The first attack was +repulsed, and a second one, made in conjunction with the imperialists, +fared not less badly. The pontoons were lost, and the force suffered a +greater loss than at any time during the war, with the exception of +Waisso. The Taepings also lost heavily; and their valor could not alter +the inevitable result. Changchow had consequently to be approached +systematically by trenches, in the construction of which the Chinese +showed themselves very skillful. The loss of the pontoons compelled the +formation of a cask-bridge; and, during the extensive preparations for +renewing the attack, several hundred of the garrison came over, reporting +that it was only the Cantonese who wished to fight to the bitter end. On +May 11, the fourth anniversary of its capture by Chung Wang, Li requested +Major Gordon to act in concert with him for carrying the place by storm. +The attack was made in the middle of the day, to the intense surprise of +the garrison, who made only a feeble resistance, and the town was at last +carried with little loss. The commandant, Hoo Wang, was made prisoner and +executed. This proved to be the last action of the Ever-Victorious Army, +which then returned to Quinsan, and was quietly disbanded by its commander +before June 1. To sum up the closing incidents of the Taeping war. Tayan +was evacuated two days after the fall of Changchow, leaving Nankin alone +in their hands. Inside that city there were the greatest misery and +suffering. Tien Wang had refused to take any of the steps pressed on him +by Chung Wang, and when he heard the people were suffering from want, all +he said was, "Let them eat the sweet dew." Tseng Kwofan drew up his lines +on all sides of the city, and gradually drove the despairing rebels behind +the walls. Chung Wang sent out the old women and children; and let it be +recorded to the credit of Tseng Kwotsiuen that he did not drive them back, +but charitably provided for their wants, and dispatched them to a place of +shelter. In June Major Gordon visited Tseng's camp, and found his works +covering twenty-four to thirty miles, and constructed in the most +elaborate fashion. The imperialists numbered 80,000 men, but were badly +armed. Although their pay was very much in arrear, they were well fed, and +had great confidence in their leader, Tseng Kwofan. On June 30, Tien Wang, +despairing of success, committed suicide by swallowing golden leaf. Thus +died the Hungtsiuen who had erected the standard of revolt in Kwangsi +thirteen years before. His son was proclaimed Tien Wang on his death +becoming known, but his reign was brief. The last act of all had now +arrived. On July 19 the imperialists had run a gallery under the wall of +Nankin, and charged it with 40,000 pounds of powder. The explosion +destroyed fifty yards of the walls, and the imperialists, attacking on all +sides, poured in through the breach. Chung Wang made a desperate +resistance in the interior, holding his own and the Tien Wang's palace to +the last. He made a further stand with a thousand men at the southern +gate, but his band was overwhelmed, and he and the young Tien Wang fled +into the surrounding country. In this supreme moment of danger Chung Wang +thought more of the safety of his young chief than of himself, and he gave +him an exceptionally good pony to escape on, while he himself took a very +inferior animal. As the consequence Tien Wang the Second escaped, while +Chung Wang was captured in the hills a few days later. Chung Wang, who had +certainly been the hero of the Taeping movement, was beheaded on August 7, +and the young Tien Wang was eventually captured and executed also, by Shen +Paochen. For this decisive victory, which extinguished the Taeping +Rebellion, Tseng Kwofan, whom Gordon called "generous, fair, honest and +patriotic," was made a Hou, or Marquis, and his brother Tseng Kwotsiuen an +Earl. + +It is impossible to exaggerate the impression made by Gordon's +disinterestedness on the Chinese people, who elevated him for his courage +and military prowess to the pedestal of a national god of war. The cane +which he carried when leading his men to the charge became known as +"Gordon's wand of victory"; and the troops whom he trained, and converted +by success from a rabble into an army, formed the nucleus of China's +modern army. The service he rendered his adopted country was, therefore, +lasting as well as striking, and the gratitude of the Chinese has, to +their credit, proved not less durable. The name of Gordon is still one to +conjure with among the Chinese, and if ever China were placed in the same +straits, she would be the more willing, from his example, to intrust her +cause to an English officer. As to the military achievements of General +Gordon in China nothing fresh can be said. They speak indeed for +themselves, and they form the most solid portion of the reputation which +he gained as a leader of men. In the history of the Manchu dynasty he will +be known as "Chinese Gordon"; although for us his earlier sobriquet must +needs give place, from his heroic and ever-regrettable death, to that of +"Gordon of Khartoum." + + + + +CHAPTER XXI + +THE REGENCY + + +While the suppression of the Taeping Rebellion was in progress, events of +great interest and importance happened at Pekin. It will be recollected +that when the allied forces approached that city in 1860, the Emperor +Hienfung fled to Jehol, and kept himself aloof from all the peace +negotiations which were conducted to a successful conclusion by his +brother, Prince Kung. After the signature of the convention in Pekin, +ratifying the Treaty of Tientsin, he refused to return to his capital; and +he even seems to have hoped that he might, by asserting his imperial +prerogative, transfer the capital from Pekin to Jehol, and thus evade one +of the principal concessions to the foreigners. But if this was +impossible, he was quite determined, for himself, to have nothing to do +with them, and during the short remainder of his life he kept his court at +Jehol. While his brother was engaged in meeting the difficulties of +diplomacy, and in arranging the conditions of a novel situation, Hienfung, +by collecting round his person the most bigoted men of his family, showed +that he preferred those counselors who had learned nothing from recent +events, and who would support him in his claims to undiminished +superiority and inaccessibility. Prominent among the men in his confidence +was Prince Tsai, who had taken so discreditable a part in the arrest of +Parkes and his companions at Tungchow, and among his other advisers were +several inexperienced and impetuous members of the Manchu family. They +were all agreed in the policy of recovering, at the earliest possible +moment, what they considered to be the natural and prescriptive right of +the occupant of the Dragon Throne to treat all other potentates as in no +degree equal to himself. No respect for treaties would have deterred them +from reasserting what had solemnly been signed away, and the permanent +success of the faction at Jehol would have entailed, within a +comparatively short period, the outbreak of another foreign war. But the +continued residence of the emperor at Jehol was not popular, with either +his own family or the inhabitants of Pekin. The members of the Manchu +clan, who received a regular allowance during the emperor's residence at +Pekin, were reduced to the greatest straits, and even to the verge of +starvation, while the Chinese naturally resented the attempt to remove the +capital to any other place. This abnegation of authority by Hienfung, for +his absence meant nothing short of that, could not have been prolonged +indefinitely, for a Chinese emperor has many religious and secular duties +to perform which no one else can discharge, and which, if not discharged, +would reduce the office of emperor to a nonentity. Prince Tsai and his +associates had no difficulty in working upon the fears of this prince, who +held the most exalted idea of his own majesty, at the same time that he +had not the power or knowledge to vindicate it. + +While such were the views prevailing in the imperial circle at Jehol, +arrangements were in progress for the taking up of his residence at Pekin +of the British minister. After Lord Elgin's departure, his brother, Sir +Frederick Bruce, who was knighted for his share in the negotiations, was +appointed first occupant of the post of minister in the Chinese capital, +and on March 22, 1861, he left Tientsin for Pekin. Mr. Wade accompanied +Sir Frederick as principal secretary, and the staff included six student +interpreters, whose ranks, constantly recruited, have given many able men +to the public service. Before Sir Frederick reached the capital, the +Chinese minister had taken a step to facilitate the transaction of +business with the foreign representatives. Prince Kung--and the credit of +the measure belongs exclusively to him--will always be gratefully +remembered by any foreign writer on modern China as the founder of the +department known as the Tsungli Yamen, which he instituted in January, +1861. This department, since its institution, has very fully answered all +the expectations formed of it; and, although it is erroneous to represent +it as in any sense identical with the Chinese government, or as the +originating source of Chinese policy, it has proved a convenient and well- +managed vehicle for the dispatch of international business. Prince Kung +became its first president, and acted in that capacity until his fall from +power in 1884. + +Before long, reports began to be spread of the serious illness of the +emperor. In August Prince Kung hastened to Jehol, the object of his +journey being kept secret. The members of the Tsungli Yamen were observed +by the foreign officials to be pre-occupied, and even the genial Wansiang +could not conceal that they were passing through a crisis. Not merely was +Hienfung dying, but it had become known to Prince Kung and his friends +that he had left the governing authority during the minority of his son, a +child of less than six years of age, to a board of regency composed of +eight of the least intelligent and most arrogant and self-seeking members +of the imperial family, with Prince Tsai at their head. The emperor died +on August 22. A few hours later the imperial decree notifying the last +wishes of the ruler as to the mode of government was promulgated. The +board of regency assumed the nominal control of affairs, and Hienfung's +son was proclaimed emperor under the style of Chiseang. In all of these +arrangements neither Prince Kung nor his brothers, nor the responsible +ministers at the capital, had had the smallest part. It was an intrigue +among certain members of the imperial clan to possess themselves of the +ruling power, and for a time it seemed as if their intrigue would be only +too successful. Nothing happened during the months of September and +October to disturb their confidence, for they remained at Jehol, and at +Pekin the routine of government continued to be performed by Prince Kung. +That statesman and his colleagues employed the interval in arranging their +own plan of action, and in making sure of the fidelity of a certain number +of troops. Throughout these preparations Prince Kung was ably and +energetically supported by his brother, Prince Chun, by his colleague, +Wansiang, and by his aged father-in-law, the minister Kweiliang. But the +conspirators could not keep the young emperor at Jehol indefinitely, and +when, at the end of October, it became known that he was on the point of +returning to Pekin, it was clear that the hour of conflict had arrived. At +Jehol the Board of Regency could do little harm; but once its pretensions +and legality were admitted at the capital, all the ministers would have to +take their orders from it, and to resign the functions which they had +retained. The main issue was whether Prince Kung or Prince Tsai was to be +supreme. On November 1 the young emperor entered his capital in state. A +large number of soldiers, still dressed in their white mourning, +accompanied their sovereign from Jehol; but Shengpao's garrison was +infinitely more numerous, and thoroughly loyal to the cause of Prince +Kung. The majority of the regents had arrived with the reigning prince; +those who had not yet come were on the road, escorting the dead body of +Hienfung toward its resting-place. If a blow was to be struck at all now +was the time to strike it. The regents had not merely placed themselves in +the power of their opponent, but they had actually brought with them the +young emperor, without whose person Prince Kung could have accomplished +little. Prince Kung had spared no effort to secure, and had fortunately +succeeded in obtaining, the assistance and co-operation of the Empress +Dowager, Hienfung's principal widow, named Tsi An. Her assent had been +obtained to the proposed plot before the arrival in Pekin, and it now only +remained to carry it out. On the day following the entry into the capital, +Prince Kung hastened to the palace, and, producing before the astonished +regents an Imperial Edict ordering their dismissal, he asked them whether +they obeyed the decree of their sovereign, or whether he must call in his +soldiers to compel them. Prince Tsai and his companions had no choice save +to signify their acquiescence in what they could not prevent; but, on +leaving the chamber in which this scene took place, they hastened toward +the emperor's apartment in order to remonstrate against their dismissal, +or to obtain from him some counter-edict reinstating them in their +positions. They were prevented from carrying out their purpose, but this +proof of contumacy sealed their fate. They were promptly arrested, and a +second decree was issued ordering their degradation from their official +and hereditary rank. To Prince Kung and his allies was intrusted the +charge of trying and punishing the offenders. + +The next step was the proclamation of a new regency, composed of the two +empresses, Tsi An, principal widow of Hienfung, and Tsi Thsi, mother of +the young emperor. Two precedents for the administration being intrusted +to an empress were easily found by the Hanlin doctors during the Ming +dynasty, when the Emperors Chitsong and Wanleh were minors. Special edicts +were issued and arrangements made for the transaction of business during +the continuance of the regency, and as neither of the empresses knew +Manchu, it was specially provided that papers and documents, which were +always presented in that language, should be translated into Chinese. +Concurrently with these measures for the settlement of the regency +happened the closing scenes in the drama of conspiracy which began so +successfully at Jehol and ended so dramatically at Pekin. For complete +success and security it was necessary that all the ringleaders should be +captured, and some of them were still free. The bravest, if not the +ablest, of the late Board of Regency, Sushuen, remained at large. He had +been charged with the high and honorable duty of escorting the remains of +Hienfung to the capital. It was most important that he should be seized +before he became aware of the fate that had befallen his colleagues. +Prince Chun volunteered to capture the last, and in a sense the most +formidable, of the intriguers himself, and on the very day that the events +described happened at Pekin he rode out of the capital at the head of a +body of Tartar cavalry. On the following night Prince Chun reached the +spot where he was encamped, and, breaking into the house, arrested him +while in bed. Sushuen did not restrain his indignation, and betrayed the +ulterior plans entertained by himself and his associates by declaring that +Prince Chun had been only just in time to prevent a similar fate befalling +himself. He was at once placed on his trial with the other prisoners, and +on November 10 the order was given in the emperor's name for their +execution. Sushuen was executed on the public ground set apart for that +purpose; but to the others, as a special favor from their connection with +the imperial family, was sent the silken cord, with which they were +permitted to put an end to their existence. In the fate of Prince Tsai may +be seen a well merited retribution for his treachery and cruelty to Sir +Harry Parkes and his companions. + +Another important step which had to be taken was the alteration of the +style given to the young emperor's reign. It was felt to be impolitic that +the deposed ministers should retain any connection whatever in history +with the young ruler. Were Hienfung's son to be handed down to posterity +as Chiseang there would be no possibility of excluding their names and +their brief and feverish ambition from the national annals. After due +deliberation, therefore, the name of Tungche was substituted for that of +Chiseang, and meaning, as it does, "the union of law and order," it will +be allowed that the name was selected with some proper regard for the +circumstances of the occasion. Prince Kung was rewarded with many high +offices and sounding titles in addition to the post of chief minister +under the two empresses. He was made president of the Imperial Clan Court +in the room of Prince Tsai, and the title of Iching Wang, or Prince +Minister, was conferred upon him. His stanch friends and supporters, +Wansiang, Paukwen, and Kweiliang, were appointed to the Supreme Council. +Prince Chun, to whose skill and bravery in arresting Sushuen Prince Kung +felt very much indebted, was also rewarded. With these incidents closed +what might have proved a grave and perilous complication for the Chinese +government. Had Prince Kung prematurely revealed his plans there is every +reason to suppose that he would have alarmed and forewarned his rivals, +and that they, with the person of the emperor in their possession, would +have obtained the advantage. His patience during the two months of doubt +and anxiety while the emperor remained at Jehol was matched by the vigor +and promptitude that he displayed on the eventful 2d of November. That his +success was beneficial to his country will not be disputed by any one, and +Prince Kung's name must be permanently remembered both for having +commenced, and for having insured the continuance of, diplomatic relations +with England and the other foreign powers. + +The increased intercourse with Europeans not merely led to greater +diplomatic confidence and to the extension of trade, but it also induced +many foreigners to offer their services and assistance to the Pekin +government, during the embarrassment arising from internal dissension. At +first these persons were, as has been seen, encouraged and employed more +in consequence of local opinion in the treaty-ports than as a matter of +State policy. But already the suggestion had been brought forward in more +than one form for the employment of foreigners, with the view of +increasing the resources of the government by calling in the assistance of +the very agency which had reduced them. A precedent had been established +for this at an earlier period--before, in fact, the commencement of +hostilities--by the appointment of Mr. Horatio N. Lay to direct and assist +the local authorities in the collection of customs in the Shanghai +district. Mr. Lay's experience had proved most useful in drawing up the +tariff of the Treaty of Tientsin, and his assistance had been suitably +acknowledged. In 1862, when the advantages to be derived from the military +experience of foreigners had been practically recognized by the +appointment of Europeans to command a portion of the army of China, and in +pursuance of a suggestion made by the present Sir Robert Hart in the +previous year, it was thought desirable for many reasons that something +should also be done to increase the naval resources of the empire, and Mr. +Lay was intrusted with a commission for purchasing and collecting in +Europe a fleet of gunboats of small draught, which could be usefully +employed for all the purposes of the Pekin government on the rivers and +shallow estuaries of the country. Mr. Lay, who undertook the commission, +said, "This force was intended for the protection of the treaty-ports, for +the suppression of piracy then rife, and for the relief of this country +from the burden of 'policing' the Chinese waters"; but its first use in +the eyes of Prince Kung was to be employed against the rebels and their +European supporters of whom Burgevine was the most prominent. Captain +Sherard Osborn, a distinguished English naval officer, was associated with +Mr. Lay in the undertaking. An Order of Council was issued on August 30, +1862, empowering both of these officers to act in the matter as delegates +of the Chinese. Captain Osborn and Mr. Lay came to England to collect the +vessels of this fleet, and the former afterward returned with them to +China in the capacity of their commodore. The transaction was not well +managed from the very commencement. Mr. Lay wrote in August, 1862, to say +that he had chosen as the national ensign of the Chinese navy "a green +flag, bearing a yellow diagonal cross," and he wrote again to request that +an official notification should appear in the "Gazette." Had his request +been complied with, there would have been very strong reason for assuming +that the English government was prepared to support and facilitate every +scheme for forcing the Chinese to accept and submit to the exact method of +progress approved of and desired by the European servants of their +government, without their taking any part in the transaction save to +ratify terms that might be harsh and exorbitant. Fortunately, the +instinctive caution of our Foreign Office was not laid aside on this +occasion. Mr. Lay was informed that no notice could appear in the "London +Gazette" except after the approval of the Pekin authorities had been +expressed; and Prince Kung wrote, on October 22, to say that the Chinese +ensign would be of "yellow ground, and on it will be designed a dragon +with his head toward the upper part of the flag." Mr. Lay preceded the +vessels--seven gunboats and one store-ship--and arrived at Pekin in May, +1863. + +Prince Kung had been most anxious for the speedy arrival of the flotilla; +and the doubtful fortune of the campaign in Kiangsu, where the gunboats +would have been invaluable, rendered him extremely desirous that they +should commence active operations immediately on arrival. But he found, in +the first place, that Mr. Lay was not prepared to accept the appointment +of a Chinese official as joint-commander, and in the second place, that he +would not receive orders from any of the provincial authorities. Such a +decision was manifestly attended with the greatest inconvenience to China; +for only the provincial authorities knew what the interests of the State +demanded, and where the fleet might co-operate with advantage in the +attacks on the Taepings. Unless Captain Osborn were to act on the orders +of Tsen Kwofan, and particularly of Li Hung Chang, it was difficult to see +of what possible use he or his flotilla could be to China. The founders of +the new Chinese navy claimed practically all the privileges of an ally, +and declined the duties devolving on them as directing a department of the +Chinese administration. Of course, it was more convenient and more +dignified for the foreign officers to draw their instructions and their +salaries direct from the fountain-head; but if the flotilla was not to be +of any practical use to China it might just as well never have been +created. The fleet arrived in safety, but remained inactive. The whole +summer and autumn of 1863, with its critical state of affairs round +Soochow, passed away without anything being done to show what a powerful +auxiliary Mr. Lay's ships might be. The ultimate success of those +operations without the smallest co-operation on the part of Captain Osborn +or his flotilla virtually sealed its fate. In October, Wansiang, in the +name of the Foreign Office, declared that the Chinese could not recognize +or ratify the private arrangement between Mr. Lay and his naval officer, +and that it was essential for Captain Osborn to submit to receive his +instructions from the provincial authorities. In the following month Mr. +Lay was summarily dismissed from the Chinese service, and it was +determined, after some delay and various counter suggestions, to send back +the ships to Europe, there to be disposed of. The radical fault in the +whole arrangement had been Mr. Lay's wanting to take upon himself the +responsibility not merely of Inspector-General of Customs, but also of +supreme adviser on all matters connected with foreign questions. The +Chinese themselves were to take quite a subordinate part in their +realization, and were to be treated, in short, as if they did not know how +to manage their own affairs. Mr. Lay's dreams were suddenly dispelled, and +his philanthropic schemes fell to the ground. Neither Prince Kung nor his +colleagues had any intention to pave the way for their own effacement. + +After Mr. Lay's departure the Maritime Customs were placed under the +control of Mr. Robert Hart, who had acted during Mr. Lay's absence in +Europe. This appointment was accompanied by the transfer of the official +residence from Pekin to Shanghai, which was attended with much practical +advantage. Already the customs revenue had risen to three millions, and +trade was steadily expanding as the rebels were gradually driven back, and +as the Yangtsekiang and the coasts became safer for navigation. Numerous +schemes were suggested for the opening up of China by railways and the +telegraph; but they all very soon ended in nothing, for the simple reason +that the Chinese did not want them. They were more sincere and energetic +in their adoption of military improvements. + +The anxieties of Prince Kung on the subject of the dynasty, and with +regard to the undue pretensions and expectations of the foreign officials +who looked on the Chinese merely as the instruments of their self- +aggrandizement, were further increased during this period by the +depredations of the Nienfei rebels in the province of Shantung. During +these operations Sankolinsin died, leaving Tseng Kwofan in undisputed +possession of the first place among Chinese officials. Sankolinsin, when +retreating after a reverse, was treacherously murdered by some villagers +whose hospitality he had claimed. + +The events of this introductory period may be appropriately concluded with +the strange stroke of misfortune that befell Prince Kung in the spring of +1865, and which seemed to show that he had indulged some views of personal +ambition. The affair had probably a secret history, but if so the truth is +hardly likely to be ever known. The known facts were as follows: On April +2, 1865, there appeared an edict degrading the prince in the name of the +two regent-empresses. The charge made against him was of having grown +arrogant and assumed privileges to which he had no right. He was at first +"diligent and circumspect," but he has now become disposed "to overrate +his own importance." In consequence, he was deprived of all his +appointments and dismissed from the scene of public affairs. Five weeks +after his fall, however, Prince Kung was reinstated, on May 8, in all his +offices, with the exception of that of President of the Council. This +episode, which might have produced grave complications, closed with a +return to almost the precise state of things previously existing. There +was one important difference. The two empresses had asserted their +predominance. Prince Kung had hoped to be supreme, and to rule +uncontrolled. From this time forth he was content to be their minister and +adviser, on terms similar to those that would have applied to any other +official. + +The year 1865, which witnessed this very interesting event in the history +of the Chinese government, beheld before its close the departure of Sir +Frederick Bruce from Pekin, and the appointment of Sir Rutherford Alcock, +who had been the first British minister to Japan during the critical +period of the introduction of foreign intercourse with that country, to +fill the post of Resident Minister at Pekin. Sir Rutherford Alcock then +found the opportunity to put in practice some of the honorable sentiments +to which he had given expression twenty years before at Shanghai. When Sir +Rutherford left Yeddo for Pekin, the post of Minister in Japan was +conferred on Sir Harry Parkes, who had been acting as consul at Shanghai +since the conclusion of the war. The relations between the countries were +gradually settling down on a satisfactory basis, and the appointment of a +Supreme Court for China and Japan at Shanghai, with Sir Edmund Hornby as +Chief Judge, promised to enforce obedience to the law among even the +unsettled adventurers of different, nationalities left by the conclusion +of the Taeping Rebellion and the cessation of piracy without a profitable +pursuit. + +While the events which have been set forth were happening in the heart of +China, other misfortunes had befallen the executive in the more remote +quarters of the realm, but resulting none the less in the loss and ruin of +provinces, and in the subversion of the emperor's authority. Two great +uprisings of the people occurred in opposite directions, both commencing +while the Taeping Rebellion was in full force, and continuing to disturb +the country for many years after its suppression. The one had for its +scene the great southwestern province of Yunnan; the other the two +provinces of the northwest, Shensi and Kansuh, and extending thence +westward to the Pamir. They resembled each other in one point, and that +was that they were instigated and sustained by the Mohammedan population +alone. The Panthays and the Tungani were either indigenous tribes or +foreign immigrants who had adopted or imported the tenets of Islam. Their +sympathies with the Pekin government were probably never very great, but +they were impelled in both cases to revolt more by local tyranny than by +any distinct desire to cast off the authority of the Chinese; but, of +course, the obvious embarrassment of the central executive encouraged by +simplifying the task of rebellion. The Panthay rising calls for +description in the first place, because it began at an earlier period than +the other, and also because the details have been preserved with greater +fidelity. Mohammedanism is believed to have been introduced into Yunnan in +or about the year 1275, and it made most progress among the so-called +aboriginal tribes, the Lolos and the Mantzu. The officials were mostly +Chinese or Tartars, and, left practically free from control, they more +often abused their power than sought to employ it for the benefit of the +people they governed. In the very first year of Hienfung's reign (1851) a +petition reached the capital from a Mohammedan land proprietor in Yunnan +named Ma Wenchu, accusing the emperor's officials of the gravest crimes, +and praying that "a just and honest man" might be sent to redress the +wrongs of an injured and long-suffering people. The petition was carefully +read and favorably considered at the capital; but beyond a gracious answer +the emperor was at the time powerless to apply a remedy to the evil. Four +years passed away without any open manifestation of the deep discontent +smoldering below the surface. But in 1855 the Chinese and the Mohammedan +laborers quarreled in one of the principal mines of the province, which is +covered with mines of gold, iron, and copper. It seems that the greater +success of the Mohammedans in the uncertain pursuit of mining had roused +the displeasure of the Chinese. Disputes ensued, in which the Mussulmans +added success in combat to success in mineing; and the official appointed +to superintend the mines, instead of remaining with a view to the +restoration of order, sought his personal safety by precipitate flight to +the town of Yunnan. During his absence the Chinese population raised a +levy _en masse_, attacked the Mohammedans who had gained a momentary +triumph, and compelled them by sheer weight of numbers to beat a hasty +retreat to their own homes in a different part of the province. This +success was the signal for a general outcry against the Mohammedans, who +had long been the object of the secret ill-will of the other inhabitants. +Massacres took place in several parts of Yunnan, and the followers of the +Prophet had to flee for their lives. + +Among those who were slain during these popular disorders was a young +chief named Ma Sucheng; and when the news of his murder reached his native +village, his younger brother, Ma Sien, who had just received a small +military command, declared his intention to avenge him, and fled to join +the Mohammedan fugitives in the mountains. In this secure retreat they +rallied their forces, and, driven to desperation by the promptings of +want, they left their fastnesses with the view of regaining what they had +lost. In this they succeeded better than they could have hoped for. The +Chinese population experienced in their turn the bitterness of defeat; and +the mandarins had the less difficulty in concluding a temporary +understanding between the exhausted combatants. Tranquillity was restored, +and the miners resumed their occupations. But the peace was deceptive, and +in a little time the struggle was renewed with increased fury. In this +emergency the idea occurred to some of the officials that an easy and +efficacious remedy of the difficulty in which they found themselves would +be provided by the massacre of the whole Mussulman population. In this +plot the foremost part was taken by Hwang Chung, an official who bitterly +hated the Mohammedans. He succeeded in obtaining the acquiescence of all +his colleagues with the exception of the viceroy of the province, who +exposed the iniquity of the design, but who, destitute of all support, was +powerless to prevent its execution. At the least he resolved to save his +honor and reputation by committing suicide, and he and his wife were found +one morning hanging up in the hall of the yamen. His death simplified the +execution of the project which his refusal might possibly have prevented. +May 19, 1856, was the date fixed for the celebration of this Chinese St. +Bartholomew. But the secret had not been well kept. The Mohammedans, +whether warned or suspicious, distrusted the authorities and their +neighbors, and stood vigilantly on their guard. At this time they looked +chiefly to a high priest named Ma Tesing for guidance and instruction. But +although on the alert, they were after all, taken to some extent by +surprise, and many of them were massacred after a more or less unavailing +resistance. But if many of the Mussulmans were slain, the survivors were +inspired with a desperation which the mandarins had never contemplated. +From one end of Yunnan to the other the Mohammedans, in face of great +personal peril, rose by a common and spontaneous impulse, and the Chinese +population was compelled to take a hasty refuge in the towns. At Talifoo, +where the Mohammedans formed a considerable portion of the population, the +most desperate fighting occurred, and after three days' carnage the +Mussulmans, under Tu Wensiu, were left in possession of the city. The +rebels did not remain without leaders, whom they willingly recognized and +obeyed; for the kwanshihs, or chiefs, who had accepted titles of authority +from the Chinese, cast off their allegiance and placed themselves at the +head of the popular movement. The priest Ma Tesing was raised to the +highest post of all as Dictator, but Tu Wensiu admitted no higher +authority than his own within the walls of Talifoo. Ma Tesing had +performed the pilgrimage to Mecca, he had resided at Constantinople for +two years, and his reputation for knowledge and saintliness stood highest +among his co-religionists. + +While Ma Tesing exercised the supremacy due to his age and attainments, +the young chief Ma Sien led the rebels in the field. His energy was most +conspicuous, and in the year 1858 he thought he was sufficiently strong to +make an attack upon the city of Yunnan itself. His attack was baffled by +the resolute defense of an officer named Lin Tzuchin, who had shown great +courage as a partisan leader against the insurgents before he was +intrusted with the defense of the provincial capital. Ma Sien was +compelled to beat a retreat, and to devote himself to the organization of +the many thousand Ijen or Lolos recruits who signified their attachment to +his cause. For the successful defense of Yunnan Lin was made a Titu, and +gradually collected into his own hands such authority as still remained to +the emperor's lieutenants. On both sides preparations were made for the +renewal of the struggle, but before the year 1858 ended Ma Sien met with a +second repulse at the town of Linan. The year 1859 was not marked by any +event of signal importance, although the balance of success inclined on +the whole to the Mussulmans. But in the following year the Mohammedans +drew up a large force, computed to exceed 50,000 men, round Yunnanfoo, to +which they laid vigorous siege. The imperialists were taken at a +disadvantage, and the large number of people who had fled for shelter into +the town rendered the small store of provisions less sufficient for a +protracted defense. Yunnanfoo was on the point of surrender when an event +occurred which not merely relieved it from its predicament, but altered +the whole complexion of the struggle. The garrison had made up its mind to +yield. Even the brave Lin had accepted the inevitable, and begun to +negotiate with the two rebel leaders, Ma Sien and the priest Ma Tesing. +Those chiefs, with victory in their grasp, manifested an unexpected and +surprising moderation. Instead of demanding from Lin a complete and +unconditional surrender, they began to discuss with him what terms could +be agreed upon for the cessation of the war and the restoration of +tranquillity to the province. At first it was thought that these +propositions concealed some intended treachery, but their sincerity was +placed beyond dispute by the suicide of the mandarin Hwang Chung, who had +first instigated the people to massacre their Mohammedan brethren. The +terms of peace were promptly arranged, and a request was forwarded to +Pekin for the ratification of a convention concluded under the pressure of +necessity with some of the rebel leaders. The better to conceal the fact +that this arrangement had been made with the principal leader of the +disaffected, Ma Sien changed his name to Ma Julung, and received the rank +of general in the Chinese service; while the high priest accepted as his +share the not inconsiderable pension of two hundred taels a month. It is +impossible to divine the true reasons which actuated these instigators of +rebellion in their decision to go over to the side of the government. They +probably thought that they had done sufficient to secure all practical +advantages, and that any persistence in hostilities would only result in +the increased misery and impoverishment of the province. Powerful as they +were, there were other Mohammedan leaders seeking to acquire the supreme +position among their co-religionists; and foremost among these was Tu +Wensiu, who had reduced the whole of Western Yunnan to his sway, and +reigned at Talifoo. The Mohammedan cause, important as it was, did not +afford scope for the ambitions of two such men as Ma Julung and Tu Wensiu. +The former availed himself of the favorable opportunity to settle this +difficulty in a practical and, as he shrewdly anticipated, the most +profitable manner for himself personally, by giving in his adhesion to the +government. + +This important defection did not bring in its train any certainty of +tranquillity. Incited by the example of their leaders, every petty officer +and chief thought himself deserving of the highest honors, and resolved to +fight for his own hand. Ma Julung left Yunnanfoo for the purpose of +seizing a neighboring town which had revolted, and during his absence one +of his lieutenants seized the capital, murdered the viceroy, and +threatened to plunder the inhabitants. Ma Julung was summoned to return in +hot haste, and as a temporary expedient the priest Ma Tesing was elected +viceroy. When Ma Julung returned with his army he had to lay siege to +Yunnanfoo, and although he promptly effected an entrance into the city, it +took five days' hard fighting in the streets before the force in +occupation was expelled. The insurgent officer was captured, exposed to +the public gaze for one month in an iron cage, and then executed in a +cruel manner. Ma Tesing was deposed from the elevated position which he +had held for so short a time, and a new Chinese viceroy arrived from +Kweichow. The year 1863 opened with the first active operations against Tu +Wensiu, who, during these years of disorder in Central Yunnan, had been +governing the western districts with some prudence. It would have been +better if they had not been undertaken, for they only resulted in the +defeat of the detachments sent by Ma Julung to engage the despot of +Talifoo. Force having failed, they had recourse to diplomacy, and Ma +Tesing was sent to sound Tu Wensiu as to whether he would not imitate +their example and make his peace with the authorities. These overtures +were rejected with disdain, and Tu Wensiu proclaimed his intention of +holding out to the last, and refused to recognize the wisdom or the +necessity of coming to terms with the government. The embarrassment of Ma +Julung and the Yunnan officials, already sufficiently acute, was at this +conjuncture further aggravated by an outbreak in their rear among the +Miaotze and some other mountain tribes in the province of Kweichow. To the +difficulty of coping with a strongly placed enemy in front was thus added +that of maintaining communications through a hostile and difficult region. +A third independent party had also come into existence in Yunnan, where an +ex-Chinese official named Liang Shihmei had set up his own authority at +Linan, mainly, it was said, through jealousy of the Mohammedans taken into +the service of the government. The greatest difficulty of all was to +reconcile the pretensions of the different commanders, for the Chinese +officials, and the Futai Tsen Yuying in particular, regarded Ma Julung +with no friendly eye. With the year 1867, both sides having collected +their strength, more active operations were commenced, and Ma Julung +proceeded in person, at the head of the best troops he could collect, to +engage Tu Wensiu. It was at this time that the imperialists adopted the +red flag as their standard in contradistinction to the white flag of the +insurgents. A desultory campaign ensued, but although Ma Julung evinced +both courage and capacity, the result was on the whole unfavorable to him; +and he had to retreat to the capital, where events of some importance had +occurred during his absence in the field. The viceroy, who had been +stanchly attached to Ma Julung, died suddenly and under such circumstances +as to suggest a suspicion of foul play; and Tsen Yuying had by virtue of +his rank of Futai assumed the temporary discharge of his duties. The +retreat of Ma Julung left the insurgents free to follow up their +successes; and, in the course of 1868, the authority of the emperor had +disappeared from every part of the province except the prefectural city of +Yunnanfoo. This bad fortune led the Mussulmans who had followed the advice +and fortunes of Ma Julung to consider whether it would not be wise to +rejoin their co-religionists, and to at once finish the contest by the +destruction of the government. Had Ma Julung wavered in his fidelity for a +moment they would have all joined the standard of Tu Wensiu, and the rule +of the Sultan of Talifoo would have been established from one end of +Yunnan to the other; but he stood firm and arrested the movement in a +summary manner. + +Tu Wensiu, having established the security of his communications with +Burmah, whence he obtained supplies of arms and munitions of war, devoted +his efforts to the capture of Yunnanfoo, which he completely invested. The +garrison was reduced to the lowest straits before Tsen Yuying resolved to +come to the aid of his distressed colleague. The loss of the prefectural +town would not merely entail serious consequences to the imperialist +cause, but he felt it would personally compromise him as the Futai at +Pekin. In the early part of 1869, therefore, he threw himself into the +town with three thousand men, and the forces of Tu Wensiu found themselves +obliged to withdraw from the eastern side of the city. A long period of +inaction followed, but during this time the most important events happened +with regard to the ultimate result. Ma Julung employed all his artifice +and arguments to show the rebel chiefs the utter hopelessness of their +succeeding against the whole power of the Chinese empire, which, from the +suppression of the Taeping Rebellion, would soon be able to be employed +against them. They felt the force of his representations, and they were +also oppressed by a sense of the slow progress they had made toward the +capture of Yunnanfoo. Some months after Tsen Yuying's arrival, those of +the rebels who were encamped to the north of the city hoisted the red flag +and gave in their adhesion to the government. Then Ma Julung resumed +active operations against the other rebels, and obtained several small +successes. A wound received during one of the skirmishes put an end to his +activity, and the campaign resumed its desultory character. But Ma +Julung's illness had other unfortunate consequences; for during it Tsen +Yuying broke faith with those of the rebel leaders who had come over, and +put them all to a cruel death. The natural consequence of this foolish and +ferocious act was that the Mohammedans again reverted to their desperate +resolve to stand firmly by the side of Tu Wensiu. The war again passed +into a more active phase. Ma Julung had recovered from his wounds. A new +viceroy, and a man of some energy, was sent from Pekin. Lin Yuchow had +attracted the notice of Tseng Kwofan among those of his native province +who had responded to his appeal to defend Hoonan against the Taepings +sixteen years before; and shortly before the death of the last viceroy of +Yunnan, he had been made Governor of Kweichow. To the same patron at Pekin +he now owed his elevation to the viceroyalty. It is said that he had lost +the energy which once characterized him; but he brought with him several +thousand Hoonan braves, whose courage and military experience made them +invaluable auxiliaries to the embarrassed authorities in Yunnan. In the +course of the year 1870 most of the towns in the south and the north of +Yunnan were recovered, and communications were reopened with Szchuen. As +soon as the inhabitants perceived that the government had recovered its +strength, they hastened to express their joy at the change by repudiating +the white flag which Tu Wensiu had compelled them to adopt. The +imperialists even to the last increased the difficulty of their work of +pacification by exhibiting a relentless cruelty; and while the inhabitants +thought to secure their safety by a speedy surrender, the Mussulmans were +rendered more desperate in their resolve to resist. The chances of a +Mohammedan success were steadily diminishing when Yang Yuko, a mandarin of +some military capacity, who had begun his career in the most approved +manner as a rebel, succeeded in capturing the whole of the salt-producing +district which had been the main source of their strength. In the year +1872 all the preliminary arrangements were made for attacking Talifoo +itself. A supply of rifles had been received from Canton or Shanghai, and +a few pieces of artillery had also arrived. With these improved weapons +the troops of Ma Julung and Tsen Yuying enjoyed a distinct advantage over +the rebels of Talifoo. The horrors of war were at this point increased by +those of pestilence, for the plague broke out at Puerh on the southern +frontier, and, before it disappeared, devastated the whole of the +province, completing the effect of the civil war, and ruining the few +districts which had escaped from its ravages. The direct command of the +siege operations at Talifoo was intrusted to Yang Yuko, a hunchback +general, who had obtained a reputation for invincibility; and when Tsen +Yuying had completed his own operations he also proceeded to the camp +before the Mohammedan capital for the purpose of taking part in the +crowning operation of the war. + +Tu Wensiu and the garrison of Talifoo, although driven to desperation, +could not discover any issue from their difficulties. They were reduced to +the last stage of destitution, and starvation stared them in the face. In +this extremity Tu Wensiu, although there was every reason to believe that +the imperialists would not fulfill their pledges, and that surrender +simply meant yielding to a cruel death, resolved to open negotiations with +Yang Yuko for giving up the town. The emperor's generals signified their +desire for the speedy termination of the siege, at the same time +expressing acquiescence in the general proposition of the garrison being +admitted to terms. Although the Futai and Yang Yuko had promptly come to +the mutual understanding to celebrate the fall of Talifoo by a wholesale +massacre, they expressed their intention to spare the other rebels on the +surrender of Tu Wensiu for execution and on the payment of an indemnity. +The terms were accepted, although the more experienced of the rebels +warned their comrades that they would not be complied with. On January 15, +1873, Tu Wensiu, the original of the mythical Sultan Suliman, the fame of +whose power reached England, and who had been an object of the solicitude +of the Indian government, accepted the decision of his craven followers as +expressing the will of Heaven, and gave himself up for execution. He +attired himself in his best and choicest garments, and seated himself in +the yellow palanquin which he had adopted as one of the few marks of royal +state that his opportunities allowed him to secure. Accompanied by the men +who had negotiated the surrender, he drove through the streets, receiving +for the last time the homage of his people, and out beyond the gates to +Yang Yuko's camp. Those who saw the cortege marveled at the calm +indifference of the fallen despot. He seemed to have as little fear of his +fate as consciousness of his surroundings. The truth soon became evident. +He had baffled his enemies by taking slow poison. Before he reached the +presence of the Futai, who had wished to gloat over the possession of his +prisoner, the opium had done its work, and Tu Wensiu was no more. It +seemed but an inadequate triumph to sever the head from the dead body, and +to send it preserved in honey as the proof of victory to Pekin. Four days +after Tu Wensiu's death, the imperialists were in complete possession of +the town, and a week later they had taken all their measures for the +execution of the fell plan upon which they had decided. A great feast was +given for the celebration of the convention, and the most important of the +Mohammedan commanders, including those who had negotiated the truce, were +present. At a given signal they were attacked and murdered by soldiers +concealed in the gallery for the purpose, while six cannon shots announced +to the soldiery that the hour had arrived for them to break loose on the +defenseless townspeople. The scenes that followed are stated to have +surpassed description. It was computed that 30,000 men alone perished +after the fall of the old Panthay capital, and the Futai sent to Yunnanfoo +twenty-four large baskets full of human ears, as well as the heads of the +seventeen chiefs. + +With the capture of Talifoo the great Mohammedan rebellion in the +southwest, to which the Burmese gave the name of Panthay, closed, after a +desultory struggle of nearly eighteen years. The war was conducted with +exceptional ferocity on both sides, and witnessed more than the usual +amount of falseness and breach of faith common to Oriental struggles. +Nobody benefited by the contest, and the prosperity of Yunnan, which at +one time had been far from inconsiderable, sank to the lowest possible +point. A new class of officials came to the front during this period of +disorder, and fidelity was a sufficient passport to a certain rank. Ma +Julung, the Marshal Ma of European travelers, gained a still higher +station; and notwithstanding the jealousy of his colleagues, acquired +practical supremacy in the province. The high priest, Ma Tesing, who may +be considered as the prime instigator of the movement, was executed or +poisoned in 1874 at the instigation of some of the Chinese officials. Yang +Yuko, the most successful of all the generals, only enjoyed a brief tenure +of power. It was said that he was dissatisfied with his position as +commander-in-chief, and aspired to a higher rank. He also was summoned to +Pekin, but never got further than Shanghai, where he died, or was removed. +But although quiet gradually descended upon this part of China, it was +long before prosperity followed in its train. + +About six years after the first mutterings of discontent among the +Mohammedans in the southwest, disturbances occurred in the northwest +provinces of Shensi and Kansuh, where there had been many thousand +followers of Islam since an early period of Chinese history. They were +generally obedient subjects and sedulous cultivators of the soil; but they +were always liable to sudden ebullitions of fanaticism or of turbulence, +and it was said that during the later years of his reign Keen Lung had +meditated a wholesale execution of the male population above the age of +fifteen. The threat, if ever made, was never carried out, but the report +suffices to show the extent to which danger was apprehended from the +Tungan population. The true origin of the great outbreak in 1862 in Shensi +seems to have been a quarrel between the Chinese and the Mohammedan +militia as to their share of the spoil derived from the defeat and +overthrow of a brigand leader. After some bloodshed, two imperial +commissioners were sent from Pekin to restore order. The principal +Mohammedan leader formed a plot to murder the commissioners, and on their +arrival he rushed into their presence and slew one of them with his own +hand. His co-religionists deplored the rash act, and voluntarily seized +and surrendered him for the purpose of undergoing a cruel death. But +although he was torn to pieces, that fact did not satisfy the outraged +dignity of the emperor. A command was issued in Tungche's name to the +effect that all those who persisted in following the creed of Islam should +perish by the sword. From Shensi the outbreak spread into the adjoining +province of Kansuh; and the local garrisons were vanquished in a pitched +battle at Tara Ussu, beyond the regular frontier. The insurgents did not +succeed, however, in taking any of the larger towns of Shensi, and after +threatening with capture the once famous city of Singan, they were +gradually expelled from that province. The Mohammedan rebellion within the +limits of China proper would not, therefore, have possessed more than +local importance but for the fact that it encouraged a similar outbreak in +the country further west, and that it resulted in the severance of the +Central Asian provinces from China for a period of many years. + +The uprising of the Mohammedans in the frontier provinces appealed to the +secret fears as well as to the longings of the Tungan settlers and +soldiers in all the towns and military stations between Souchow and +Kashgar. The sense of a common peril, more perhaps than the desire to +attain the same object, led to revolts at Hami, Barkul, Urumtsi, and +Turfan, towns which formed a group of industrious communities half-way +between the prosperous districts of Kansuh on the one side and Kashgar on +the other. The Tungani at these towns revolted under the leading of their +priests, and imitated the example of their co-religionists within the +settled borders of China by murdering all who did not accept their creed. +After a brief interval, which we may attribute to the greatness of the +distance, to the vigilance of the Chinese garrison, or to the apathy of +the population, the movement spread to the three towns immediately west of +Turfan, Karashar, Kucha, and Aksu, where it came into contact with, and +was stopped by, another insurrectionary movement under Mohammedan, but +totally distinct, auspices. West of Aksu the Tungan rebellion never +extended south of the Tian Shan range. The defection of the Tungani, who +had formed a large proportion, if not the majority, of the Chinese +garrisons, paralyzed the strength of the Celestials in Central Asia. Both +in the districts dependent on Ili, and in those ruled from Kashgar and +Yarkand, the Chinese were beset by many great and permanent difficulties. +They were with united strength a minority, and now that they were divided +among themselves almost a hopeless minority. The peoples they governed +were fanatical, false, and fickle. The ruler of Khokand and the refugees +living on his bounty were always on the alert to take the most advantage +of the least slip or act of weakness on the part of the governing classes. +Their machinations had been hitherto baffled, but never before had so +favorable an opportunity presented itself for attaining their wishes as +when it became known that the whole Mohammedan population was up in arms +against the emperor, and that communications were severed between Kashgar +and Pekin. The attempts made at earlier periods on the part of the members +of the old ruling family in Kashgar to regain their own by expelling the +Chinese have been described. In 1857 Wali Khan, one of the sons of +Jehangir, had succeeded in gaining temporary possession of the city of +Kashgar, and seemed for a moment to be likely to capture Yarkand also. He +fell by his vices. The people soon detested the presence of the man to +whom they had accorded a too hasty welcome. After a rule of four months he +fled the country, vanquished in the field by the Chinese garrison, and +followed by the execrations of the population he had come to deliver. The +invasion of Wali Khan further imbittered the relations between the Chinese +and their subjects; and a succession of governors bore heavily on the +Mohammedans. Popular dissatisfaction and the apprehension in the minds of +the governing officials that their lives might be forfeited at any moment +to a popular outbreak added to the dangers of the situation in Kashgar +itself, when the news arrived of the Tungan revolt, and of the many other +complications which hampered the action of the Pekin ruler. We cannot +narrate here the details of the rebellion in Kashgar. Its influence on the +history of China would not sanction such close exactitude. But in the year +1863 the Chinese officials had become so alarmed at their isolated +position that they resolved to adopt the desperate expedient of massacring +all the Mohammedans or Tungani in their own garrisons. The amban and his +officers were divided in council and dilatory in execution. The Tungani +heard of the plot while the governor was summoning the nerve to carry it +out. They resolved to anticipate him. The Mohammedans at Yarkand, the +largest and most important garrison in the country, rose in August, 1863, +and massacred all the Buddhist Chinese. Seven thousand men are computed to +have fallen. A small band fled to the citadel, which they held for a short +time; but at length, overwhelmed by numbers, they preferred death to +dishonor, and destroyed themselves by exploding the fort with the +magazine. The defection of the Tungani thus lost Kashgaria for the +Chinese, as the other garrisons and towns promptly followed the example of +Yarkand; but they could not keep it for themselves. The spectacle of this +internal dissension proved irresistible for the adventurers of Khokand, +and Buzurg, the last surviving son of Jehangir, resolved to make another +bid for power and for the recovery of the position for which his father +and kinsmen had striven in vain. The wish might possibly have been no more +attained than theirs, had he not secured the support of the most capable +soldier in Khokand, Mahomed Yakoob, the defender of Ak Musjid against the +Russians. It was not until the early part of the year 1865 that this Khoja +pretender, with his small body of Khokandian officers and a considerable +number of Kirghiz allies, appeared upon the scene. Then, however, their +success was rapid. The Tungan revolt in Altyshahr resolved itself into a +movement for the restoration of the Khoja dynasty. In a short time Buzurg +was established as ruler, while his energetic lieutenant was employed in +the task of crushing the few remaining Chinese garrisons, and also in +cowing his Tungan allies, who already regarded their new ruler with a +doubtful eye. By the month of September in the same year that witnessed +the passage of the invading force through the Terek defile, the triumph of +the Khoja's arms was assured. A few weeks later Mahomed Yakoob deposed his +master, and caused himself to be proclaimed ruler in his stead. The voice +of the people ratified the success of the man; and in 1866 Mahomed Yakoob, +or Yakoob Beg, received at the hands of the Ameer of Bokhara the proud +title of Athalik Ghazi, by which he was long known. The Mohammedan rising +spread still further within the limits of Chinese authority in Central +Asia. + +While the events which have been briefly sketched were happening in the +region south of the great Tian Shan range, others of not less importance +had taken place in Ili or Kuldja, which, under Chinese rule, had enjoyed +uninterrupted peace for a century. It was this fact which marked the +essential difference between the Tungan rebellion and all the disturbances +that had preceded it. The revolution in the metropolitan province was +complicated by the presence of different races, just as it had been in +Kashgaria by the pretensions of the Khoja family. A large portion of the +population consisted of those Tarantchis who were the descendants of the +Kashgarians deported on more than one occasion by the Chinese from their +own homes to the banks of the Ili; and they had inherited a legacy of ill- +will against their rulers which only required the opportunity to display +itself. The Tungan--or Dungan, as the Russians spell it--element was also +very strong, and colonies of the Sobo and Solon tribes, who had been +emancipated from their subjection to the Mongols by the Emperor Kanghi for +their bravery, further added to the variety of the nationalities dwelling +in this province. It had been said with some truth that the Chinese ruled +in this quarter of their dominions on the old principle of commanding by +the division of the subjected; and it had been predicted that they would +fall whenever any two of the dependent populations combined against them. +There is little difficulty in showing that the misfortunes of the Chinese +were due to their own faults. They neglected the plainest military +precautions, and the mandarins thought only of enriching themselves. But +the principal cause of the destruction of their power was the cessation of +the supplies which they used to receive from Pekin. The government of +these dependencies was only possible by an annual gift from the imperial +treasury. When the funds placed at the disposal of the Ili authorities +were diverted to other uses, it was no longer possible to maintain the old +efficiency of the service. Discontent was provided with a stronger +argument at the same time that the executive found itself embarrassed in +grappling with it. + +The news of the Mohammedan outbreak in China warned the Tungani in Ili +that their opportunity had come. But although there were disturbances as +early as January, 1863, these were suppressed, and the vigilance of the +authorities sufficed to keep things quiet for another year. Their +subsequent incapacity, or hesitation to strike a prompt blow, enabled the +Mohammedans to husband their resources and to complete their plans. A +temporary alliance was concluded between the Tungani and the Tarantchis, +and they hastened to attack the Chinese troops and officials. The year +1865 was marked by the progress of a sanguinary struggle, during which the +Chinese lost their principal towns, and some of their garrisons were +ruthlessly slaughtered after surrender. The usual scenes of civil war +followed. When the Chinese were completely vanquished and their garrisons +exterminated, the victors quarreled among themselves. The Tungani and the +Tarantchis met in mortal encounter, and the former were vanquished and +their chief slain. When they renewed the contest, some months later, they +were, after another sanguinary struggle, again overthrown. The Tarantchis +then ruled the state by themselves, but the example they set of native +rule was, to say the least, not encouraging. One chief after another was +deposed and murdered. The same year witnessed no fewer than five leaders +in the supreme place of power; and when Abul Oghlan assumed the title of +Sultan the cup of their iniquities was already full. In the year 1871 an +end was at last put to these enormities by the occupation of the province +by a Russian force, and the installation of a Russian governor. Although +it is probable that they were only induced to take this step by the fear +that if they did not do so Yakoob Beg would, the fact remains that the +Russian government did a good thing in the cause of order by interfering +for the restoration of tranquillity in the valley of the Ili. + +The Mohammedan outbreaks in southwestern and northwestern China resulted, +therefore, in the gradual suppression of the Panthay rebellion, which was +completed in the twelfth year of Tungche's reign, while the Tungan rising, +so far as the Central Asian territories were concerned, remained unquelled +for a longer period. The latter led to the establishment of an independent +Tungan confederacy beyond Kansuh, and also of the kingdom of Kashgaria +ruled by Yakoob Beg. The revolt in Ili, after several alternations of +fortune, resulted in the brief independence of the Tarantchis, who were in +turn displaced by the Russians under a pledge of restoring the province to +the Chinese whenever they should return. Judged by the extent of territory +involved, the Mohammedan rebellion might be said to be not less important +than the Taeping; but the comparison on that ground alone would be really +delusive, as the numerical inferiority of the Mohammedans rendered it +always a question only of time for the central power to be restored. + +The young Emperor Tungche, therefore, grew up amid continual difficulties, +although the successes of his principal lieutenants afforded good reason +to believe that, so far as they arose from rebels, it was only a question +of time before they would be finally removed. The foreign intercourse +still gave cause for much anxiety, although there was no apprehension of +war. It would have been unreasonable to suppose that the relations between +the foreign merchants and residents and the Chinese could become, after +the suspicion and dangers of generations, absolutely cordial. The +commercial and missionary bodies, into which the foreign community was +naturally divided, had objects of trade or religion to advance, which +rendered them apt to take an unfavorable view of the progress made by the +Chinese government in the paths of civilization, and to be ever skeptical +even of its good faith. The main object with the foreign diplomatic +representatives became not more to obtain justice for their countrymen +than to restrain their eagerness, and to confine their pretensions to the +rights conceded by the treaties. A clear distinction had to be drawn +between undue coercion of the Chinese government on the one hand, and the +effectual compulsion of the people to evince respect toward foreigners and +to comply with the obligations of the treaty on the other. Instances +repeatedly occurred in reference to the latter matter, when it would have +been foolish to have shown weakness, especially as there was not the least +room to suppose that the government possessed at that time the power and +the capacity to secure reparation for, or to prevent the repetition of, +attacks on foreigners. Under this category came the riot at Yangchow in +the year 1868, when some missionaries had their houses burned down, and +were otherwise maltreated. A similar outrage was perpetrated in Formosa; +but the fullest redress was always tendered as soon as the executive +realized that the European representatives attached importance to the +occurrence. The recurrence of these local dangers and disputes served to +bring more clearly than ever before the minds of the Chinese ministers the +advisability of taking some step on their own part toward an understanding +with European governments and peoples. The proposal to depute a Chinese +embassador to the West could hardly be said to be new, seeing that it had +been projected after the Treaty of Nankin, and that the minister Keying +had manifested some desire to be the first mandarin to serve in that novel +capacity. But when the Tsungli Yamen took up the question it was decided +that in this as in other matters it would be expedient to avail themselves +in the first place of foreign mediation. The favorable opportunity of +doing so presented itself when Mr. Burlinghame retired from his post as +minister of the United States at Pekin. In the winter of 1867-68 Mr. +Burlinghame accepted an appointment as accredited representative of the +Chinese government to eleven of the principal countries of the world, and +two Chinese mandarins and a certain number of Chinese students were +appointed to accompany him on his tour. The Chinese themselves did not +attach as much importance as they might have done to his efforts, and Mr. +Burlinghame's mission will be remembered more as an educational process +for foreigners than as signifying any decided change in Chinese policy. +His death at St. Petersburg, in March, 1870, put a sudden and unexpected +close to his tour, but it cannot be said that he could have done more +toward the elucidation of Chinese questions than he had already +accomplished, while his bold and optimistic statements, after awakening +public attention, had already begun to produce the inevitable reaction. + +In 1869 Sir Rutherford Alcock retired, and was succeeded in the difficult +post of English representative in China by Mr. Thomas Wade, whose services +have been more than once referred to. In the very first year of his +holding the post an event occurred which cast all the minor aggressive +acts that had preceded it into the shade. It may perhaps be surmised that +this was the Tientsin massacre--an event which threatened to re-open the +whole of the China question, and which brought France and China to the +verge of war. It was in June, 1870, on the eve of the outbreak of the +Franco-Prussian War, that the foreign settlements were startled by the +report of a great popular outbreak against foreigners in the important +town of Tientsin. At that city there was a large and energetic colony of +Roman Catholic priests, and their success in the task of conversion, small +as it might be held, was still sufficient to excite the ire and fears of +the literary and official classes. The origin of mob violence is ever +difficult to discover, for a trifle suffices to set it in motion. But at +Tientsin specific charges of the most horrible and, it need not be said, +the most baseless character were spread about as to the cruelties and evil +practices of those devoted to the service of religion. These rumors were +diligently circulated, and it need not cause wonder if, when the mere cry +of "Fanquai"--Foreign Devil--sufficed to raise a disturbance, these +allegations resulted in a vigorous agitation against the missionaries, who +were already the mark of popular execration. It was well known beforehand +that an attack on the missionaries would take place unless the authorities +adopted very efficient measures of protection. The foreign residents and +the consulates were warned of the coming outburst, and a very heavy +responsibility will always rest on those who might, by the display of +greater vigor, have prevented the unfortunate occurrences that ensued. At +the same time, allowing for the prejudices of the Chinese, it must be +allowed that not only must the efforts of all foreign missionaries be +attended with the gravest peril, but that the acts of the French priests +and nuns at Tientsin were, if not indiscreet, at least peculiarly +calculated to arouse the anger and offend the superstitious predilections +of the Chinese. That the wrong was not altogether on the side of the +Chinese may be gathered from an official dispatch of the United States +Minister, describing the originating causes of the outrage: "At many of +the principal places in China open to foreign residence, the Sisters of +Charity have established institutions, each of which appears to combine in +itself a foundling hospital and orphan asylum. Finding that the Chinese +were averse to placing children in their charge, the managers of these +institutions offered a certain sum per head for all the children placed +under their control, to be given to them; it being understood that a child +once in their asylum no parent, relative, or guardian could claim or +exercise any control over it. It has for some time been asserted by the +Chinese, and believed by most of the non-Catholic foreigners residing +here, that the system of paying bounties induced the kidnaping of children +for these institutions for the sake of the reward. It is also asserted +that the priests or sisters, or both, have been in the habit of holding +out inducements to have children brought to them in the last stages of +illness for the purpose of being baptized _in articulo mortis_. In this +way many children have been taken to these establishments in the last +stages of disease, baptized there, and soon after taken away dead. All +these acts, together with the secrecy and seclusion which appear to be a +part and parcel of the regulations which govern institutions of this +character everywhere, have created suspicions in the minds of the Chinese, +and these suspicions have engendered an intense hatred against the +sisters." + +At that time Chung How, the superintendent of trade for the three northern +ports, was the principal official in Tientsin; but although some +representations, not as forcible however as the occasion demanded, were +made to him by M. Fontanier, the French Consul, on June 18, three days +before the massacre, no reply was given and no precautions were taken. On +the 21st a large crowd assembled outside the mission house. They very soon +assumed an attitude of hostility, and it was clear that at any moment the +attack might begin. M. Fontanier hastened off in person to Chung How, but +his threats seem to have been as unavailing as his arguments. On his +return he found the attack on the point of commencing. He made use of +menaces, and he fired a shot from his revolver, whether in self-defense or +in the heat of indignation at some official treachery will never be known. +The mob turned upon him, and he was murdered. The Chinese then hastened to +complete the work they had begun. Chung How, like Surajah Dowlah, was not +to be disturbed, and the attack on the mission house and consulate +proceeded, while the officials responsible for order remained inactive. +Twenty-one foreigners in all were brutally murdered under circumstances of +the greatest barbarity, while the number of native converts who fell at +the same time can never be ascertained. + +The Tientsin massacre was followed by a wave of anti-foreign feeling over +the whole country; but although an official brought out a work--entitled +"Death-blow to Corrupt Doctrine"--which obtained more than a passing +notoriety, and notwithstanding that some members of the imperial family, +and notably, as it was stated, Prince Chun, regarded the movement with +favor, the arguments of Prince Kung and the more moderate ministers +carried the day, and it was resolved to make every concession in the power +of the government for the pacific settlement of the dispute that had +arisen with France. The outbreak of the war between France and Germany, +while it contributed to a peaceful settlement of the question, rendered +the process of diplomacy slow and dubious. The Tsungli Yamen, as soon as +it realized that nothing short of the dispatch of a mission of apology to +Europe would salve the injured honor of France, determined that none other +than Chung How himself should go to Paris to assure the French that the +government deplored the popular ebullition and had taken no part in it. +The untoward result of the great war for France embarrassed her action in +China. Chung How's assurances were accepted, the proffered compensation +was received; but the Chinese were informed that in recognition of +France's moderation, and in return for the reception of their envoy by M. +Thiers, the right of audience should be conceded to the French minister +resident at Pekin. The Audience Question naturally aroused the greatest +interest at Pekin, where it agitated the official mind not merely because +it signified another concession to force, but also because it promised to +produce a disturbing effect on the mind of the people. The young emperor +was growing up, and might be expected to take a direct share in the +administration at an early date. It was not an idle apprehension that +filled the minds of his ministers lest he might lay the blame on them for +having cast upon him the obligation of receiving ministers of foreign +States in a manner such as they had never before been allowed to appear in +the presence of the occupant of the Dragon Throne. The youth of the +sovereign served to postpone the question for a short space of time, but +it was no longer doubtful that the assumption of personal authority by the +young Emperor Tungche would be accompanied by the reintroduction, and +probably by the settlement, of the Audience Question. It was typical of +the progress Chinese statesmen were making that none of them seemed to +consider the possibility of distinctly refusing this privilege. Its +concession was only postponed until after the celebration of the young +emperor's marriage. + +It had been known for some time that the young ruler had fixed his +affections on Ahluta, a Manchu lady of good family, daughter of Duke +Chung, and that the empresses had decided that she was worthy of the high +rank to which she was to be raised. The marriage ceremony was deferred on +more than one plea until after the emperor had reached his sixteenth +birthday, but in October, 1872, there was thought to be no longer any +excuse for postponement, and it was celebrated with great splendor on the +16th of that month. The arrangements were made in strict accordance with +the precedent of the Emperor Kanghi's marriage in 1674, that ruler having +also married when in occupation of the throne, and before he had attained +his majority. It was stated that the ceremonial was imposing, that the +incidental expenses were enormous, and that the people were very favorably +impressed by the demeanor of their young sovereign. Four months after the +celebration of his marriage the formal act of conferring upon Tungche the +personal control of his dominions was performed. In a special decree +issued from the Board of Rites the emperor said that he had received "the +commands of their majesties the two empresses to assume the +superintendence of business." This edict was directed to the Foreign +Ministers, who in return presented a collective request to be received in +audience. Prince Kung was requested "to take his Imperial Majesty's orders +with reference to their reception." The question being thus brought to a +crucial point, it was not unnatural that the Chinese ministers should make +the most vigorous resistance they could to those details which seemed to +and did encroach upon the prerogative of the emperor as he had been +accustomed to exercise it. For, in the first place, they were no longer +free agents, and Tungche had himself to be considered in any arrangement +for the reception of foreign envoys. The discussion of the question +assumed a controversial character, in which stress was laid on the one +side upon the necessity of the kotow even in a modified form, while on the +other it was pointed out that the least concession was as objectionable as +the greatest, and that China would benefit by the complete settlement of +the question. It says a great deal for the fairness and moderation of +Prince Kung and the ministers with him that, although they knew that the +foreign governments were not prepared to make the Audience Question one of +war, or even of the suspension of diplomatic relations, they determined to +settle the matter in the way most distasteful to themselves and most +agreeable to foreigners. On June 29, 1873, Tungche received in audience +the ministers of the principal powers at Pekin, and thus gave completeness +to the many rights and concessions obtained from his father and +grandfather by the treaties of Tientsin and Nankin. The privilege thus +secured caused lively gratification in the minds of all foreign residents, +to whom it signified the great surrender of the inherent right to +superiority claimed by the Chinese emperors, and we have recently seen +that it has been accepted as a precedent. + +The sudden death of Tseng Kwofan in the summer of 1873 removed +unquestionably the foremost public man in China. After the fall of Nankin +he had occupied the highest posts in the empire, both at that city and in +the metropolis. He was not merely powerful from his own position, but from +his having placed his friends and dependents in many of the principal +offices throughout the empire. At first prejudiced against foreigners, he +had gradually brought himself to recognize that some advantage might be +derived from their knowledge. But the change came at too late a period to +admit of his conferring any distinct benefit on his country from the more +liberal policy he felt disposed to pursue with regard to the training of +Chinese youths in the science and learning of the West. It was said that +had he been personally ambitious he might have succeeded in displacing the +Tartar regime. But such a thought never assumed any practical shape in his +mind, and to the end of his days Tseng Kwofan was satisfied to remain the +steadfast supporter and adherent of the Manchus. In this respect ho has +been closely imitated by his most distinguished lieutenant, Li Hung Chang, +who succeeded to some of his dignities and much of his power. + +Another of Tseng's proteges, Tso Tsung Tang, had been raised from the +viceroyalty of Chekiang and Fuhkien to that of Shensi and Kansuh. The +promotion was of the more doubtful value, seeing that both those provinces +were in the actual possession of the rebels; but Tso threw himself into +the task of reconquering them with remarkable energy, and within two years +of his arrival he was able to report that he had cleared the province of +Shensi of all insurgents. He then devoted his attention to the +pacification of Kansuh; and after many desultory engagements proceeded to +lay siege to the town of Souchow, where the Mohammedans had massed their +strength. At the end of the year 1872 the imperial army was drawn up in +front of this place, but Tso does not seem to have considered himself +strong enough to deliver an attack, and confined his operations to +preventing the introduction of supplies and fresh troops into the town. +Even in this he was only partially successful, as a considerable body of +men made their way in, in January, 1873. In the following month he +succeeded in capturing, by a night attack, a temple outside the walls, +upon which the Mohammedans placed considerable value. The siege continued +during the whole of the summer, and it was not until the month of October +that the garrison was reduced to such extremities as to surrender. The +chiefs were hacked to pieces, and about four thousand men perished by the +sword. The women, children, and old men were spared, and the spoil of the +place was handed over to the soldiery. It was Tso's distinctive merit +that, far from being carried away by these successes, he neglected no +military precaution, and devoted his main efforts to the reorganization of +the province. In that operation he may be left employed for the brief +remainder of Tungche's reign; but it may be said that in 1874 the campaign +against Kashgaria had been fully decided upon. A thousand Manchu cavalry +were sent to Souchow. Sheepskins, horses, and ammunition in large +quantities were also dispatched to the far west, and General Kinshun, the +Manchu general, was intrusted with the command of the army in the field. + +The year 1874 witnessed an event that claims notice. There never has been +much good will between China and her neighbors in Japan. The latter are +too independent in their bearing to please the advocates of Chinese +predominance, at the same time that their insular position has left them +safe from the attack of the Pekin government. The attempt made by the +Mongol, Kublai Khan, to subdue these islanders had been too disastrous to +invite repetition. In Corea the pretensions of the ruler of Yeddo had been +repelled, if not crushed; but wherever the sea intervened the advantage +rested more or less decisively with him. The island of Formosa is +dependent upon China, and the western districts are governed by officials +duly appointed by the Viceroy of Fuhkien. But the eastern half of the +island, separated from the cultivated districts by a range of mountains +covered with dense if not impenetrable forests, is held by tribes who own +no one's authority, and who act as they deem fit. In the year 1868 or 1869 +a junk from Loochoo was wrecked on this coast, and the crew were murdered +by the islanders. The civil war in Japan prevented any prompt claim for +reparation, but in 1873 the affair was revived, and a demand made at Pekin +for compensation. The demand was refused, whereupon the Japanese, taking +the law into their own hands, sent an expedition to Formosa. China replied +with a counter-demonstration, and war seemed inevitable. In this crisis +Mr. Wade offered his good services in the interests of peace, and after +considerable controversy he succeeded in bringing the two governments to +reason. The Chinese paid an indemnity of half a million taels, and the +Japanese evacuated the island. + +In all countries governed by an absolute sovereign it is as interesting as +it is difficult to obtain some accurate knowledge of the character of the +autocrat. A most important change had been effected in the government of +China, yet it is impossible to discover what its precise significance was, +or to say how far it influenced the fortunes of the country. The empresses +had retired into private life, and for a time their regency came to an +end. Prince Kung was only the minister of a young prince who had it in his +power to guide affairs exactly as he might feel personally disposed. +Prince Kung might be either the real governor of the state or only the +courtier of his nephew. It depended solely on that prince's character. +There were not wanting signs that Tungche had the consciousness, if not +the capacity, of supreme power, and that he wished his will to be +paramount. Such evidence as was obtainable agreed in stating that he was +impatient of restraint, and that the prudent reflections of his uncle were +not overmuch to his fancy. On September 10 the young ruler took the world +into his confidence by announcing in a Vermilion Edict that he had +degraded Prince Kung and his son in their hereditary rank as princes of +the empire, for using "language in very many respects unbecoming." Whether +Tungche took this very decided step in a moment of pique or because he +perceived that there was a plan among his chief relatives to keep him in +leading-strings, must remain a matter of opinion. At the least he must +have refused to personally retract what he had done, for on the very +following day (September 11) a decree appeared from the two empresses +reinstating Prince Kung and his son in their hereditary rank and dignity, +and thus reasserting the power of the ex-regents. + +Not long after this disturbance in the interior of the palace, of which +only the ripple reached the surface of publicity, there were rumors that +the emperor's health was in a precarious state, and in the month of +December it became known that Tungche was seriously ill with an attack of +smallpox. The disease seemed to be making satisfactory progress, for the +doctors were rewarded; but on December 18 an edict appeared ordering or +requesting the empresses dowager to assume the personal charge of the +administration. Six days later another edict appeared which strengthened +the impression that the emperor was making good progress toward recovery. +But appearances were deceptive, for, after several weeks' uncertainty, it +became known that the emperor's death was inevitable. On January 12, 1875, +Tungche "ascended upon the Dragon, to be a guest on high," without leaving +any offspring to succeed him. There were rumors that his illness was only +a plausible excuse, and that he was really the victim of foul play; but it +is not likely that the truth on that point will ever be revealed. Whether +he was the victim of an intrigue similar to that which had marked his +accession to power, or whether he only died from the neglect or +incompetence of his medical attendants, the consequences were equally +favorable to the personal views of the two empresses and Prince Kung. They +resumed the exercise of that supreme authority which they had resigned +little more than twelve months. The most suspicious circumstance in +connection with this event was the treatment of the young Empress Ahluta, +who, it was well known, was pregnant at the time of her husband's death. +Instead of waiting to decide as to the succession until it was known +whether Tungche's posthumous child would prove to be a son or a daughter, +the empresses dowager hastened to make another selection and to place the +young widow of the deceased sovereign in a state of honorable confinement. +Their motive was plain. Had Ahluta's child happened to be a son, he would +have been the legal emperor, as well as the heir by direct descent, and +she herself could not have been excluded from a prominent share in the +government. To the empresses dowager one child on the throne mattered no +more than another; but it was a question of the first importance that +Ahluta should be set on one side. In such an atmosphere there is often +grievous peril to the lives of inconvenient personages. Ahluta sickened +and died. Her child was never born. The charitable gave her credit for +having refused food through grief for her husband, Tungche. The skeptical +listened to the details of her illness with scorn for the vain efforts to +obscure the dark deeds of ambition. In their extreme anxiety to realize +their own designs, and at the same time not to injure the constitution, +the two empresses had been obliged to resort to a plan that could only +have been suggested by desperation. For the first time since the Manchu +dynasty occupied the throne it was necessary to depart from the due line +of succession, and to make the election of the sovereign a matter of +individual fancy or favor instead of one of inheritance. The range of +choice was limited; for the son of Prince Kung himself, who seemed to +enjoy the prior right to the throne, was a young man of sufficient age to +govern for himself; and moreover his promotion would mean the compulsory +retirement from public life of Prince Kung, for it was not possible in +China for a father to serve under his son, until Prince Chun, the father +of the present reigning emperor, established quite recently a precedent to +the contrary. The name of Prince Kung's son, if mentioned at all, was only +mentioned to be dismissed. The choice of the empresses fell upon Tsai +Tien, the son of Prince Chun or the Seventh Prince, who on January 13 was +proclaimed emperor. As he was of too tender an age to rule for himself, +his nomination served the purposes of the two empresses and their ally, +Prince Kung, who thus entered upon a second lease of undisputed power. + + + + +CHAPTER XXII + +THE REIGN OF KWANGSU + + +Thus after a very brief interval the governing power again passed into the +hands of the regents who had ruled the state so well for the twelve years +following the death of Hienfung. The nominal emperor was a child of little +more than three years of age, to whom was given the style of "Kwangsu," or +"illustrious succession," and the empresses could look forward to many +years of authority in the name of so young a sovereign. The only +opposition to their return to power seems to have come from the palace +eunuchs, who had asserted themselves during the brief reign of Tungche and +hoped to gain predominance in the imperial councils. But they found a +determined mistress in the person of Tsi An, the Eastern Empress, as she +was also called, who took vigorous action against them, punishing their +leaders with death and effectually nipping in the bud all their projects +for making themselves supreme. + +The return of the empresses to power was followed by a great catastrophe +in the relations between England and China. For the moment it threw every +other matter into the shade, and seemed to render the outbreak of war +between the two countries almost inevitable. In the year 1874 the +government of India, repenting of its brief infatuation for the Panthay +cause, yet still reluctant to lose the advantages it had promised itself +from the opening of Yunnan to trade, resolved upon sending a formal +mission of explory under Colonel Horace Browne, an officer of distinction, +through Burmah to that province. The difficulties in the way of the +undertaking seemed comparatively few, as the King of Burmah was friendly +and appeared disposed at that time to accept his natural position as the +dependent of Calcutta. The Pekin authorities also were outwardly not +opposed to the journey; and the only opposition to be apprehended was from +the Yunnan officials and people. + +It was thought desirable, with the view of preparing the way for the +appearance of this foreign mission, that a representative of the English +embassy at Pekin, having a knowledge of the language and of the ceremonial +etiquette of the country, should be deputed to proceed across China and +meet Colonel Browne on the Burmese frontier. The officer selected for this +delicate and difficult mission was Mr. Raymond Augustus Margary, who to +the singular aptitude he had displayed in the study of Chinese added a +buoyant spirit and a vigorous frame that peculiarly fitted him for the +long and lonely journey he had undertaken across China. His reception +throughout was encouraging. The orders of the Tsungli Yamen, specially +drawn up by the Grand Secretary Wansiang, were explicit, and not to be +lightly ignored. Mr. Margary performed his journey in safety; and, on +January 26, 1875, only one fortnight after Kwangsu's accession, he joined +Colonel Browne at Bhamo. A delay of more than three weeks ensued at Bhamo, +which was certainly unfortunate. Time was given for the circulation of +rumors as to the approach of a foreign invader along a disturbed frontier +held by tribes almost independent, and whose predatory instincts were +excited by the prospect of rich plunder, at the same time that their +leaders urged them to oppose a change which threatened to destroy their +hold on the caravan route between Bhamo and Talifoo. When, on February 17, +Colonel Browne and his companions approached the limits of Burmese +territory, they found themselves in face of a totally different state of +affairs from what had existed when Mr. Margary passed safely through three +weeks before. The preparations for opposing the English had been made +under the direct encouragement, and probably the personal direction, of +Lisitai, a man who had been a brigand and then a rebel, but who at this +time held a military command on the frontier. + +As Colonel Browne advanced he was met with rumors of the opposition that +awaited him. At first these were discredited, but on the renewed +statements that a large Chinese force had been collected to bar his way, +Mr. Margary rode forward to ascertain what truth there was in these +rumors. The first town on this route within the Chinese border is Momein, +which, under the name of Tengyue, was once a military station of +importance, and some distance east of it again is another town, called +Manwein. Mr. Margary set out on February 19, and it was arranged that only +in the event of his finding everything satisfactory at Momein was he to +proceed to Manwein. Mr. Margary reached Momein in safety, and reported in +a letter to Colonel Browne that all was quiet at that place, and that +there were no signs of any resistance. That letter was the last news ever +received from Mr. Margary. On February 19 he started from Momein, and the +information subsequently obtained left no doubt that he was treacherously +murdered on that or the following day at Manwein. An ominous silence +followed, and Colonel Browne's party delayed its advance until some +definite news should arrive as to what had occurred in front, although the +silence was sufficient to justify the worst apprehensions. Three days +later the rumor spread that Mr. Margary and his attendants had been +murdered. It was also stated that an army was advancing to attack the +English expedition; and on February 22 a large Chinese force did make its +appearance on the neighboring heights. There was no longer any room to +doubt that the worst had happened, and it only remained to secure the +safety of the expedition. The Chinese numbered several thousand men under +Lisitai in person, while to oppose them there were only four Europeans and +fifteen Sikhs. Yet superior weapons and steadfastness carried the day +against greater numbers. The Sikhs fought as they retired, and the +Chinese, unable to make any impression on them, abandoned an attack which +was both perilous and useless. + +The news of this outrage did not reach Pekin until a month later, when Mr. +Wade at once took the most energetic measures to obtain the amplest +reparation in the power of the Pekin government to concede. The first and +most necessary point in order to insure not merely the punishment of the +guilty, but also that the people of China should not have cause to suppose +that their rulers secretly sympathized with the authors of the attack, was +that no punitive measures should be undertaken, or, if undertaken, +recognized, until a special Commission of Inquiry had been appointed to +investigate the circumstances on the spot. Mr. Margary was an officer of +the English government traveling under the special permission and +protection of the Tsungli Yamen. The Chinese government could not expect +to receive consideration if it failed to enforce respect for its own +commands, and the English government had an obligation which it could not +shirk in exacting reparation for the murder of its representative. The +treacherous killing of Mr. Margary was evidently not an occurrence for +which it could be considered a sufficient atonement that some miserable +criminals under sentence of death, or some desperate individuals anxious +to secure the worldly prosperity of their families, should undergo painful +torture and public execution in order to shield official falseness and +infamy. Although no one ever suspected the Pekin government of having +directly instigated the outrage, the delay in instituting an impartial and +searching inquiry into the affair strengthened an impression that it felt +reluctant to inflict punishment on those who had committed the act of +violence. Nearly three months elapsed before any step was taken toward +appointing a Chinese official to proceed to the scene of the outrage in +company with the officers named by the English minister; but on June 19 an +edict appeared in the "Pekin Gazette" ordering Li Han Chang, governor- +general of Houkwang, to temporarily vacate his post, and "repair with all +speed to Yunnan to investigate and deal with certain matters." Even then +the matter dragged along but slowly. Li Han Chang, who, as the brother of +Li Hung Chang, was an exceptionally well-qualified and highly-placed +official for the task, and whose appointment was in itself some evidence +of sincerity, did not leave Hankow until August, and the English +commissioners, Messrs. Grosvenor, Davenport and Colborne Baber, did not +set out from the same place before the commencement of October. The +intervening months had been employed by Mr. Wade in delicate and +fluctuating negotiation with Li Hung Chang (who had succeeded Tseng Kwofan +as Viceroy of Pechihli and who had now come to the front as the chief +official in the Chinese service) at Tientsin and with the Tsungli Yamen at +Pekin. It was not till the end of the year that the commission to +ascertain the fate of Mr. Margary began its active work on the spot. The +result was unexpectedly disappointing. The mandarins supported one +another. The responsibility was thrown on several minor officials, and on +the border-tribes or savages. Several of the latter were seized, and their +lives were offered as atonement for an offense they had not committed. The +furthest act of concession which the Chinese commissioner gave was to +temporarily suspend Tsen Yuying the Futai for remissness; but even this +measure was never enforced with rigor. The English officers soon found +that it was impossible to obtain any proper reparation on the spot. + +Sir Thomas Wade, who was knighted during the negotiations, refused to +accept the lives of the men offered, whose complicity in the offense was +known to be none at all, while its real instigators escaped without any +punishment. When the new year, 1876, opened, the question was still +unsettled, and it was clear that no solution could be discovered on the +spot. Sir Thomas Wade again called upon the Chinese in the most emphatic +language allowed by diplomacy to conform with the spirit and letter of +their engagements, and he informed the Tsungli Yamen that unless they +proffered full redress for Mr. Margary's murder it would be impossible to +continue diplomatic relations. To show that this was no meaningless +expression, Sir Thomas Wade left Pekin, while a strong re-enforcement to +the English fleet demonstrated that the government was resolved to support +its representative. In consequence of these steps, Li Hung Chang was, in +August, 1876, or more than eighteen months after the outrage, intrusted +with full powers for the arrangement, of the difficulty; and the small +seaport of Chefoo was fixed upon as the scene for the forthcoming +negotiations. Even then the Chinese sought to secure a sentimental +advantage by requesting that Sir Thomas Wade would change the scene of +discussion to Tientsin, or at least that he would consent to pay Li Hung +Chang a visit there. This final effort to conceal the fact that the +English demanded redress as an equal and not as a suppliant having been +baffled, there was no further attempt at delay. The Chefoo Convention was +signed in that town, to which the viceroy proceeded from Tientsin. Li Hung +Chang entertained the foreign ministers at a great banquet; and the final +arrangements were hurried forward for the departure to Europe of the +Chinese embassador, whose dispatch had been decided upon in the previous +year. When the secret history of this transaction is revealed it will be +seen how sincere were Li Hung Chang's wishes for a pacific result, and how +much his advice contributed to this end. + +The most important passage in the Chefoo Convention was unquestionably +that commanding the different viceroys and governors to respect, and +afford every protection to, all foreigners provided with the necessary +passport from the Tsungli Yamen, and warning them that they would be held +responsible in the event of any such travelers meeting with injury or +maltreatment. The next most important passage was that arranging for the +dispatch of an embassy to London bearing a letter of regret for the murder +of the English official. The official selected for this duty was Kwo +Sungtao, a mandarin of high rank and unexceptionable character. The letter +was submitted to Sir Thomas Wade in order that its terms should be exactly +in accordance with Chinese etiquette, and that no phrase should be used +showing that the Chinese government attached less importance to the +mission than the occasion demanded. The embassy proceeded to Europe, and, +whatever may be thought of its immediate effect, it must be allowed that +it established a precedent of friendly intercourse with this country, +which promises to prove an additional guarantee of peace. Kwo Sungtao was +accompanied by the present Sir Halliday Macartney, who had rendered such +good service to China, his adopted country, during the Taeping war and +afterward, and who, during the last sixteen years, has taught the Chinese +government how to make itself listened to by the most powerful States of +Europe. + +A curious incident arising from the passion of gambling which is so +prevalent in China, and bearing incidentally upon the national character, +may be briefly referred to. The attention of the Pekin government was +attracted to this subject by a novel form of gambling, which not merely +attained enormous dimensions, but which threatened to bring the system of +public examination into disrepute. This latter fact created a profound +impression at Pekin, and roused the mandarins to take unusually prompt +measures. Canton was the headquarters of the gambling confederacy which +established the lotteries known as the Weising, but its ramifications +extended throughout the whole of the province of Kwantung. The Weising, or +examination sweepstakes, were based on the principle of drawing the names +of the successful candidates at the official examinations. They appealed, +therefore, to every poor villager, and every father of a family, as well +as to the aspirants themselves. The subscribers to the Weising lists were +numbered by hundreds of thousands. It became a matter of almost as much +importance to draw a successful number or name in the lottery as to take +the degree. The practice could not have been allowed to go on without +introducing serious abuses into the system of public examination. The +profits to the owners of the lottery were so enormous that they were able +to pay not less than eight hundred thousand dollars as hush-money to the +viceroy and the other high officials of Canton. In order to shield his own +participation in the profits, the viceroy declared that he devoted this +new source of revenue to the completion of the river defenses of Canton. + +In 1874 the whole system was declared illegal, and severe penalties were +passed against those aiding, or participating in any way in, the Weising +Company. The local officers did not, however, enforce with any stringency +these new laws, and the Weising fraternity enjoyed a further but brief +period of increased activity under a different name. The fraud was soon +detected, and in an edict of August 11, 1875, it was very rightly laid +down that "the maintenance of the purity of government demands that it be +not allowed under any pretext to be re-established," and for their apathy +In the matter the Viceroy Yinghan and several of the highest officials in +Canton were disgraced and stripped of their official rank. + +In China natural calamities on a colossal scale have often aggravated +political troubles. The year 1870 witnessed the commencement of a dearth +in the two great provinces of Honan and Shansi which has probably never +been surpassed as the cause of a vast amount of human suffering. Although +the provinces named suffered the most from the prevalent drought, the +suffering was general over the whole of Northern China, from Shantung and +Pechihli to Honan and the course of the Yellow River. At first the +government, if not apathetic, was disposed to say that the evil would be +met by the grant of the usual allowance made by the provincial governors +in the event of distress; but when one province after another was absorbed +within the famine area, it became no longer possible to treat the matter +as one of such limited importance, and the high ministers felt obliged to +bestir themselves in face of so grave a danger. Li Hung Chang in +particular was most energetic, not merely in collecting and forwarding +supplies of rice and grain, but also in inviting contributions of money +from all those parts of the empire which had not been affected by famine. +Allowing for the general sluggishness of popular opinion in China, and for +the absence of any large amount of currency, it must be allowed that these +appeals met with a large and liberal response. The foreign residents also +contributed their share, and even the charity of London found a vent in +sending some thousands of pounds to the scene of the famine in Northern +China. This evidence of foreign sympathy in the cause of a common humanity +made more than a passing impression on the minds of the Chinese people. + +While the origin of the famine may be attributed to either drought or +civil war, there is no doubt that its extension and the apparent inability +of the authorities to grapple with it may be traced to the want of means +of communication, which rendered it almost impossible to convey the +needful succor into the famine districts. The evil being so obvious, it +was hoped that the Chinese would be disposed to take a step forward on +their own initiative in the great and needed work of the introduction of +railways and other mechanical appliances. The viceroy of the Two Kiang +gave his assent to the construction of a short line between Shanghai and +the port of Woosung. The great difficulty had always been to make a start; +and now that a satisfactory commencement had been made the foreigners were +disposed in their eagerness to overlook all obstacles, and to imagine the +Flowery Land traversed in all directions by railways. But these +expectations were soon shown to be premature. Half of the railway was open +for use in the summer of 1876, and during some weeks the excitement among +the Chinese themselves was as marked as among the Europeans. The hopes +based upon this satisfactory event were destined to be soon dispelled by +the animosity of the officials. They announced their intention to resort +to every means in their power to prevent the completion of the +undertaking. The situation revealed such dangers of mob violence that Sir +Thomas Wade felt compelled to request the company to discontinue its +operations, and after some discussion it was arranged that the Chinese +should buy the line. After a stipulated period the line was placed under +Chinese management, when, instead of devoting themselves to the interests +of the railway, and to the extension of its power of utility, they +willfully and persistently neglected it, with the express design of +destroying it. At this conjuncture the viceroy allowed the Governor of +Fuhkien to remove the rails and plant to Formosa. The fate of the Woosung +railway destroyed the hopes created by its construction, and postponed to +a later day the great event of the introduction of railways into China. +Notwithstanding such disappointments as this, and the ever present +difficulty of conducting relations with an unsympathetic people controlled +by suspicious officials, there was yet observable a marked improvement in +the relations of the different nations with the Chinese. Increased +facilities of trade, such as the opening of new ports, far from extending +the area of danger, served to promote a mutual goodwill. In 1876 +Kiungchow, in the island of Hainan, was made a treaty port, or rather the +fact of its having been included in the Treaty of Tientsin was practically +accepted and recognized. In the following year four new ports were added +to the list. One, Pakhoi, was intended to increase trade intercourse with +Southern China. Two of the three others, Ichang and Wuhu, were selected as +being favorably situated for commerce on the Yangtse and its affluents, +while Wenchow was chosen for the benefit of the trade on the coast. Mr. +Colborne Baber, who had been a member of the Yunnan commission, was +dispatched to Szchuen, to take up his residence at Chungking for the +purpose of facilitating trade with that great province. The successful +tour of Captain Gill, not merely through Southwest China into Burmah, but +among some of the wilder and more remote districts of Northern Szchuen, +afforded reason to believe that henceforth traveling would be safer in +China, and nothing that has since happened is calculated to weaken that +impression. + +When Kwangsu ascended the throne the preparations for the campaign against +Kashgaria were far advanced toward completion, and Kinshun had struck the +first of those blows which were to insure the overthrow of the Tungani and +of Yakoob Beg. The fall of Souchow had distinguished the closing weeks of +the year 1873, and in 1874 Kinshun had begun, under the direction of Tso +Tsung Tang, who was described by a French writer as "very intelligent, of +a bravery beyond all question, and an admirable organizer," his march +across the desert to the west. He followed a circuitous line of march, +with a view of avoiding the strongly placed and garrisoned town of Hami. +The exact route is not certain, but he seems to have gone as far north as +Uliassutai, where he was able to recruit some of the most faithful and +warlike of the Mongol tribes. But early in 1875 he arrived before the +walls of Barkul, a town lying to the northwest of Hami. No resistance was +offered, and a few weeks later Hami was also occupied. The Tungani +retreated on the approach of the Chinese, and assembled their main force +for the defense of the two towns of Urumtsi and Manas, which are situated +on the northern side of the eastern spurs of the Tian Shan. Once Barkul +and Hami were in the possession of the Chinese, it became necessary to +reopen direct communications with Souchow. This task occupied the whole of +the next twelve months, and was only successfully accomplished after many +difficulties had been overcome, and when halting-stations had been +established across Gobi. There is nothing improbable in the statement that +during this period the Chinese planted and reaped the seed which enabled +them, or those who followed in their train, to march in the following +season. With the year 1876 the really arduous portion of the campaign +commenced. The natural difficulties to the commencement of the war from +distance and desert had been all overcome. An army of about twenty-five +thousand effective troops, besides a considerable number of Mongol and +other tribal levies, had been placed in the field and within striking +distance of the rebels. The enemies were face to face. The Tungani could +retreat no further. Neither from Russia nor from Yakoob Beg could they +expect a place of refuge. The Athalik Ghazi might help them to hold their +own; he certainly would not welcome them within the limits of the six +cities. The Tungani had, therefore, no alternative left save to make as +resolute a stand as they could against the Chinese who had returned to +revenge their fellow-countrymen who had been slaughtered in their +thousands twelve years before. The town of Urumtsi, situated within a loop +of the mountains, lies at a distance by road of more than 300 miles from +Barkul. Kinshun, who had now been joined by Liu Kintang, the taotai of the +Sining district and a man of proved energy and capacity, resolved to +concentrate all his efforts on its capture. He moved forward his army to +Guchen, 200 miles west of Barkul, where he established a fortified camp +and a powder factory, and took steps te ascertain the strength and +intentions of the enemy. Toward the end of July the Chinese army resumed +its march. The difficulties of the country were so great that the advanced +guards of the opposing armies did not come into contact until August 10. +The Chinese general seems to have attempted on that date a night surprise; +but although he gained some success in the encounter which ensued, the +result must have been doubtful, seeing that he felt obliged to call off +his men from the attack. It was only, however, to collect his forces for +the delivery of a decisive blow. On August 13 a second battle was fought +with a result favorable to the Chinese. Two days later the enemy, who held +a fortified camp at Gumti, were bombarded out of it by the heavy artillery +brought from the coasts of China for the purposes of the war, and after +twenty-four hours' firing three breaches were declared to be practicable. +The place was carried by storm at the close of four hours' fighting and +slaughter, during which 6,000 men were stated to have been killed. Kinshun +followed up his victory by a rapid march on Urumtsi. That town surrendered +without a blow, and many hundred fugitives were cut down by the unsparing +Manchu cavalry, which pursued them along the road to Manas, their last +place of shelter. As soon as the necessary measures had been taken for the +military protection of Urumtsi, the Chinese army proceeded against Manas. +Their activity, which was facilitated by the favorable season of the year, +was also increased by the rumored approach of Yakoob Beg with a large army +to the assistance of the Tungani. At Manas the survivors of the Tungan +movement proper had collected for final resistance, and all that +desperation could suggest for holding the place had been done. Kinshun +appeared before Manas on September 2. On the 7th his batteries were +completed, and he began a heavy fire upon the northeast angle of the wall. +A breach of fourteen feet having been made, the order to assault was +given, but the stormers were repulsed with the loss of 100 killed. The +operations of the siege were renewed with great spirit on both sides. +Several assaults were subsequently delivered; but although the Chinese +always gained some advantage at the beginning they never succeeded in +retaining it. In one of these later attacks they admitted a loss of 200 +killed alone. The imperial army enjoyed the undisputed superiority in +artillery, and the gaps in its ranks were more than filled by the constant +flow of re-enforcements from the rear. The siege gradually assumed a less +active character. The Chinese dug trenches and erected earthworks. They +approached the walls by means of galleries in readiness to deliver the +attack on any symptom of discouragement among the besieged. On October 16 +a mine was sprung under the wall, making a wide breach; but although the +best portion of the Chinese army made two assaults on separate occasions, +they were both repulsed with loss. Twelve days later another mine was +sprung, destroying a large portion of the wall; but when the Chinese +stormers endeavored to carry the remaining works, they were again driven +back with heavy loss, including two generals killed in the breach. +Although thus far repulsed, the imperialists had inflicted very heavy +losses on the besieged, who, seeing that the end of their resources was at +hand, that there was no hope of succor, and that the besiegers were as +energetic as ever, at last arrived at the conclusion that they had no +choice left save to surrender on the best terms they could obtain. On +November 4, after a two months' siege, Haiyen, as the Chinese named the +Mohammedan leader, came out and offered to yield the town. His offer seems +to have been partly accepted, and on the 6th of the month the survivors of +the brave garrison, to the number of between two and three thousand men, +sallied forth from the west gate. It was noticed as a ground of suspicion +that all the men carried their weapons, and that they had placed their old +men, women and children in the center of their phalanx as if they +contemplated rather a sortie than a tame and unresisting surrender. The +Chinese commanders were not indisposed to deal with the least suspicious +circumstances as if they meant certain treachery. The imperialists +gradually gathered around the garrison. The Mohammedans made one bold +effort to cut their way through. They failed in the attempt, and were +practically annihilated on the ground. Those men who were taken by the +cavalry were at once beheaded, whether in the city or among those who had +gone forth, but the aged, the women and the children were spared by +Kinshun's express orders. All the leaders taken were tortured before +execution as rebels, and even the bodies of the dead chiefs were exhumed +in order that they might be subjected to indignity. The siege of Manas was +interesting both for the stubbornness of the attack and defense, and also +as marking the successful termination of the Chinese campaign against the +Tungani. With its capture, those Mohammedans who might be said to be +Chinese in ways and appearance ceased to possess any political importance. +It would not be going much too far to say that they no longer existed. The +movement of rebellion which began at Hochow in 1862 was thus repressed in +1876, after having involved during those fourteen years the northwestern +provinces of China, and much of the interior of Asia, in a struggle which, +for its bitter and sanguinary character, has rarely been surpassed. + +[Illustration: KANG, THE REFORMER] + +The successes of the Chinese gave their generals and army the confidence +and prestige of victory, and the overthrow of the Tungani left them +disengaged to deal with a more formidable antagonist. The siege of Manas +had been vigorously prosecuted in order that the town might be taken +before the army of Yakoob Beg should arrive. The Athalik Ghazi may have +believed that Manas could hold out during the winter, for his movements in +1876 were leisurely, and betrayed a confidence that no decisive fighting +would take place until the following spring. His hopes were shown to be +delusive, but too late for practical remedy. Manas had fallen before he +could move to its support. The Chinese had crushed the Tungani, and were +in possession of the mountain passes. They were gathering their whole +strength to fall upon him, and to drive him out of the state in which he +had managed to set up a brief authority. While the events recorded had +been in progress, Yakoob Beg had been ruling the state of Kashgaria with +sufficient vigor and wisdom to attract the observation of his great +neighbors, the governments of England and Russia. He had shown rare skill +in adapting circumstances to suit his own ends. The people passively +accepted the authority which he was prepared to assert with his Khokandian +soldiery, and the independent state of Kashgaria might have continued to +exist for a longer period had the Chinese not returned. But in 1875 the +arrival of Kinshun at Barkul showed Yakoob Beg that he would have to +defend his possessions against their lawful owners, while the overthrow of +the Tungani and the capture of their strongholds, in 1876, carried with +them a melancholy foreboding of his own fate. The Athalik Ghazi made his +preparations to take the field, but there was no certainty in his mind as +to where he should make his stand. He moved his army eastward, +establishing his camp first at Korla and then moving it on to Turfan, 900 +miles distant from Kashgar. The greatest efforts of this ruler only +availed to place 15,000 men at the front, and the barrenness of the region +compelled him to distribute them. The Ameer was at Turfan with 8,500 men +and twenty guns. His second son was at Toksoun, some miles in the rear, at +the head of 6,000 more and five guns. There were several smaller +detachments between Korla and the front. Opposed to these was the main +Chinese army under Kinshun at Urumtsi, while another force had been placed +in the field at Hami by the energy of Tso, and intrusted to the direction +of a general named Chang Yao. No fighting took place until the month of +March, 1877, and then the campaign began with a rapid advance by Chang Yao +from Hami to Turfan. The Kashgarians were driven out of Pidjam, and +compelled, after a battle, to evacuate Turfan. The Chinese records do not +help us to unravel the events of the month of April. The campaign +contained no more striking or important episodes, and yet the reports of +the generals have been mislaid or consigned to oblivion. The Athalik Ghazi +fought a second battle at Toksoun, where he rejoined his son's army, but +with no better fortune. He was obliged to flee back to his former camp at +Korla. After the capture of Turfan the Chinese armies came to a halt. It +was necessary to reorganize the vast territory which they had already +recovered, and to do something to replenish their arsenals. During five +months the Celestials stayed their further advance, while the cities were +being re-peopled and the roads rendered once more secure. Tso Tsung Tang +would leave nothing to chance. He had accomplished two of the three parts +into which his commission might be naturally divided. He had pacified the +northwest and overthrown the Tungani, and he would make sure of his ground +before attempting the third and the most difficult of all. And while the +Chinese viceroy had, for his own reasons, come to the very sensible +conclusion to refresh his army after its arduous labors in the limited +productive region situated between two deserts, the stars in their courses +fought on his side. + +Yakoob Beg had withdrawn only to Korla. He still cherished the futile +scheme of defending the eastern limits of his dominion, but with his +overthrow on the field of battle the magic power which he had exercised +over his subjects vanished. His camp became the scene of factious rivalry +and of plots to advance some individual pretension at the cost of the +better interests and even the security of the State. The exact details of +the conspiracy will never be known, partly from the remoteness of the +scene, but also on account of the mention of persons of whom nothing was, +or is ever likely to be, known. The single fact remains clear that Yakoob +Beg died at Korla on May 1, 1877, of fever according to one account, of +poison administered by Hakim Khan Torah according to another. Still the +Chinese did not even then advance, and Yakoob's sons were left to contest +with Hakim Khan Torah over the dismembered fragments of their father's +realm, A bitter and protracted civil war followed close upon the +disappearance of the Athalik Ghazi. On the removal of his dead body for +sepulture to Kashgar his eldest son, Kuli Beg, murdered his younger +brother over their father's bier. It was then that Hakim Khan came +prominently forward as a rival to Kuli Beg, and that the Mohammedans, weak +and numerically few as they were, divided themselves into two hostile +parties. While the Chinese were recruiting their troops and repairing +their losses, the enemy were exhausting themselves in vain and useless +struggles. In June, 1877, Hakim Khan was signally defeated and compelled +to flee into Russian territory, whence on a later occasion he returned for +a short time in a vain attempt to disturb the tranquillity of Chinese +rule. When, therefore, the Chinese resumed their advance much of their +work had been done for them. They had only to complete the overthrow of an +enemy whom they had already vanquished, and who was now exhausted by his +own disunion. The Chinese army made no forward movement from Toksoun until +the end of August, 1877. Liu Kintang, to whom the command of the advance +had been given, did not leave until one month later; and when he arrayed +his forces he found them to number about 15,000 men. It had been decided +that the first advance should not be made in greater force, as the chief +difficulty was to feed the army, not to defeat the enemy. + +The resistance encountered was very slight, and the country was found to +be almost uninhabited. Both Karashar and Korla were occupied by a Chinese +garrison, and the district around them was intrusted to the administration +of a local chief. Information that the rebel force was stationed at the +next town, Kucha, which is as far beyond Korla as that place is from +Toksoun, induced Liu Kintang to renew his march and to continue it still +more rapidly. A battle was fought outside Kucha in which the Chinese were +victorious, but not until they had overcome stubborn resistance. However, +the Chinese success was complete, and with Kucha in their power they had +simplified the process of attacking Kashgar itself. A further halt was +made at this town to enable the men to recover from their fatigue, to +allow fresh troops to come up, and measures to be taken for insuring the +security of communications with the places in the rear. At Kucha also the +work of civil administration was intrusted to some of the local notables. +The deliberation of the Chinese movements, far from weakening their +effect, invested their proceedings with the aspect of being irresistible. +The advance was shortly resumed. Aksu, a once flourishing city within the +limits of the old kingdom of Kashgar, surrendered at the end of October. +Ush Turfan yielded a few days later. The Chinese had now got within +striking distance of the capital of the state. They had only to provide +the means of making the blow as fatal and decisive as possible. In +December they seized Maralbashi, an important position on the Kashgar +Darya, commanding the principal roads to both Yarkand and Kashgar. Yarkand +was the chief object of attack. It surrendered without a blow on December +21. A second Chinese army had been sent from Maralbashi to Kashgar, which +was defended by a force of several thousand men. It had been besieged nine +days, when Liu Kintang arrived with his troops from Yarkand. A battle +ensued, in which the Mohammedans were vanquished, and the city with the +citadel outside captured. Several rebel leaders and some eleven hundred +men were said to have been executed; but Kuli Beg escaped into Russian +territory. The city of Kashgar was taken on December 26, and one week +later the town of Khoten, famous from a remote period for its jade +ornaments, passed into the hands of the race who best appreciated their +beauty and value. The Chinese thus brought to a triumphant conclusion the +campaigns undertaken for the reassertion of their authority over the +Mohammedan populations which had revolted. They had conquered in this war +by the superiority of their weapons and their organization, and not by an +overwhelming display of numbers. Although large bodies of troops were +stationed at many places, it does not seem that the army which seized the +cities of Yarkand and Kashgar numbered more than twenty thousand men. +Having vanquished their enemy in the field, the Celestials devoted all +their attention to the reorganization of what was called the New Dominion, +the capital of which after much deliberation was fixed at Urumtsi. Their +rule has been described by a Mussulman as being both very fair and very +just. + +Having conquered Eastern Turkestan, the Chinese next took steps for the +recovery of Ili. Without the metropolitan province the undertaking of Tso +Tsung Tang would lack completeness, while indeed many political and +military dangers would attend the situation in Central Asia. But this was +evidently a matter to be effected in the first place by negotiation, and +not by violence and force of arms. Russia had always been a friendly and +indeed a sympathetic neighbor. In this very matter of Ili she had +originally acted with the most considerate attention for China's rights, +when it seemed that they had permanently lost all definite meaning, for +she had declared that she would surrender it on China sending a sufficient +force to take possession, and now this had been done. It was, therefore, +by diplomatic representations on the part of the Tsungli Yamen to the +Russian Minister at Pekin that the recovery of Ili was expected in the +first place to be achieved. At about the same time the Russian authorities +at Tashkent came to the conclusion that the matter must rest with the +Czar, and the Chinese official world perceived that they would have to +depute a Minister Plenipotentiary to St. Petersburg. + +The official selected for the difficult and, as it proved, dangerous task +of negotiating at St. Petersburg, was that same Chung How who had been +sent to Paris after the Tientsin massacre. He arrived at Pekin in August, +1878, and was received in several audiences by the empresses while waiting +for his full instructions from the Tsungli Yamen. He did not leave until +October, about a month after the Marquis Tseng, Tseng Kwofan's eldest son, +set out from Pekin to take the place of Kwo Sungtao as Minister in London +and Paris. Chung How reached St. Petersburg in the early part of the +following year, and the discussion of the various points in question, +protracted by the removal of the court to Livadia, occupied the whole of +the summer months. At last it was announced that a treaty had been signed +at Livadia, by which Russia surrendered the Kuldja valley, but retained +that of the Tekes, which left in her hands the command of the passes +through the Tian Shan range into Kashgar. Chung How knew nothing about +frontiers or military precautions, but he thought a great deal about +money. He fought the question of an indemnity with ability, and got it +fixed at five million roubles, or little more than half that at which it +was placed by the later treaty. There was never any reason to suppose that +the Chinese government would accept the partial territorial concession +obtained by Chung How. The first greeting that met Chung How on his return +revealed the fate of his treaty. He had committed the indiscretion of +returning without waiting for the Edict authorizing his return, and as the +consequence he had to accept suspension from all his offices, while his +treaty was submitted to the tender mercies of the grand secretaries, the +six presidents of boards, the nine chief ministers of state, and the +members of the Hanlin. Three weeks later, Prince Chun was specially +ordered to join the Committee of Deliberation. On January 27 Chung How was +formally cashiered and arrested, and handed over to the Board of +Punishment for correction. The fate of the treaty itself was decided a +fortnight later. Chung How was then declared to have "disobeyed his +instructions and exceeded his powers." On March 3 an edict appeared, +sentencing the unhappy envoy to "decapitation after incarceration." This +sentence was not carried out, and the reprieve of the unlucky envoy was +due to Queen Victoria's expression of a hope that the Chinese government +would spare his life. + +At the same time that the Chinese refused their ratification to Chung +How's treaty, they expressed their desire for another pacific settlement, +which would give them more complete satisfaction. The Marquis Tseng was +accordingly instructed to take up the thread of negotiation, and to +proceed to the Russian capital as Embassador and Minister Plenipotentiary. +Some delay ensued, as it was held to be doubtful whether Russia would +consent to the reopening of the question. But owing to the cautious and +well-timed approaches of the Marquis Tseng, the St. Petersburg Foreign +Office acquiesced in the recommencement of negotiations, and, after six +months' discussion, accepted the principle of the almost unqualified +territorial concession for which the Chinese had stood firm. On February +12, 1881, these views were embodied in a treaty, signed at St. Petersburg, +and the ratification within six months showed how differently its +provisions were regarded from those of its predecessor. With the Marquis +Tseng's act of successful diplomacy the final result of the long war in +Central Asia was achieved. The Chinese added Ili to Kashgar and the rest +of the New Dominion, which at the end of 1880 was made into a High +Commissionership and placed under the care of the dashing General Liu +Kintang. + +The close of the great work successfully accomplished during the two +periods of the Regency was followed within a few weeks by the +disappearance of the most important of the personages who had carried on +the government throughout these twenty years of constant war and +diplomatic excitement. Before the Pekin world knew of her illness, it +heard of the death of the Empress Dowager Tsi An, who as Hienfung's +principal widow had enjoyed the premier place in the government, although +she had never possessed a son to occupy the throne in person. In a +proclamation issued in her name and possibly at her request, Tsi An +described the course of her malady, the solicitude of the emperor, and +urged upon him the duty of his high place to put restraint upon his grief. +Her death occurred on April 18, from heart disease, when she was only +forty-five, and her funeral obsequies were as splendid as her services +demanded. For herself she had always been a woman of frugal habits, and +the successful course of recent Chinese history was largely due to her +firmness and resolution. Her associate in the Regency, Tsi Thsi, who has +always been more or less of an invalid, still survives. + +The difficulty with Russia had not long been composed, when, on two +opposite sides of her extensive dominion, China was called upon to face a +serious condition of affairs. In Corea, "the forbidden land" of the Far +East, events were forced by the eagerness and competition of European +states to conclude treaties of commerce with that primitive kingdom, and +perhaps, also, by their fear that if they delayed Russia would appropriate +some port on the Corean coast. To all who had official knowledge of +Russia's desire and plan for seizing Port Lazareff, this apprehension was +far from chimerical, and there was reason to believe that Russia's +encroachment might compel other countries to make annexations in or round +Corea by way of precaution. Practical evidence of this was furnished by +the English occupation of Port Hamilton, and by its subsequent evacuation +when the necessity passed away; but should the occasion again arise the +key of the situation will probably be found in the possession not of Port +Hamilton or Quelpart, but of the Island of Tsiusima. Recourse was had to +diplomacy to avert what threatened to be a grave international danger; and +although the result was long doubtful, and the situation sometimes full of +peril, a gratifying success was achieved in the end. In 1881 a draft +commercial treaty was drawn up, approved by the Chinese authorities and +the representatives of the principal powers at Pekin, and carried to the +court of Seoul for acceptance and signature by the American naval officer, +Commodore Schufeldt. The Corean king made no objection to the arrangement, +and it was signed with the express stipulation that the ratifications of +the treaty were to be exchanged in the following year. Thus was it +harmoniously arranged at Pekin that Corea was to issue from her hermit's +call, and open her ports to trading countries under the guidance and +encouragement of China. There can be no doubt that if this arrangement had +been carried out, the influence and the position of China in Corea would +have been very greatly increased and strengthened. But, unfortunately, the +policy of Li Hung Chang--for if he did not originate, he took the most +important part in directing it--aroused the jealousy of Japan, which has +long asserted the right to have an equal voice with China in the control +of Corean affairs; and the government of Tokio, on hearing of the +Schufeldt treaty, at once took steps not merely to obtain all the rights +to be conferred by that document, to which no one would have objected, but +also to assert its claim to control equally with China the policy of the +Corean court. With that object, a Japanese fleet and army were sent to the +Seoul River, and when the diplomatists returned for the ratification of +the treaty, they found the Japanese in a strong position close to the +Corean capital. The Chinese were not to be set on one side in so open a +manner, and a powerful fleet of gunboats, with 5,000 troops, were sent to +the Seoul River to uphold their rights. Under other circumstances, more +especially as the Chinese expedition was believed to be the superior, a +hostile collision must have ensued, and the war which has so often seemed +near between the Chinese and Japanese would have become an accomplished +fact; but fortunately the presence of the foreign diplomatists moderated +the ardor of both sides, and a rupture was averted. By a stroke of +judgment the Chinese seized Tai Wang Kun, the father of the young king, +and the leader of the anti-foreign party, and carried him off to Pekin, +where he was kept in imprisonment for some time, until matters had settled +down in his own country. The opening of Corea to the Treaty Powers did not +put an end to the old rivalry of China and Japan in that country, of which +history contains so many examples; and, before the Corean question was +definitely settled, it again became obtrusive. Such evidence as is +obtainable points to the conclusion that Chinese influence was gradually +getting the better of Japanese in the country, and the attack on the +Japanese legation in 1884 was a striking revelation of popular antipathy +or of an elaborate anti-Japanese plot headed by the released Chinese +prisoner, Tai Wang Kun. + +At the opposite point of the frontier China was brought face to face with +a danger which threatened to develop into a peril of the first magnitude, +and in meeting which she was undoubtedly hampered by her treaties with the +general body of foreign powers and her own peculiar place in the family of +nations. It is the special misfortune of China that she cannot engage in +any, even a defensive, war with a maritime power without incurring the +grave risk, or indeed the practical certainty, that if such a war be +continued for any length of time she must find herself involved with every +other foreign country through the impossibility of confining the hostility +of her own subjects to one race of foreigners in particular. In +considering the last war with a European country in which China was +engaged, due allowance must be made for these facts, and also for the +anomalous character of that contest, when active hostilities were carried +on without any formal declaration of war--a state of things which gave the +French many advantages. Toward the end of the year 1882, the French +government came to the decision to establish a "definite protectorate" +over Tonquin. Events had for some time been shaping themselves in this +direction, and the colonial ambition of France had long fixed on Indo- +China as a field in which it might aggrandize itself with comparatively +little risk and a wide margin of advantage. The weakness of the kingdom of +Annam was a strong enough temptation in itself to assert the protectorate +over it which France had, more or less, claimed for forty years; but when +the reports of several French explorers came to promote the conviction +that France might acquire the control of a convenient and perhaps the best +route into some of the richest provinces of interior China without much +difficulty, the temptation became irresistible. French activity in Indo- +China was heightened by the declaration of Garnier, Rocher, and others, +that the Songcoi, or Red River, furnished the best means of communicating +with Yunnan, and tapping the wealth of the richest mineral province in +China. The apathy of England in her relations with Burmah, which +presented, under its arrogant and obstructive rulers, what may have seemed +an insuperable obstacle to trade intercourse between India and China, +afforded additional inducement to the French to act quickly; and, as they +felt confident of their ability and power to coerce the court of Hue, the +initial difficulties of their undertaking did not seem very formidable. +That undertaking was, in the first place, defined to be a protectorate of +Annam, and, as the first step in the enterprise, the town of Hanoi, in the +delta of the Red River, and the nominal capital of Tonquin, was captured +before the end of the year 1882. + +Tonquin stood in very much the same relationship to China as Corea; and, +although the enforcement of the suzerain tie was lax, there was no doubt +that at Pekin the opinion was held very strongly that the action of France +was an encroachment on the rights of China. But if such was the secret +opinion of the Chinese authorities, they took no immediate steps to arrest +the development of French policy in Tonquin by proclaiming it a Chinese +dependency, and also their intention to defend it. It is by no means +certain that the prompt and vigorous assertion of their rights would have +induced the French to withdraw from their enterprise, for its difficulties +were not revealed at first; but if China is to make good her hold over +such dependencies, she must be prepared to show that she thinks them worth +fighting for. While Li Hung Chang and the other members of the Chinese +government were deliberating as to the course they should pursue, the +French were acting with great vigor in Tonquin, and committing their +military reputation to a task from which they could not in honor draw +back. During the whole of the year 1883 they were engaged in military +operations with the Black Flag irregulars, a force half piratical and half +patriotic, who represented the national army of the country. It was +believed at the time, but quite erroneously, that the Black Flags were +paid and incited by the Chinese. Subsequent evidence showed that the +Chinese authorities did not taken even an indirect part in the contest +until a much later period. After the capture of Hanoi, the French were +constantly engaged with the Black Flags, from whom they captured the +important town of Sontay, which was reported to be held by imperial +Chinese troops, but on its capture this statement was found to be untrue. +The French were in the full belief that the conquest of Tonquin would be +easily effected, when a serious reverse obliged them to realize the +gravity of their task. A considerable detachment, under the command of +Captain Henri Riviere, who was one of the pioneers of French enterprise on +the Songcoi, was surprised and defeated near Hanoi. Riviere was killed, +and it became necessary to make a great effort to recover the ground that +had been lost. Fresh troops were sent from Europe, but before they arrived +the French received another check at Phukai, which the Black Flags claimed +as a victory because the French were obliged to retreat. + +Before this happened the French had taken extreme measures against the +King of Annam, of which state Tonquin is the northern province. The king +of that country, by name Tuduc, who had become submissive to the French, +died in July, 1883, and after his death the Annamese, perhaps encouraged +by the difficulties of the French in Tonquin, became so hostile that it +was determined to read them a severe lesson. Hue was attacked and occupied +a month after the death of Tuduc, and a treaty was extracted from the new +king which made him the dependent of France. When the cold season began in +Tonquin, the French forces largely increased, and, commanded by Admiral +Courbet, renewed operations, and on December 11 attacked the main body of +the Black Flags at Sontay, which they had reoccupied and strengthened. +They offered a desperate and well sustained resistance, and it was only +with heavy loss that the French succeeded in carrying the town. The +victors were somewhat recompensed for their hardships and loss by the +magnitude of the spoil, which included a large sum of money. Desultory +fighting continued without intermission; Admiral Courbet was superseded by +General Millot, who determined to signalize his assumption of the command +by attacking Bacuinh, which the Black Flags made their headquarters after +the loss of Sontay. On March 8, he attacked this place at the head of +12,000 men, but so formidable were its defenses that he would not risk an +attack in front, and by a circuitous march of four days he gained the +flank of the position, and thus taken at a disadvantage the Black Flags +abandoned their formidable lines, and retreated without much loss, leaving +their artillery, including some Krupp guns, in the hands of the victors. +At this stage of the question diplomacy intervened, and on May 11 a treaty +of peace was signed by Commander Founder, during the ministry of M. Jules +Ferry, with the Chinese government. One of the principal stipulations of +this treaty was that the French should be allowed to occupy Langson and +other places in Tonquin. When the French commander sent a force under +Colonel Dugenne to occupy Langson it was opposed in the Bacle defile and +repulsed with some loss. The Chinese exonerated themselves from all +responsibility by declaring that the French advance was premature, because +no date was fixed by the Fournier Convention, and because there had not +been time to transmit the necessary orders. On the other hand, M. Fournier +declared on his honor that the dates in his draft were named in the +original convention. The French government at once demanded an apology, +and an indemnity fixed by M. Jules Ferry, in a moment of mental +excitement, at the ridiculous figure of $50,000,000. An apology was +offered, but such an indemnity was refused, and eventually France obtained +one of only $800,000. + +After the Bacle affair hostilities were at once resumed, and for the first +time the French carried them on not only against the Black Flags, but +against the Chinese. M. Jules Ferry did not, however, make any formal +declaration of war against China, and he thus gained an advantage of +position for his attack on the Chinese which it was not creditable to +French chivalry to have asserted. The most striking instance of this +occurred at Foochow, where the French fleet, as representing a friendly +power, was at anchor above the formidable defenses of the Min River. In +accordance with instructions telegraphed to him, the French admiral +attacked those places in reverse and destroyed the forts on the Min +without much difficulty or loss, thanks exclusively to his having been +allowed past them as a friend. The French also endeavored to derive all +possible advantage from there being no formal declaration of war, and to +make use of Hongkong as a base for their fleet against China. But this +unfairness could not be tolerated, and the British minister at Pekin, +where Sir Harry Parkes had in the autumn of 1883 succeeded Sir Thomas +Wade, issued a proclamation that the hostilities between France and China +were tantamount to a state of war, and that the laws of neutrality must be +strictly observed. The French resented this step, and showed some +inclination to retaliate by instituting a right to search for rice, but +fortunately this pretension was not pushed to extremities, and the war was +closed before it could produce any serious consequences. The French +devoted much of their attention to an attack on the Chinese possessions in +Formosa, and the occupation of Kelung; a fort in the northern part of that +island was captured, but the subsequent success of the French was small. +The Chinese displayed great energy and resource in forming defenses +against any advance inland from Kelung or Tamsui, and the French +government was brought to face the fact that there was nothing to be +gained by carrying on these desultory operations, and that unless they +were prepared to send a large expedition, it was computed of not less than +50,000 men, to attack Pekin, there was no alternative to coming to terms +with China. How strong this conviction had become may be gathered from the +fact that the compulsory retreat, in March, 1885, of the French from +before Langson, where some of the Chinese regular troops were drawn up +with a large force of Black and Yellow Flags--the latter of whom were in +Chinese pay--did not imperil the negotiations which were then far advanced +toward completion. On June 9 of the same year a treaty of peace was signed +by M. Patenotre and Li Hung Chang which gave France nothing more than the +Fournier Convention. + +The military lessons of this war must be pronounced inconclusive, for the +new forces which China had organized since the Pekin campaign were never +fully engaged, and the struggle ended before the regular regiments sent to +Langson had any opportunity of showing their quality. But the impression +conveyed by the fighting in Formosa and the northern districts of Tonquin +was that China had made considerable progress in the military art, and +that she possessed the nucleus of an army that might become formidable. +But while the soldiers had made no inconsiderable improvement, as much +could not be said of the officers, and among the commanders there seemed +no grasp of the situation, and a complete inability to conduct a campaign. +Probably these deficiencies will long remain the really weak spot in the +Chinese war organization, and although they have men who will fight well, +the only capacity their commanders showed in Tonquin and Formosa was in +selecting strong positions and in fortifying them with consummate art. But +as the strongest position can be turned and avoided, and as the Chinese, +like all Asiatics, become demoralized when their rear is threatened, it +cannot be denied that, considerable progress as the Chinese have made in +the military art, they have not yet mastered some of its rudiments. All +that can be said is that the war between France and China was calculated +to teach the advisability of caution in fixing a quarrel upon China. Under +some special difficulties from the character of the war and with divided +councils at Pekin, the Chinese still gave a very good account of +themselves against one of the greatest powers of Europe. + +During the progress of this struggle a coup d'etat was effected at Pekin +of which at the time it was impossible to measure the whole significance. +In July, 1884, the Chinese world was startled by the sudden fall and +disgrace of Prince Kung, who had been the most powerful man in China since +the Treaty of Pekin. A decree of the empress-regent appeared dismissing +him from all his posts and consigning him to an obscurity from which after +nine years he has not yet succeeded in emerging. The causes of his fall +are not clear, but they were probably of several distinct kinds. While he +was the leader of the peace party and the advocate of a prompt arrangement +with France, he was also an opponent of Prince Chun's desire to have a +share in the practical administration of the state, or, at least, an +obstacle in the way of its realization. Prince Chun, who was a man of an +imperious will, and who, on the death of the Eastern Empress, became the +most important personage in the palace and supreme council of the empire, +was undoubtedly the leader of the attack on Prince Kung, and the immediate +cause of his downfall. Prince Kung, who was an amiable and well +intentioned man rather than an able statesman, yielded without resistance, +and indeed he had no alternative, for he had no following at Pekin, and +his influence was very slight except among Europeans. Prince Chun then +came to the front, taking an active and prominent part in the government, +making himself president of a new board of national defense and taking up +the command of the Pekin Field Force, a specially trained body of troops +for the defense of the capital He retained possession of these posts after +his son assumed the government in person, notwithstanding the law +forbidding a father serving under his son, which has already been cited, +and he remained the real controller of Chinese policy until his sudden and +unexpected death in the first days of 1891. Some months earlier, in April, +1890, China had suffered a great loss in the Marquis Tseng, whose +diplomatic experience and knowledge of Europe might have rendered his +country infinite service in the future. He was the chosen colleague of +Prince Chun, and he is said to have gained the ear of his young sovereign. +While willing to admit the superiority of European inventions, he was also +an implicit believer in China's destiny and in her firmly holding her +place among the greatest powers of the world. In December, 1890, also died +Tseng Kwo Tsiuen, uncle of the marquis, and a man who had taken a +prominent and honorable part in the suppression of the Taeping Rebellion. + +In 1885 an important and delicate negotiation between England and China +was brought to a successful issue by the joint efforts of Lord Salisbury +and the Marquis Tseng. The levy of the lekin or barrier tax on opium had +led to many exactions in the interior which were injurious to the foreign +trade and also to the Chinese government, which obtained only the customs +duty raised in the port. After the subject had been thoroughly discussed +in all its bearings a convention was signed in London, on July 19, 1885, +by which the lekin was fixed at eighty taels a chest, in addition to the +customs due of thirty taels, and also that the whole of this sum should be +paid in the treaty port before the opium was taken out of bond. This +arrangement was greatly to the advantage of the Chinese government, which +came into possession of a large revenue that had previously been frittered +away in the provinces, and much of which had gone into the pockets of the +mandarins. This subject affords the most appropriate place for calling +attention to the conspicuous services rendered, as Director-general of +Chinese Customs during more than thirty years, by Sir Robert Hart, who, on +the premature death of Sir Harry Parkes, was appointed British Minister at +Pekin, which post, for weighty reasons, he almost immediately resigned. It +is impossible to measure the consequences and important effect of his +conduct and personal influence upon the policy and opinion of China, while +his work in the interests of that country has been both striking and +palpable. To his efforts the central government mainly owes its large and +increasing cash revenue, and when some candid Chinese historian sums up +the work done for his country by foreigners, he will admit that, what +Gordon did in war and Macartney in diplomacy, Hart accomplished in those +revenue departments which are an essential element of strength, and we +must hope that this truthful chronicler will also not forget to record +that all these loyal servants were English, members of a race which, after +fighting China fairly, frankly held out the hand of friendship and +alliance. In connection with this subject it may be noted that the emperor +issued an edict in 1890 formally legalizing the cultivation of opium, +which, although practically carried on, was nominally illegal. An +immediate consequence of this step was a great increase in the area under +cultivation, particularly in Manchuria, and so great is the production of +native opium now becoming that that of India may yet be driven from the +field as a practical revenge for the loss inflicted on China by the +competition of Indian tea. But at all events these measures debar China +from ever again posing as an injured party in the matter of the opium +traffic. She has very rightly determined to make the best of the situation +and to derive all the profit she can by taxing an article in such very +general use and consumption; but there is an end to all representations +like those made by prominent officials from Commissioner Lin to Prince +Kung and Li Hung Chang, that the opium traffic was iniquitous, and +constituted the sole cause of disagreement between China and England. + +During these years the young Emperor Kwangsu was growing up. In February, +1887, in which month falls the Chinese New Year, it was announced that his +marriage was postponed in consequence of his delicate health, and it was +not until the new year of 1889, when Kwangsu was well advanced in his +eighteenth year, that he was married to Yeh-ho-na-la, daughter of a Manchu +general named Knei Hsiang, who had been specially selected for this great +honor out of many hundred candidates. The marriage was celebrated with the +usual state, and more than $5,000,000 is said to have been expended on the +attendant ceremonies. At the same time the empress-regent issued her +farewell edict and passed into retirement, but there is reason to believe +that she continued to exercise no inconsiderable influence over the young +emperor. + +The marriage and assumption of governing power by the Emperor Kwangsu +brought to the front the very important question of the right of audience +by the foreign ministers resident at Pekin. This privilege had been +conceded by China at the time of the Tientsin massacre, and it had been +put into force on one occasion during the brief reign of Tungche. The time +had again arrived for giving it effect, and, after long discussions as to +the place of audience and the forms to be observed, Kwangsu issued in +December, 1890, an edict appointing a day soon after the commencement of +the Chinese New Year for the audience, and also arranging that it should +be repeated annually on the same date. In March, 1891, Kwangsu gave his +first reception to the foreign ministers, but after it was over some +criticism and dissatisfaction were aroused by the fact that the ceremony +had been held in the Tse Kung Ko, or Hall of Tributary Nations. As this +was the first occasion on which Europeans saw the young emperor, the fact +that he made a favorable impression on them is not without interest, and +the following personal description of the master of so many millions may +well be quoted. "Whatever the impression 'the Barbarians' made on him the +idea which they carried away of the Emperor Kwangsu was pleasing and +almost pathetic. His air is one of exceeding intelligence and gentleness, +somewhat frightened and melancholy looking. His face is pale, and though +it is distinguished by refinement and quiet dignity it has none of the +force of his martial ancestors, nothing commanding or imperial, but is +altogether mild, delicate, sad and kind. He is essentially Manchu in +features, his skin is strangely pallid in hue, which is, no doubt, +accounted for by the confinement of his life inside these forbidding walls +and the absence of the ordinary pleasures and pursuits of youth, with the +constant discharge of onerous, complicated and difficult duties of state +which, it must be remembered, are, according to imperial Chinese +etiquette, mostly transacted between the hours of two and six in the +morning. His face is oval shaped with a very long narrow chin and a +sensitive mouth with thin, nervous lips; his nose is well shaped and +straight, his eyebrows regular and very arched, while the eyes are +unusually large and sorrowful in expression. The forehead is well shaped +and broad, and the head is large beyond the average." + +Owing to the dissatisfaction felt at the place of audience, which seemed +to put the Treaty Powers on the same footing as tributary states, the +foreign ministers have endeavored to force from the Tsungli Yamen the +formal admission that a more appropriate part of the imperial city should +be assigned for the ceremony; but as the powers themselves were not +disposed to lay too much stress on this point, no definite concession has +yet been made, and the Chinese ministers have held out against the +pressure of some of the foreign representatives. But, although no concise +alteration has been made in the place of audience, the question has been +practically settled by a courteous concession to the new English minister, +Mr. O'Conor, who succeeded Sir John Walsham in 1892, and it is gratifying +to feel that this advantage was gained more by tact than by coercion. When +Mr. O'Conor wished to present his credentials to the emperor, it was +arranged that the emperor should receive him in the Cheng Kuan Tien +Palace, which is part of the imperial residence of Peace and Plenty within +the Forbidden City. The British representative, accompanied by his +secretaries and suite in accordance with arrangement, proceeded to this +palace on December 13, 1892, and was received in a specially honorable way +at the principal or imperial entrance by the officials of the court. Such +a mark of distinction was considered quite unique in the annals of foreign +diplomacy in China, and has since been a standing grievance with the other +ministers at Pekin. It was noticed by those present that the emperor took +a much greater interest in the ceremony than on previous occasions, and +that he showed special attention as Prince Ching, the President of the +Yamen, translated the letter from Queen Victoria. This audience, which +lasted a considerable time, was certainly the most satisfactory and +encouraging yet held with the Emperor Kwangsu by any foreign envoy, and it +also afforded opportunity of confirming the favorable impression which the +intelligence and dignified demeanor of the Emperor Kwangsu have made on +all who have had the honor of coming into his presence. One incident in +the progress of the audience question deserves notice, and that was the +emperor's refusal, in 1891, to receive Mr. Blair, the United States +Minister, in consequence of the hostile legislation of that country +against China. The anti-foreign outbreak along the Yangtsekiang, in the +summer of 1891, was an unpleasant incident, from which at one time it +looked as if serious consequences might follow; but the ebullition +fortunately passed away without an international crisis, and it may be +hoped that the improved means of exercising diplomatic pressure at Pekin +will render these attacks less frequent, and their settlement and redress +more rapid. + +During the last ten years events in Central Asia and Burmah have drawn +England and China much more closely together, and have laid the basis of +what it must be hoped will prove a firm and durable alliance. If suspicion +was laid aside and candid relations established on the frontier, it should +not be difficult to maintain an excellent understanding with China, and at +the present moment every difficulty has been smoothed over with the +exception of that on the Burmese frontier. It is to be hoped that not less +success will be obtained in this quarter than in Sikhim and Hunza, and Mr. +O'Conor's convention of Pekin in July, 1886, recognizing China's right to +receive a tribute mission from Burmah once in ten years went far to prove +the extent of concession England would make to China. It is divulging what +cannot long be kept secret, to explain the circumstances under which Mr. +O'Conor's convention was signed, and the unusual concession made by a +British government of admitting its liability to send a tribute mission. +The Chefoo Convention, closing the Yunnan incident, contained a promise +from the Chinese government to allow an English mission to pass through +Tibet. Years passed without any attempt to give effect to this +stipulation, but at last, in 1884, Mr. Colman Macaulay, a member of the +Indian Civil Service, obtained the assent of his government to requesting +the permission of the Chinese government to visit Lhasa. He went to Pekin +and he came to London, and he obtained the necessary permission and the +formal passport of the Tsungli Yamen; and there is no doubt that if he had +set off for Tibet with a small party, he would have been honorably +received and passed safely through Tibet to India. On the other hand there +is no doubt that such a visit would have presented no feature of special +or striking importance. It would have been an interesting individual +experience, but scarcely an international landmark, This modest character +for his long-cherished project did not suit Mr. Macaulay, and unmindful of +the adage that there may be a slip betwixt the cup and the lip, he not +merely delayed the execution of his visit, but he made ostentatious +preparations for an elaborate mission, and he engaged many persons with +scientific qualifications to accompany him, with the view of examining the +mineral resources of Tibet. The Chinese themselves did not like, and had +never contemplated, such a mission, but their dissatisfaction was slight +in comparison with the storm it raised in Tibet; and the Chinese +government was thus brought face to face with a position in which it must +either employ its military power to coerce the Tibetans, who made +preparations to oppose the Macaulay mission by force of arms, or acquiesce +in the Tibetans ignoring its official passports, and thus provoke a +serious complication with this country. Such was the position of the +Tibetan question when Burmah was annexed in January, 1886, and +negotiations followed with China for the adjustment of her claims in the +country. Negotiations were carried on, in the first place by Lord +Salisbury, and in the second by Lord Rosebery, with the Chinese minister +in London, and the draft of more than one convention was prepared. Among +such contemplated arrangements were the dispatch of a mission from Burmah +to China, and of a return one from China; the appointment of the Head +Priest of Mandalay as the person to send the mission, thus making it a +purely native matter, outside the participation of the British government; +and the concession of material advantages on the Irrawaddy and in the Shan +country, as the equivalent for the surrender of the tribute. It is +probable that one of these three arrangements would have been carried out, +but that, on certain points being referred to Pekin, the knowledge came to +the ears of the British government that if the Tibetan mission were +withdrawn, the Chinese would be content with the formal admission of their +claim to receive the tribute mission from Burmah in accordance with +established usage. As both governments wanted a speedy settlement of the +question, the Chinese, with the view of allaying the rising agitation in +Tibet and getting rid of a troublesome question, and the English not less +anxious to have the claims of China in Burmah defined in diplomatic +language, the convention which bears Mr. O'Conor's name was drawn up and +signed with quite remarkable dispatch. For the abandonment of the Macaulay +mission, and the recognition of their right to receive the tribute mission +from Burmah, the authorities at Pekin were quite, at the moment, willing +to forego material claims such as a port on the Irrawaddy. Diplomacy has +not yet said the last word on this matter, and the exact frontier between +Burmah and China has still to be delimited, but the fixing of a definite +date for the dispatch of the first mission from Mandalay to Pekin, which +is timed to set out in January, 1894, is in itself of hopeful augury for +the settlement of all difficulties. When this matter is composed there +will be no cloud in the sky of Anglo-Chinese relations, and that such an +auspicious result will be obtained is not open to serious doubt. The most +gratifying fact in the history of China during the last ten years is the +increasing sympathy and tacit understanding between the two great empires +of England and China in Asia, which must in time constitute an effective +alliance against any common danger in that continent, and the aggressive +policy of Russia. + + + + +THE WAR WITH JAPAN AND SUBSEQUENT EVENTS + + +We have seen that, up to 1892, it had been customary to receive the +representatives of foreign powers in the Tse Kung Ko, or Hall of Tributary +Nations. Naturally, much dissatisfaction was provoked by the selection of +a place of audience which seemed to put the treaty powers on the same +footing as tributary states, and, accordingly, the foreign ministers +undertook to exact from the Tsungli Yamen, or Board for Foreign Affairs, +the designation of a more suitable locality in the imperial city for the +annual ceremony. The proposed innovation was resisted for some time; but +when Sir Nicolas O'Conor was appointed British Minister at Pekin, an +exception was made in his favor, and a place of superior importance to the +Hall of Tributary Nations was chosen for the presentation of his +credentials. The Emperor Kwangsu agreed to receive him in the Cheng Kuan +Tien Palace, or pavilion which forms part of the imperial residence of +Peace and Plenty within the Forbidden City. In pursuance of this +arrangement, the British representative, attended by his suite, proceeded +to this pavilion on December 13, 1892, and was received at the principal +entrance by the high court officials. It was also noted that the emperor +took a greater interest in the ceremony than on preceding occasions, and +followed with attention the reading of Queen Victoria's letter, by Prince +Ching, then president of the Tsungli Yamen. Thenceforth, there was +observed with every year a decided improvement in the mode of receiving +foreign diplomatists, and, eventually, the imperial audience was +supplemented with an annual dinner given by the Board for Foreign Affairs. +Through the personal reception accorded by the Emperor of China to Prince +Henry of Prussia on May 15, 1898, the audience question was finally +settled in favor of the right of foreign potentates to rank on an equality +with the so-called Son of Heaven. + +We come now to the most memorable event in the modern history of China +since the Taeping Rebellion; to wit, the war with Japan. In order to +comprehend, however, the causes of this contest between the two chief +races of the Far East, it is necessary to review the development of the +Corean question which gave rise to it. There seems to be no doubt that +Japan derived its first civilizing settlers, and most of its arts and +industries, from the Corean peninsula. It is certain that, for centuries, +the intercourse between the two countries was very close, and that more +than one attempt was made by Japanese rulers to subjugate Corea. The +latest and most strenuous endeavor to that end was made near the end of +the sixteenth century, and, although it resulted in a temporary occupation +of the peninsula, the Japanese troops were eventually withdrawn, and Corea +resumed its former status of a kingdom tributary to the Celestial Empire. +Thenceforth, for almost three centuries, Corea and Tonquin bore, in +theory, precisely the same relation to the Middle Kingdom. In each +instance, the practical question was whether China was strong enough to +make good her nominal rights. The outcome of her resistance to French +aggression in Tonquin had shown that there, at least, she had no such +power. But, in the subsequent ten years, efforts had been made to organize +an efficient army and navy, and the belief was entertained at Pekin that +China was at all events strong enough to uphold her claims in Corea, which +was, geographically and strategically, of far more importance to the +Middle Kingdom than was Tonquin. Yet, while it was evident that Corea +would not be renounced without a struggle, the Pekin authorities, for some +years, met the Japanese encroachments with a weak and vacillating policy. +As early as 1876, the Mikado's advisers entered on a course which +obviously aimed at the attainment of commercial, if not, also, political, +ascendency in the Hermit Kingdom. An outrage having been committed upon +some of her sailors, Japan obtained, by way of reparation from the court +of Seoul, the opening of the port of Fushan to her trade. Four years +later, Chemulpo, the port of Seoul, was also opened. These forward steps +on the part of the Japanese aroused the Chinese to activity, and, in 1881, +a draft commercial treaty was prepared by the Chinese authorities in +council with the representatives of the principal powers at Pekin, and +sent to Seoul, where it was accepted. The Japanese alleged, however, that +they possessed a historical right to an equal voice with China in the +Corean peninsula, and that, consequently, the treaty to which we have just +referred required their ratification. To sustain this claim, the Japanese +allied themselves with the Progressive party in Corea, a move which +compelled the Chinese to lean upon the Reactionists, who were opposed to +the concessions lately made to foreigners, and who, as events were to +show, were preponderant in the Hermit Kingdom. In June, 1882, the Corean +Reactionists attacked the Japanese Legation at Seoul, murdered some +members of it, and compelled the survivors to flee to the seacoast. +Thereupon, the Mikado sent some troops to exact reparation, and the +Chinese, on their part, dispatched a force to restore order. A compromise +was brought about, and, for two years, Japanese and Chinese soldiers +remained encamped beside one another under the walls of the Corean +capital. In December, 1884, however, a second collision occurred between +the Japanese and the Coreans, the latter being, this time, assisted by the +Chinese. The Mikado's subjects were again compelled to take to flight. The +Tokio government now resolved upon firm measures, and, while it exacted +compensation from the Coreans, it sent Count Ito Hirobumi to China to +bring about an accommodation with the Pekin government. At that +conjuncture, there is no doubt that China possessed advantages in the +Corean peninsula that were lacking to the Japanese. Not only was she +popular with the majority of the people, but the treaty powers were more +disposed to act through her than through Japan in order to secure the +general extension of trade with the Hermit Kingdom. Those advantages, +nevertheless, were thrown away by an agreement which the shortsighted +advisers of the Chinese emperor were persuaded to accept. Li Hung Chang +was appointed the Chinese Plenipotentiary to negotiate with Count Ito, +and, after a short conference, a convention was signed at Tientsin on +April 18, 1885. The provisions of the convention were, first, that both +countries should withdraw their troops from Corea; secondly, that no more +officers should be sent by either country to drill the Corean army; and, +thirdly, that if, at any future time, either of the two countries should +send troops to Corea, it must inform the other. It is manifest that, by +this agreement, China, practically, acquiesced in Japan's assertion of an +equal right to control the Hermit Kingdom. Thenceforth, it was impossible +to speak of Corea as being a vassal state of the Celestial Empire. + +For some nine years, nevertheless, after the conclusion of the Tientsin +agreement, there were no dangerous disturbances in the Peninsular Kingdom. +In the early part of 1894, however, Kim-Ok-Kiun, a reformer, and the +leader of the Corean uprising in 1884, was assassinated at Shanghai, and +it subsequently transpired that the murder had been committed by the order +of the Corean authorities. It is certain that honors and rewards were +bestowed upon the assassin on his return to the Hermit Kingdom, while the +body of his victim was drawn and quartered as that of a traitor. Just at +this juncture, the Tonghaks, a body of religious reformers, having failed +to obtain certain concessions, revolted, and, by the end of May, achieved +so much success over the Corean forces that the Seoul government became +alarmed, and sent to China for assistance. In response to the request, +some two thousand Chinese troops were disembarked on June 10 at Asan, a +seaport some distance south of the Corean capital, and a few Chinese men- +of-war were dispatched to the coast of the peninsula. Formal notice of +these proceedings was given to Japan under the terms of the Tientsin +Convention. Thereupon, the Mikado's government decided to undertake a like +interposition, and acted with so much energy that, within forty-eight +hours after the arrival of the Chinese at Asan, they had placed at Seoul a +much superior force. They were thus able to dominate the court, although +it was in entire sympathy with China. The Pekin government now made the +mistake of reviving its pretensions to regard the Hermit Kingdom as a +vassal state. These pretensions Japan refused to tolerate, on the ground, +first, that she had never admitted them, and, secondly, that the Tientsin +Convention recognized an equality of rights in the two states. The +Japanese also called attention to the misrule that prevailed in Corea, and +proposed that the Chinese should join them in carrying out needful +reforms. To this proposal, China could not accede, being hampered by her +alliance with the reactionary party at Seoul; consequently, Japan +undertook the execution of the task alone. As a first step in that +direction, the Japanese got possession of the person of the Corean ruler, +and compelled him to act as the instrument of his captors. The initial +document which he was constrained to sign was an order that the Chinese +troops, who had come at his invitation, should leave the country. The +seizure of the king's person, which occurred on July 23, 1894, was +followed by two successful acts of aggression. On the 25th, the Japanese +squadron attacked the Chinese transport "Kowshing," conveying fresh +soldiers to Asan, and its escort of warships. In the engagement, one +Chinese man-of-war was sunk, one was disabled, and 1,200 soldiers were +destroyed on the "Kowshing," which was torpedoed. On July 29, the Japanese +general Oshima, at the head of a small force, made a night attack upon the +Chinese fortified camp at Song Hwang, and carried the place with a loss to +their opponents of 500 killed and wounded. These preliminary encounters +were followed by a declaration of war on August 1, 1894. During the +ensuing six weeks, Japan poured her troops into the peninsula, while the +Chinese fleet, instead of harassing the enemy, remained in the harbors of +Port Arthur and Wei-hai-Wei. On September 15, the Japanese army in Corea +was strong enough to detach a corps of 14,000 men to attack the Chinese +position at Pingyang, a town on the northern banks of the Paidong River. +The passage of the river was difficult, and the Chinese might have +overwhelmed the Japanese when crossing it, but they took no measures to +this end, and the battle began at sunrise on the day just named. There +were five forts to be captured, and some of them were vigorously defended, +nor was it until night set in that the garrison finally determined upon +evacuating the place. In the battle itself and the retreat, over 2,000 +Chinese were killed, to say nothing of the wounded and the prisoners. The +Japanese themselves lost 162 killed, 438 wounded and 33 missing, and there +seems to be no reason to doubt that, had all the Chinese officers been +capable of the valor displayed by the general Tso-pao-kuei, the Japanese +would have been repulsed. As it was, the battle proved decisive, for not a +Chinaman paused until he had reached the other side of the Yalu River, +which forms the northwest boundary of Corea. + +On the very day of the fight at Pingyang, a number of Chinese war vessels, +under the command of Admiral Ting, were transporting troops to the mouth +of the Yalu, where the Chinese were assembling a second army. On its +return from this task, it was encountered, September 17, off tha island of +Haiyang, by a Japanese squadron under Admiral Ito. Ostensibly, the two +fleets were evenly matched. They each numbered ten fighting vessels, and, +if two of the Chinese ships possessed a more powerful armament, the +Japanese were superior in steam power. It was to quickness in maneuvering +that the Japanese admiral trusted for victory, and his first attack +consisted mainly in circling around the Chinese squadron. He was careful, +also, to reserve his fire until only two miles separated him from his +adversaries. After a duel with the Japanese "Matsushima," the Chinese +flagship "Tingyuen" was severely damaged, and only saved from sinking by +the intervention of her sister ship, the "Chenyuen." These two ironclads, +together with the torpedo boats, succeeded in making their escape, but +five of the Chinese vessels were sunk or destroyed. In men, the Chinese +lost 700 killed or drowned and 300 wounded, while the Japanese lost 115 +killed and 150 wounded. The result of this victory was that the Chinese +never afterward attempted to dispute the control of the sea, and their +water communication with the Yalu was effectually cut off. + +After the battle of Pingyang, the Japanese army halted, and it was not +until after they received re-enforcements under Marshal Yamagata that they +resumed their forward movement. On October 10 their advance guard reached +the Yalu, a river broad and difficult of passage, behind which was +stationed a considerable Chinese army, which, however, after a nominal +resistance, soon retreated. In the abandoned positions on the northern +bank of the Yalu, the Japanese captured a vast quantity of material of +war, including 74 cannons, over 4,000 rifles, and more than 4,000,000 +rounds of ammunition. It was supposed that the retreating Chinese force +would make a stand at Feng Hwang, but, on reaching that town, October 30, +the Japanese found it evacuated, and were informed that the Chinese +soldiers had dispersed. + +While Marshal Yamagata was beginning the invasion of China from the +direction of Corea, another Japanese army, under Marshal Oyama, had landed +on the Liau-Tung, or Regent's Sword Peninsula, with the aim of capturing +the Chinese naval station of Port Arthur. Even in Chinese hands, this was +a redoubtable stronghold. It had 300 guns in position, and the garrison +numbered some 10,000 men, while the attacking force did not exceed 13,000, +although we should bear in mind that it was aided by the Japanese fleet. +After landing at the mouth of the Huhua-Yuan River, about 100 miles north +of Port Arthur, the Japanese advanced south, and took the fortified city +of Chinchow, without incurring any loss. The next day they reached +Talienwan, where the Chinese had five heavily armed batteries, and a +considerable garrison, which, however, on the approach of the enemy, +abandoned the post without firing a shot. In the forts at this point were +found over 120 cannons, two and a half million rounds of ammunition for +the artillery and nearly 34,000,000 rifle cartridges. On November 20, +1894, the Japanese army was drawn up in front of Port Arthur, and the +fleet prepared to co-operate in the action. The attack began in the +morning of November 22, and, although, in one quarter, the Chinese offered +sturdy resistance, yet, by the end of the day, with the loss of no more +than 18 men killed and 250 wounded, the Japanese were in possession of the +strongest position in China, a naval fortress and arsenal on which +$30,000,000 had been spent. + +Throughout December the force under Marshal Yamagata pushed forward into +Manchuria, but met there with more vigorous opposition than it had +hitherto encountered. In the fight at Kangwasai, the Japanese lost 400, +and, in the capture of the town of Kaiting, 300 killed and wounded. About +the middle of January, 1895, the Japanese began operations against Wei- +hai-Wei, the naval stronghold on the northern coast of Shangtung, in which +the remnant of China's fleet had taken refuge. Although not so strong as +Port Arthur, this harbor is considered one of the keys to the Gulf of +Pechihli. On January 20 the Japanese troops began to land at Yungchang, a +little west of the point to be attacked, and, on the 26th, they appeared +at the gates of Wei-hai-Wei. About half of the beleaguered garrison +consisted of 4,000 sailors from the fleet, under Admiral Ting, who was to +show himself a leader of courage and energy. The assault on the land side +of Wei-hai-Wei began on January 29, and continued throughout that and the +following day. At certain points, where Admiral Ting's squadron was able +to act with effect, the Japanese were repulsed, but, eventually, the whole +of the land garrison fled panic-stricken to Chefoo. Even then Ting's +squadron and the island force continued to resist, and it was not until +February 9, when almost all the vessels had been taken or sunk, that he +consented to capitulate, after receiving a telegram from Li Hung Chang to +the effect that no help could be given him. No sooner were the terms of +capitulation agreed upon than Admiral Ting retired to his cabin and took a +fatal dose of opium. He had held out for three weeks, whereas Port Arthur +had been lost in a day. The war continued for a few weeks longer, the +Japanese pursuing their advance in Manchuria, and capturing the two places +which are collectively called Newchang, thus threatening Pekin. They now +possessed an army of 100,000 men ready to advance upon the Chinese +capital. As there was no reason to suppose that Pekin could be +successfully defended, the necessity of concluding peace as promptly as +possible was recognized. To that end it was needful to appoint a +plenipotentiary whose name would convince the Japanese government that the +Chinese were in earnest in their overtures. The only two men who possessed +the requisite qualifications were Prince Kung and Li Hung Chang. The +former, however, being a prince of the imperial family, and the uncle of +the reigning emperor, Kwangsu, could not be induced to submit to the +humiliation of proceeding to Japan and suing for peace. The only possible +selection, therefore, was Li Hung Chang, who was, accordingly, appointed +plenipotentiary. He reached Shimonoseki on March 20, 1895, and, four days +after his arrival, the success of his mission was greatly promoted by the +attempt of a fanatic to assassinate him during his conference with Count +Ito, the Japanese representative. The wound was not very serious, but the +outrage caused a unanimous expression of sympathy and regret on the part +of the Japanese people, and the Mikado sent his own physician to attend +the wounded minister. To attest their sorrow for this incident, the +Japanese at once granted an armistice, and the terms of peace which they +at first proposed were materially mitigated. On April 17 the Treaty of +Shimonoseki was signed, and, on May 8, the ratifications were exchanged at +Chefoo. The terms of the original treaty were these: First, China was to +surrender Formosa and the Pescadores Islands and the southern part of the +Shingking province, including the Liau-Tung, or Regent's Sword Peninsula, +and of course, also, the naval fortress of Port Arthur. China was likewise +to pay in eight installments a money indemnity of 200,000,000 Kuping +taels, or, say, $160,000,000. She was also to grant certain commercial +concessions, including the admission of ships under the Japanese flag to +the Chinese lakes and rivers, and the appointment of consuls. In view of +the completeness of Japan's triumph, these conditions could not be +considered onerous, but they, undoubtedly, disturbed the balance of power +in the Far East, and, had they been permitted to stand, would have +effectually thwarted Russia's plan of advancing southward, and of +obtaining an ice-free port. The Czar's government, accordingly, determined +to interpose, and, having secured the co-operation of its French ally, and +also of Germany, it presented to the Mikado, in the name of the three +powers, a request that he should waive that part of the Shimonoseki Treaty +which provided for the surrender of the Liau-Tung Peninsula. It was +proposed that, in return for the renunciation of this territory on the +Chinese mainland, the pecuniary indemnity should be increased by +$30,000,000, and that Wei-hai-Wei should be retained until the whole sum +should have been paid. The demand was, obviously, one that could not be +rejected without war against the three interposing powers, and the odds +were too great for Japan to face without the assistance of Great Britain, +which Lord Rosebery, then prime minister, did not see fit to offer. The +Mikado, accordingly, submitted to the loss of the best part of the fruits +of victory, retaining only Formosa and the Pescadores, the value of which +is, as yet, undetermined; with the money indemnity, however, Japan has +been enabled so greatly to strengthen her fleet that, when all the vessels +building for her are completed, she will take rank as a naval power of the +first class in the Pacific. + +For some time after the revision of the Shimonoseki Treaty, the Chinese +seem to have imagined that the Czar had intervened from disinterested +motives, but Count Cassini, the Russian minister at Pekin, eventually made +it clear that the interposition would not be gratuitous. In what form the +payment for Russia's services should be made was, for some time, the +subject of debate, but, before Li Hung Chang left China in the spring of +1896, as a special embassador to attend the coronation of Nicholas II. at +Moscow, the heads of a convention had been drawn up, and, on Li's arrival +in Russia, he signed an agreement which embodied the concessions to be +made to the Czar in return for his services. This secret treaty gave +Russia the control of the Liau-Tung Peninsula, which she had ostensibly +saved, at the cost to China of $30,000,000, and the St. Petersburg +government was also to be allowed to build a branch of the Trans-Siberian +Railway through Manchuria to Talienwan and Port Arthur. A period of +eighteen months elapsed before the details of this momentous agreement +became known. On the return of Li Hung Chang to Pekin, he not only failed +to recover the viceroyship of Chihli, but he found his relations with the +Emperor Kwangsu quite as unsatisfactory as they had been after his return +from Shimonoseki. He was restored, indeed, to a seat on the Tsungli Yamen, +or Board of Foreign Affairs, but, for twelve months, it seemed as if, +despite the support of the Empress-dowager Tsi An, his influence would +never revive. + +The two years that followed the Shimonoseki Treaty gave a breathing spell +to China, and should have been devoted to energetic reforms in the +military and naval administration. As a matter of fact, nothing had been +accomplished, when, in 1897, a blow fell which brought the Middle Kingdom +face to face with the prospect of immediate partition. In November of that +year, without any preliminary notice or warning to the Pekin government, +two German men-of-war entered the harbor of Kiao Chou, and ordered the +commandant to give up the place in reparation for the murder of two German +missionaries in the province of Shantung. Germany refused to evacuate Kiao +Chou unless due reparation should be made for the outrage on the +missionaries, and unless, further, China would cede to her the exclusive +right to construct railways and work mines throughout the extensive and +populous province of Shantung. This, of course, was equivalent to the +demarcation of a sphere of influence. For a time, the Pekin government +showed itself recalcitrant, but, in January, 1898, it consented to lease +Kiao Chou to Germany for ninety-nine years, and to make the required +additional concession of exclusive rights in Shantung. Russia, on her +part, did not wait long after the German seizure of Kiao Chou, to put +forward her claim for compensation on account of the services rendered in +the matter of the revision of the Shimonoseki Treaty. The terms of the +Cassini agreement were now gradually revealed. In December, 1897, the St. +Petersburg government announced that the Chinese had given permission to +the Russian fleet to winter at Port Arthur; in February, 1898, Russia +added Talienwan to Port Arthur, but essayed to disarm criticism by +declaring that the first-named port would be opened to the ships of all +the great powers like other ports on the Chinese mainland. This promise +was subsequently qualified, and on March 27 a convention was signed at +Pekin giving the Russians the "usufruct" of Port Arthur and Talienwan, +which, practically, meant that Russia had obtained those harbors +unconditionally, and for an indefinite period. France, on her part, +obtained possession of the port of Kwangchowfoo, which is the best outlet +to the sea for the trade of the southern province of Kwangsi; she also +secured a promise that the island of Hainan should not be ceded to any +other power; and, finally, she gained a recognition of her claim, first +advanced in 1895, to a prior right to control the commercial development +of the province of Yunnan. This claim is as reasonable as that put forward +by Germany with reference to the province of Shantung, but it is +incompatible with the northeastward development of British Burmah. While +these acts, which, virtually, amounted to mutilations of the Middle +Kingdom, were being committed by Germany, Russia and France, England +undertook to assert the principle of the "open door," the principle, +namely, that, whatever territorial concessions might be made by the Pekin +government, no nation could be deprived of its treaty rights in the ports +ceded. That is to say, American citizens, British subjects, or the +subjects of any other power which has a treaty with China containing "the +most favored nation" clause, must be allowed to enjoy precisely the same +rights in Talienwan, Kiao Chou and Kwangchowfoo as they would have enjoyed +had not those places been surrendered to Russia, Germany and France +respectively. This principle could only have been enforced by war, in +which England would have needed the assistance of Japan; but Japan was not +yet ready to engage in a contest, for the reason that she still had to +receive $60,000,000 of the war indemnity due from China, and because the +war vessels which she had ordered to be constructed in foreign shipyards +were not yet sufficiently near completion. Being thus constrained to +abandon the hope of maintaining its treaty rights in the ceded parts of +China, the British Foreign Office changed its ground and fell back on the +policy of exacting an equivalent for the advantages gained by Russia, +Germany and France. In the pursuance of this policy it obtained Wei-hai- +Wei, which, as we have said, is one of the two keys to the Gulf of +Pechihli. It is, however, very inferior to Port Arthur; only by the +expenditure of a large sum of money could it be made a naval fortress of +high rank, and, even then, it would require a large garrison for its +protection. This was not all that England gained, however; she secured a +promise from the Pekin government that the valley of the Yangstekiang +should never be alienated to any foreign power except Great Britain. The +limits of the valley, nevertheless, were not defined, and the Pekin +authorities have acted on the hypothesis that the covenant against +alienation did not debar them from giving commercial and industrial +privileges within the basin to the subjects of European powers other than +England. The right to build, for instance, a railway from Pekin to +Hangchow has been conferred upon a syndicate nominally Belgian, in which, +however, it is understood that Russia is deeply interested. On the other +hand, in spite of protests from St. Petersburg, the privilege of extending +to Newchwang in Manchuria the railway which already extends some distance +in a northeasterly direction from Tientsin, has been secured by a British +corporation. + +In September, 1898, a palace revolution occurred at Pekin. For some time, +the Emperor Kwangsu had been known to be under the influence of a highly +intelligent and progressive Cantonese named Kang Yu Wei. At the latter's +suggestion, edicts were put forth decreeing important administrative +reforms which would have deprived the mandarins of their opportunities of +embezzlement, and also indicating an intention to reorganize the +educational system of China upon European models. The necessity of such +changes is obvious enough if China is to follow Japan in the path of +progress, but it is equally plain that the advocacy of them would render +the emperor obnoxious to the whole body of mandarins and of the literati. +The unpopularity caused by his proposed innovations proved fatal to +Kwangsu; for the party at court, headed by the Empress-dowager Tsi An, +took advantage of it to arrest and imprison him. Kang Yu Wei, having +received warning of the conspiracy, had fled, and succeeded in gaining an +asylum under the British flag, but many of the emperor's personal +followers were put to death. On September 22, appeared an edict ostensibly +signed by Kwangsu announcing that he had requested the empress-dowager to +resume authority over the affairs of State. It has been since reported +that he has been killed. The immediate effect of the _coup d'etat_ was to +place all power at Pekin in the hands of Manchus least friendly to the +adoption of European ideas, and more willing to lean upon Russia than +upon any other foreign power. The early restoration to high office of Li +Hung Chang, who has, for some time, been a useful tool of the St. +Petersburg government, and who is a favorite of the empress-dowager, may +be looked upon as probable. + + + + +THE FUTURE OF CHINA + + +It is obvious that arterial communication is the first organic need of all +civilized States, and pre-eminently of a country so vast and various in +its terrestrial conditions as is China. This need has been recognized by +the ablest of its rulers, who, from time to time, have made serious +efforts to connect the most distant parts of the empire by both land and +water routes. The Grand Canal, or Yunho ("River of Transports"), is +pronounced as memorable a monument of human industry in its way as is the +Great Wall. It is not, however, a canal in the Western sense of the word, +but merely, as Richthofen has explained, "a series of abandoned river +beds, lakes and marshes, connected one with another by cuttings of no +importance, fed by the Wanho in Shantung, which divides into two currents +at its summit, and by other streams and rivers along its course. A part of +the water of the Wanho descends toward the Hoangho and Gulf of Pechihli; +the larger part runs south in the direction of the Yangtse." The Grand +Canal links Hangchow, a port on the East China Sea, south of the Yangtse, +with Tientsin in Chihli, where it unites with the Peiho, and thus may be +said to extend to Tungchow in the neighborhood of Pekin. When the canal +was in order, before the inflow of the Yellow River failed, there was +uninterrupted water communication from Pekin to Canton, and to the many +cities and towns met with on the way. For many years past, however, and +especially since the carriage of tribute-rice by steamers along the coast +began, repairs of the Grand Canal have been practically abandoned. The +roads in China, confined generally to the northern and western sections of +the country, are described as the very worst in the world. The paving, +according to Baber, "is of the usual Chinese pattern, rough bowlders and +blocks of stone being laid somewhat loosely together on the surface of the +ground; 'good for ten years and bad for ten thousand,' as the Chinese +proverb admits. On the level plains of China, where the population is +sufficiently affluent to subscribe for occasional repairs, the system has +much practical value. But, in the Yunnari mountains, the roads are never +repaired; so far from it, the indigent natives extract the most convenient +blocks to stop the holes in their hovel walls, or to build a fence on the +windward side of their poppy patches. The rains soon undermine the +pavement, especially where it is laid on a steep incline; sections of it +topple down the slope, leaving chasms a yard or more in depth." Where +traveling by water is impossible, sedan chairs are used to carry +passengers, and coolies with poles and slings transport the luggage and +goods. The distances covered by the sedan chair porters are remarkable, +being sometimes as much as thirty-five miles a day, even on a journey +extending over a month. The transport animals--ponies, mules, oxen and +donkeys--are strong and hardy, and manage to drag carts along the +execrable roads. The ponies are said to be admirable, and the mules +unequaled in any other country. The distances which these animals will +cover on the very poorest of forage are surprising. + +The rapid adoption of steamers along the coast and on the Yangtse has +paved the way for railways. Shallow steamers have yet to traverse the +Poyang and the Tungting Lakes, which lie near the Yangtse, and Peiho and +Canton Rivers, as well as many minor streams. It is the railway, however, +that is the supreme necessity. Mr. Colquhoun has pointed out that, except +along the Yangtse for the thousand-odd miles now covered by steamers, +there is not a single trade route of importance in China where a railway +would not pay. Especially would a line from Pekin carried through the +heart of China to the extreme south, along the existing trade routes, be +advantageous and remunerative. The enormous traffic carried on throughout +the Celestial Empire in the face of appalling difficulties, on men's +backs, or by caravans of mules or ponies, or by the rudest of carts and +wheelbarrows, must be, some day, undertaken by railways. In the judgment +of careful observers, too much stress should not be laid on the +introduction of the locomotive for strategic purposes. The capital aim of +railway construction should be, they think, the development of the +interprovincial trade of China, the interchange of the varied products of +a country which boasts so many climates and soils. This would bring +prosperity to the people, render administrative reforms possible, and open +China for the Chinese quite as much as for the European merchant or +manufacturer. From the viewpoint of Chinese interests, the most useful +lines would be two that should connect Pekin, Tientsin and all the +northern part of the country with central and southern China. Trunk lines +could be constructed for this purpose without any difficulty. They would +pass along the old trade tracks, and would encounter populous cities the +whole way. Through eastern Shansi and Honan, for example, to Hangchow on +the Yangtse; thence to the Si Kiang and Canton; such lines would be shafts +driven through the heart of the Middle Kingdom, connecting the North and +the South. For the entire distance, some 1,300 or 1,400 miles, the extent, +fertility and variety of the soil are described as remarkable. From the +North, abounding in cotton and varieties of grain and pulse, to the South, +where many vegetable products of the Orient are met, the redundancy of the +population is a striking feature. A constant succession of villages, towns +and cities would be transformed into a picture of bustle and business. + +The internal economical conditions of China to-day are very much the same +as were those of India when railways were introduced. The only difference +is that the Chinese people are better off per man, and that the Chinese +and Indo-Chinese, unlike the natives of India, are born travelers and +traders. Yet, even in India, contrary to expectation, the passenger +traffic on the railways has, from the first, exceeded the goods traffic. +In 1857, the number of passengers carried by railway in India was +2,000,000; in 1896, it had risen to 160,000,000. In the first named year, +the quantity of goods transported was 253,000 tons; in 1896, it was +32,500,000 tons. There has been witnessed in India during those forty +years an expansion of commerce which, at the outset of the period, would +have been deemed incredible. The imports and exports rose in that time +from 400,000,000 to 2,000,000,000 rupees. Forty years ago, India was +merely a dealer in drugs, dyes and luxuries; now she is one of the largest +purveyors of food grains, fibers, and many other staples. Few persons are +aware how favorably the earnings of Indian railways compare with those of +other countries. The average earnings of railways in the United States are +3 per cent; in Great Britain, 3.60 per cent; in India, 5.46 per cent. This +in spite of the fact that, in India, a man can travel 400 miles within +twenty-four hours for the sum of $2.08. The policy of low charges has +answered well, the people, on its adoption, at once having begun to travel +and to send their produce by rail. In China, also, low rates will be a +necessity. Another fact of importance to China is that, out of the 260,000 +people employed on Indian railways, 95.66 per cent are natives. Only the +higher posts are held by Europeans. In China, the proportions would +probably be even more in favor of the native element. + +Mr. Colquhoun, who is a high authority, has no doubt that, as Richthofen +anticipated years ago, China will eventually be directly connected with +Europe via Hami, Lanchow and Sian. "No direct connection of this kind," +says Richthofen "is possible south of the Wei basin, and any road to the +north of it would have to keep entirely north of the Yellow River and run +altogether through desert countries." The same reason which confined the +commerce of China with the West during thousands of years to the natural +route via Hami will be decisive as regards railway communication also. In +respect of natural facilities, and because of the existence of populous, +productive and extensive commercial regions at both ends of the line, it +is the only practicable route. It is further to be noted that the whole +tract would be provided with coal. The province of Kansuh rivals Shansi in +the richness and extent of its coal fields; no section of it north of the +Tsungling Mountains appears to be deficient in coal measures, and, in some +parts, a superabundance of the combustible exists. The coal formation +extends, with few interruptions, from Eastern Shansi to Hi through thirty +degrees of longitude. There is scarcely, remarks Richthofen, an instance +on record "where so many favorable and essential conditions co-operate to +concentrate all future intercourse on so long a line upon one single and +definite channel." As regards railways within the empire, a Pekin-Hankow +line has been arranged for, as we pointed out in the previous chapter, +with a so-called Belgian syndicate, and, if properly executed, should be a +good line; but, as we have said, it is the opinion of experts that the +best railway contemplated in China would be that from Pekin via Tientsin +to Hangchow, with an extension later to Canton. The line would pass some +forty towns, with an average population of 25,000 each, and a large number +of villages. The length of the Grand Canal from Tientsin to Hangchow is +650 miles. According to Mr. Colquhoun, no better line for a railway exists +in the world, from the viewpoint of population, resources and cheapness of +construction. It follows the most important of the actual routes of +commerce in the empire, passes the greatest possible number of cities, +towns and villages, and connects great seaports with rich coal regions of +authenticated value. + +We pass to the telegraph and postal service. It appears that government +telegraphs are being rapidly extended throughout the empire. There are +lines between Pekin and Tientsin, and lines connecting the capital with +the principal places in Manchuria as far as the Russian frontier on the +Amour and the Usuri, while Newchwang, Chefoo, Shanghai, Yangchow, Souchow, +the seven treaty ports on the Yangtse, Canton, Woochow, Lungchow, and, in +fact, most of the principal cities in the empire, are now joined by wire +with one another and with the metropolis. The line from Canton westward +passes via Yunnanfoo to Manwein, on the borders of Burmah. Shanghai is in +communication with Foochow and Moy, Kashing, Shaoshing, Ningpo and other +places. Lines have been constructed between Foochow and Canton and between +Taku, Port Arthur and Seoul in Corea, and the line along the Yangtse +Valley has been extended to Chungking. By an arrangement made with the +Russian telegraph authorities, the Chinese and Siberian lines in the Amour +Valley were joined in the latter part of 1892, and there is now overland +communication between Pekin and Europe through Russian territory. The +postal service of China is unquestionably primitive from a Western point +of view. It is carried on by means of post carts and runners. There are, +besides, numerous private postal couriers, and, during the winter, when +the approach to the capital is closed by sea and river, a service between +the office of Foreign Customs at Pekin and the outports is maintained. The +Chinese, it seems, have always been great believers in their own postal +system. Even those who have emigrated to British colonies have adhered to +their own method of transporting letters, refusing to use the duly +constituted government posts, except under compulsion. Both Hongkong and +the Straits Settlements have been actually compelled to legislate in the +matter. It is said, however, to be remarkable how safe the native post is, +not merely for the carriage of ordinary letters, but for the conveyance of +money. We should add that, on February 2, 1897, the Imperial Chinese Post +Office was opened under the management of Sir Robert Hart, and China has +since joined the Postal Union. + +In a chapter of Mr. Colquhoun's book bearing the caption "England's +Objective in China," we are told that there are two ways of attacking the +trade of China in the Middle Kingdom, so far as England is concerned. The +one is from the seaboard, entering China by the chief navigable rivers, +notably the Yangtse, which is the main artery of China, and the West +River, which passes through the southern provinces. The other mode of +approach is from England's land base, Burmah, through Yunnan. It is +acknowledged that the sea approach, hitherto the only one, is, from the +purely trading point of view, incomparably the more important; but the +other, or complementary land route, is pronounced a necessity if England's +commercial and political influence is to be maintained and extended. The +isolation of China over sea has long since been annuled by steam, and her +former complete isolation by land has now ceased also. Hitherto cut off +from access by land, she will, in the north, be shortly placed in direct +railway communication with Europe, a fact which by itself renders +imperative a corresponding advance from the south. It is many years since +Mr. Colquhoun began to advocate the railway communication of Burmah with +southwestern China, first with the view to open Yunnan and Szchuen, and, +secondly, to effect a junction between those two great waterways, the +Yangtse and the Irrawaddy. It seemed to him that the connection of the +navigation limit of the Yangtse with the most easterly province of Anglo- +India was a matter of cardinal importance, not merely because it was +eminently desirable for commercial purposes to connect the central and +lower regions of the Yangtse with Burmah, but also for political reasons. +It so happens that the navigation limit of that river lies within the +province of Szchuen, which, in Mr. Colquhoun's opinion, should be the +commercial and political objective of England. Szchuen, from its size, +population, trade and products, may, according to Mrs. Bishop, be truly +called the Empire Province. Apart from its great mineral resources, the +province produces silk, wax and tobacco, all of good quality; grass cloth, +grain in abundance, and tea, plentiful though of poor flavor. The climate +is changeable, necessitating a variety of clothing. Cotton is grown in +Szchuen, but Bourne states that Indian yarn is driving it out of +cultivation, not apparently on account of the enormous saving through +spinning by machinery, but because the fiber can be grown more cheaply in +India. The greater part of the surplus wealth of Szchuen is devoted to the +purchase of raw native and foreign cotton and woolen goods. All the cotton +bought is not consumed in the province, for the inhabitants manufacture +from the imported raw material and export the product to Yunnan and +western Kweichow. Rich as it is, Szchuen has the disadvantage of being +difficult of access from the rest of the world, for at present merchandise +can now only reach it during certain months of the year, and after a +difficult voyage. Its trade would be increased very greatly were the +navigation of the Yangtse rendered easier and safer, thus facilitating the +establishment of effective steam communication not only to Chungking, but +as far as Suifoo. + +The natural channel of trade between Hongkong and southwestern China is +the Sikiang, or West River. Owing, however, to the obstacles raised by +taxation and the non-enforcement by England of the transit-pass system, +trade has been diverted to other channels, such as the Pakhoi-Nanning +route, and later to the Tonquin route, the French having insisted on the +effective carrying out of the transit-pass system via Mengtse. At present +British goods are actually sent from Hongkong through French territory via +Mengtse to a point within seven days of Bhamo in Burmah. The Lungchow +route, whatever its merits might have been, had the railway line from +Pakhoi to Nanning not been secured by the French government, is now, +according to Mr. Colquhoun, of quite secondary importance. He concedes +that, unless the West River is at once effectively opened throughout its +course, the Pakhoi-Nanning-Yunnan route is bound to command the largest +share of the trade of south and southwestern China. + +Having passed under review the provinces of south and southwestern China +and the great waterways--to wit, the Yangtse and West rivers--we may now +inquire what measures should be adopted to improve the present state of +affairs in the interest of China and of foreign trade. The first step +suggested is the improvement of communication by railways and steam +navigation. So far as railways are concerned, Burmah should be connected +with Tali and Yunnanfoo, Yunnanfoo with Nanning, Canton with Kaulun. This +would thoroughly open the whole of Southern China lying between Burmah and +the British colony of Hongkong. Yunnanfoo should also be connected to the +northeast with Suifoo on the upper Yangtse, the navigation limit of that +waterway. Steam navigation should at once be extended to Nanning and to +Suifoo, and also, wherever it may be practicable, throughout all inland +waters. Next in importance to the creation of proper communication is the +question of taxation. All travelers, in Southern China especially, dwell +on the obstacles to trade resulting from the collection of so many various +imposts. The British government should insist on its treaty rights, +especially the enforcement, successfully accomplished by the French +government, of the transit-pass system. It is, finally, the conviction of +all competent students of the subject that it is from Burmah, on the one +hand, and from Shanghai and Hongkong on the other, that England must, by +the aid of steam applied overland and by water, practically occupy the +upper Yangtse region, which will be found to be the key to a dominant +position in China. + +In some comments on China's prospective commercial development Mr. +Colquhoun, the latest first-hand observer, sets forth some statistics +which are of interest not only to Englishmen but to Americans. He shows +that in 1896 the total net value of imports and of exports was +55,768,500 pounds, and the total gross value 57,274,000 pounds, of which +the British dominions contributed 39,271,000 pounds, leaving for all other +nations 18,003,000 pounds. Of this aggregate Russia contributed 2,856,000 +pounds, the rest of Europe 4,585,000 pounds, Japan 4,705,000 pounds, and +other countries, including the United States, 5,767,000 pounds. The +percentage of the carrying trade of the Middle Kingdom under foreign flags +was: British, 82.04; German, 7.49; French, 2.00; Japanese, 1.34; Russian, +0.59; other countries, 5.54. The percentage of dues and duties paid under +foreign flags was as follows: British, 76.04; German, 10.12; French, 2.95; +Japanese, 2.28; Russian, 1.90; all other nations, 6.71. It appears, then, +that Great Britain not only carries eighty-two per cent of the total +foreign trade with China, but pays seventy-two per cent of the revenue +resulting from that trade. Until recently, British subjects were at +liberty to carry on business at but eighteen ports in China. They were +Newchwang, Tientsin, Chifui, on the northern coast; Chungking, Ichang, +Hankow, Kiukiang, Wehu, Chinkiang and Shanghai, on the Yangtse River; +Ningpo, Wenchow, Foochow, Amoy, Swatow, Canton, Hoihow (Kiungchow) and +Pakhoy, on the coast south of the Yangtse. To these must be now added +Shansi on the Yangtse, between Ichang and Hankow; Hangchow and Souchow, +two inland cities near Shanghai; Woochow and Sanshui on the West River and +Ssumao and Lungchow, in the south. It is also reported that three other +ports have been very recently opened; viz., Yochow, on the Tungting Lake; +Chungwang, on the Gulf of Pechihli, and Funing in Fuhkien. + +Let us now proceed to demonstrate how deeply the United States are +concerned in the China question from the industrial point of view. +Inasmuch as, owing to the fact that Americans now manufacture more than +they consume, they are compelled to embark on a foreign policy and to look +increasingly to foreign markets, they cannot but feel that the future of +the Middle Kingdom is a matter of vital importance to themselves. It is +manifest that the Pacific slope, though at present playing but a small +part, is destined to be more profoundly affected by the development of +China than is any other section of the American republic. Our Pacific +States are possessed of enormous natural resources; their manufactures +have quadrupled in twenty years, and will, in the course of time, find a +most advantageous market in the Far East. When the Nicaragua Canal shall +have been dug, the Atlantic States will also be brought into close +connection with China and with the rest of Eastern Asia. The volume of the +United States traffic with China already represented a considerable part +of the foreign trade of the empire in 1896. While the imports from China +received by the United States have increased but slowly, the exports from +the last-named country to the Middle Kingdom have increased 126 per cent +in ten years, and are more than fifty per cent greater than the exports of +Germany to the same market. The export of American cotton cloths to China +amounted to $7,485,000 in 1897, or nearly one-half the entire value of +cotton cloths sent abroad by the United States. The export of kerosene oil +from the States to China now ranks second in importance to that of cotton +goods, and is likely to increase at a rapid rate. The Chinese demand for +the illuminating fluid is quickly growing, and the delivery of it from the +United States to China has more than trebled in value during the past ten +years. That is to say, it has risen from $1,466,000 in 1888 to $4,498,000 +in 1897. The Russian oil has hitherto been the only serious foreign +competitor of the American product, but the Langkat oil is coming to some +extent into use. The exports of American wheat flour to China reached a +value in 1897 of $3,390,000, and those of chemicals, dyes, etc., +$1,000,000. At present, the export trade of the United States to China is +confined mainly to cottons and mineral oils; that is to say, it is largely +restricted to commodities which would be hard to sell in any Chinese port +where the conditions of equal trade did not prevail. It would probably +prove impossible to sell them in any Asiatic port controlled by Russia or +by France. It follows that, although England has most to lose by the +partition of China, even though she should receive a large share of +territory, the United States are also deeply interested in the question, +for their trade is already considerable, and is likely, under favorable +circumstances, to undergo great expansion. + +Let us, finally, examine the Chinese question from a political point of +view. We concur with Mr. Colquhoun in believing that Englishmen are now at +the parting of the ways, and that their failure to take the right course +in the Far East will mean the loss of England's commercial supremacy, and, +eventually, the disintegration of the British Empire. He maintains that, +since November 16, 1896, when the German government was compelled by +Bismarck's revelations to disclose the drift of its future policy, it has +been apparent that there is an increasing tendency toward cooperation in +the Near East and the Par East between Germany and Russia, and therefore, +also, between those powers and France, which is Russia's ally. The +understanding is based upon mutual interest, territorial in the case of +Russia, commercial in that of Germany, and political in the case of +France. The cornerstone of the combination is Russia, whose goodwill is +sought for at all costs by France, in a lesser degree by Germany, and, +latterly, even by Austria-Hungary. The chief aim of the combination is the +reduction of England to a secondary position, politically and +commercially. In China, the outcome of the coalition has been to isolate +England completely. For some years past, her efforts to secure concessions +at Pekin have been frustrated by Russia and France. Meanwhile, these two +countries, and, more lately, Germany as well, have secured for themselves +solid advantages. Japan, on her part, since she was compelled to submit to +a revision of the Shimonoseki treaty, has been watching silently and +preparing anxiously for eventualities. England's official optimists talked +in 1895, however, as they still talk, of the successes gained, the +"rectification" of the Burmo-Chinese frontier and the incomplete "opening" +of the West River. As a matter of fact, the British government has done +little or nothing to establish overland railway communication from Burmah +to China, or to reach China "from behind," as Lord Salisbury called it; +and the Upper Yangtse, the main artery of China, has remained practically +unopened. Such, at least, was the situation a few months ago. + +To understand the present situation, which is the natural sequel of 1895, +it is needful, first of all, to recognize the fact that Russia is, at this +moment, the protector of China against all comers, and that France +supports her firmly, while Germany, having once taken the decisive step of +placing herself alongside Russia, is likely to follow the czar's lead for +two sufficient reasons; namely, for fear of displeasing the Russian ally +of France, and because concessions are not likely to be obtained at Pekin +by Germany, if the latter country places itself in direct and open +opposition to the St. Petersburg government. Russian influence has, for +some time past, been omnipotent at Pekin, mainly through the kindly +assistance rendered to China in 1895, followed up by what has been +practically an offensive and defensive league. The nature of the +understanding between Russia and the Middle Kingdom has, indeed, for some +time been patent to all the world except Englishmen, the chief features of +it being: First, an offensive and defensive alliance; secondly, branch +railways through Manchuria; thirdly, the refortification of Port Arthur +and Talienwan, both to be paid for by China, and either or both of these +harbors to be placed at Russia's disposal whenever they may be required. +It is true that China has denied the existence of any agreement except +that concerning the northern Manchurian Railway, but Russia has never +denied anything except the accuracy of the version of the so-called +"Cassini" Convention, published by a Shanghai paper. Apart from the +existence of any written contract, the facts speak for themselves. Russia, +having had a prior lien on Kiao Chou, it is obvious that Germany could not +have seized that harbor in opposition to Russia. Again, what is to prevent +Germany from discovering some day that Kiao Chou does not "meet her +requirements," in which event what is there to hinder Russia from taking +over Kiao Chou and giving Germany another port? Provision has, in truth, +been made to enable Germany to treat Kiao Chou as a negotiable bill of +exchange. + +There is really nothing unforeseen in the recent evolution of affairs in +the Far East. On the contrary, it has been clearly indicated by various +writers in the past fifty years. As far back as 1850, Meadows wrote: +"China will not be conquered by any Western power until she becomes the +Persia of some future Alexander the Great of Russia, which is the Macedon +of Europe. England, America and France will, if they are wise, wage, +severally or collectively, a war of exhaustion with Russia rather than +allow her to conquer China, for, when she has done that, she will be +mistress of the world." In reply to those who ridicule the policy of +"guarding against imaginary Russian dangers in China," he said: "Many may +suppose the danger to be too remote to be a practical subject for the +present generation. The subject is most practical at the present hour, +for, as the English, Americans and French now deal with China, and with +her relations to Russia, so the event will be. For those to whom 'it will +last our time' is a word of practical wisdom, this volume is not written." +Again, a few years later, Meadows wrote: "The greatest, though not +nearest, danger of a weak China lies precisely in those territorial +aggressions of Russia which she began two centuries ago, and which, if +allowed to go on, will speedily give her a large and populous territory, +faced with Sveaborgs and Sebastopols on the seaboard of Eastern Asia. Let +England, America and France beware how they create a sick giant in the Far +East. China is a world-necessity." Foreshadowing the gradual extension of +Russia into China, and the time when the former country would become +dominant at Pekin, and when, with all Manchuria organized behind her, she +would occupy the whole of the Yellow River basin, Meadows expressed the +belief that, should that occasion occur, no combination of powers would +then be able to thwart Russia's purpose. "With 120,000,000 Chinese to work +or fight for her, nothing would stand between Russia and the conquest of +the rest of the Celestial Empire; not China alone, but Europe itself would +then be dominated, and it would cost the Russian Emperor of China but +little trouble to overwhelm the Pacific States of the New World." Such was +the forecast of a writer whose name is to-day forgotten. + +What are the advantages which Russia possesses over England in dealing +with China? There is, in the first place, the advantage of proximity. The +Chinese people in the northern provinces, and especially at the capital, +which is not far from the Great Wall, undoubtedly discriminate between +Russians and other foreigners. Like other Orientals, they only believe +what they see; and Russia is seen and realized on the northern frontier. +Besides the effect of contact, the Russians possess a gift in dealing with +the Chinese. The affinities and analogies which the Russians and Chinese +exhibit have been depicted by Michie in his book on the "Siberian Overland +Route." "Analogies in the manners, customs and modes of thought of the two +races are constantly turning up, and their resemblance to the Chinese has +become a proverb among the Russians themselves. The Russians and the +Chinese are peculiarly suited to each other in the commercial as well as +in the diplomatic departments. They have an equal disregard for truth, for +the Russian, in spite of his fair complexion, is, at the bottom, more than +half Asiatic. There is nothing original about this observation, but it +serves to explain how it is that the Russians have won their way into +China by quiet and peaceable means, while we have always been running our +heads against a stone wall, and never could get over it without breaking +it down. The Russians meet the Chinese as Greek meets Greek; craft is +encountered with craft, politeness with politeness, and patience with +patience. They understand each other's character thoroughly, because they +are so closely alike." Michie went on to say that "when either a Russian +or a Chinese meets a European, say an Englishman, he instinctively recoils +from the blunt, straightforward, up-and-down manner of coming to business +at once, and the Asiatic either declines a contest which he cannot fight +with his own weapons, or, seizing the weak point of his antagonist, he +angles for him until he wearies him into acquiescence. As a rule, the +Asiatic has the advantage. His patient equanimity and heedlessness of the +waste of time are too much for the impetuous haste of the European. This +characteristic of the Russian trading classes has enabled them to +insinuate them selves into the confidence of the Chinese; to fraternize +and identify themselves with them, and, as it were, to make common cause +with them in their daily life; while the Western European holds himself +aloof, and only comes in contact with the Chinese when business requires +it; for, in all the rest, a great gulf separates them in thoughts, ideas +and the aims of life." + +Of interest, also, as showing how history repeats itself, are the +observations made nearly forty years ago by Lockhart, a missionary, after +a long residence in China. Lockhart wrote: "The Russian government +anticipated us, not in the knowledge of the advantages of close commercial +and political relations with an empire so enormous in its resources, but +in the employment of those arguments that alone could render a vain and +effeminate State sensible of their value.... The map of all the Russias, +published at St. Petersburg, now includes that vast portion of Central +Asia heretofore constituting the outlying provinces of the Chinese empire +beyond the Great Wall. Having placed a mission in the Chinese capital and +organized an overwhelming army in Chinese Tartary, with magazines of +warlike resources, Russia easily secured a permanent footing in region +after region, till she had dominated over, and then obtained the cession +of, all the intervening space, leaving the conquest of the entire Chinese +empire to the time when it should please the reigning Czar to order his +Cossacks to take possession. It is impossible to state with any precision +the amount of moral or material support which the Chinese emperor received +from his imperial brother and formidable neighbor, and which encouraged +him to the obstinate resistance that he offered to the demands of England +and France [in 1860]; but a slight acquaintance with Russian policy must +satisfy any one that, having established itself as a favored nation, +Russia could not regard with complacency any attempt made by another +nation to share such advantages." Comprehending, therefore, the Chinese +character, perceiving clearly that the present Manchu dynasty is unable to +perform the elementary functions of an organized society, that Pekin is +another Teheran or Constantinople, that, while the people are sound, the +courts and the officials are corrupt, Russia has studied and gained over +certain influential persons and applied skillfully the maxim, _divide et +impera_. What China is taught night and day is that Russia is a land +power, and, therefore, alone can protect China; that she keeps her +promises and threats; that, with England, on the other hand, it is always +a case of _vox et praeterea nihil_. In short, Russia protects China in +a peculiar sense, that is to say, for a price, to be paid to Russia or +even to her friends. The dominating idea instilled into the Chinese court +and bureaucracy, which, in the absence of a strong policy on England's +part, are in a hypnotized condition, is to be saved from Japan. The great +object of Russian policy is to utilize China for territorial and political +expansion. + +What would China be worth to Russia? This question is answered by Mr. +Colquhoun at considerable length. What the utilization of China would mean +can be realized, he says, only by a full appreciation of the extraordinary +resources of that country, judged from various points of view. The +Celestial Empire has the men with which to create armies and navies; the +materials, especially iron and coal, requisite for the purposes of railway +and steam navigation; all the elements, in fact, out of which to evolve a +great living force. One thing alone is wanting, namely, the will, the +directing power, which, absent from within, is now being applied from +without. That supplied, there are to be found in abundance within China +itself the capacity to carry out, the brains to plan, the hands to work. +When, moreover, it is understood that not merely is the soil fertile, but +that the mineral resources, the greatest, perhaps, in the whole world, +are, as yet, practically untouched, the merest surface being scratched; +when we further consider the volume of China's population, the ability and +enterprise, and, above all, the intense vitality of the people, as strong +as ever after four millenniums; when we reflect on the general +characteristics of the race; it seems indisputable that the Chinese, under +wise direction, are destined to dominate the whole of Eastern Asia, and, +may be, to play a leading part in the affairs of the world. Even although +the Celestial Empire appears to be now breaking up, it is capable, under +tutelage, of becoming reconsolidated. Often before now, when conquered, +has China either thrown off the yoke or absorbed its conquerors. But never +before has the conqueror come, as does the czar to-day, in the guise of a +great organizing force. To much the same effect wrote Michie, whose +opinion is of weight, and from whom we have already quoted: "The theory +that China's decadence is due to the fact that she has long since reached +maturity and has outlived the natural term of a nation's existence does +not hold good. The mass of the people have not degenerated; they are as +fresh and vigorous as ever they were; it is the government only that has +become old and feeble; a change of dynasty may yet restore to China the +luster which belongs legitimately to so great a nation. The indestructible +vitality of Chinese institutions has preserved the country unchanged +throughout many revolutions. The high civilization of the people and their +earnestness in the pursuit of peaceful industry have enabled them to +preserve their national existence through more dynastic changes than +perhaps any other country or nation has experienced." Mr. Colquhoun, for +his own part, testifies that, in peaceful pursuits, in agriculture, in the +arts and manufactures, no limit can be placed to the capabilities of +China. Even in the paths of war, he deems it difficult to foretell what, +under skillfull direction, may not be accomplished. It is true that, +touching this point, there is a wide difference of opinion. Prjevalski +said, apropos of the Tonquin campaign: "She [China] lacks the proper +material; she lacks the life-giving spirit. Let Europeans supply the +Chinese with any number of arms that they please: let them exert +themselves ever so energetically to train Chinese soldiers: let them even +supply leaders: the Chinese Army will, nevertheless, even under the most +favorable conditions, never be more than an artificially created, +mechanically united, unstable organism. Subject it but once to the serious +test of war, speedy dissolution will overtake such an army, which could +never hope for victory over a foe animated with any real spirit." On the +other hand, high testimony has been borne by other travelers and military +critics to the excellent quality of China's raw material for military +purposes. Wingrove Cooke, the "Times" correspondent with the allied forces +in 1857-58, who is generally accounted one of the best critics of Chinese +men and affairs; Count d'Escayrac de Lauture, one of the Pekin prisoners +in 1859-60; Chinese Gordon and Lord Wolseley, have all spoken highly of +the courage and endurance of the Chinese soldier. The following summary of +his capabilities was given by one who had had experience with Gordon's +"Ever-Victorious Army": "The old notion is pretty well got rid of that +they are at all a cowardly people, when properly paid and efficiently led; +while the regularity and order of their habits, which dispose them to +peace in ordinary times, give place to a daring bordering on recklessness +in times of war. Their intelligence and capacity for remembering facts +render them well fitted for use in modern warfare, as do also the coolness +and the calmness of their disposition. Physically, they are, on the +average, not so strong as Europeans, but considerably more so than most of +the other races of the East; and, on a cheap diet of rice, vegetables, +salt fish and pork, they can go through a vast amount of fatigue whether +in a temperate climate or a tropical one, where Europeans are ill fitted +for exertion. Their wants are few; they have no caste prejudices and +hardly any appetite for intoxicating liquors." It is Mr. Colquhoun's +opinion, based upon prolonged observation, that, if China were conquered +by Russia, organized, disciplined and led by Russian officers and Russian +administrators, an industrial and military organization would be developed +which India could not face, and which would shake to its foundations the +entire fabric of the British Empire. If, he says, the Chinese failed to +profit by their numerical superiority and their power of movement in +Tonquin, it must be remembered that they were as ill-equipped and supplied +and nearly as unorganized and unofficered as they were in the Chino- +Japanese war. Transport, commissariat, tents, medical service, all the +paraphernalia employed in organized army work, were then, as in the late +campaign, absolutely unknown. Notwithstanding the unfavorable judgment of +Prjevalski that the Chinese are animated by neither military nor patriotic +spirit, the conviction of many observers is that, however undisciplined +they proved themselves in the Chino-Japanese war; however badly the +undrilled, unfed, unled Chinamen in uniform compared with the highly +organized troops of Japan, their capabilities, as the components of a +fighting machine, should be rated exceedingly high. The apparent +inconsistencies of the Chinese can, in all likelihood, be reconciled. That +they offer excellent military material when shaped and guided by +foreigners may be pronounced certain. If they come from the Manchurian +provinces or from Shantung, they are found to be steady, willing to be +taught and amenable to discipline, of splendid physique and able to bear +hardships and cold without a murmur. If from Honan, they exhibit many of +the best characteristics of highland races--courage and loyalty to their +own leader, but they are more difficult to manage, and they are not steady +in any sense of the word. The southern Chinese seem to be held generally +in low esteem, but one should not forget that the best fighters of the +Taeping army were the men from the Canton province, and that, as seamen, +the coast populations of Southern China are unequaled. The western +highlanders, whether Mohammedans or not, are men of good physique, and +would make good fighting material. The Mongolians are horsemen from their +early years, and are suitable for light cavalry of the Cossack type. + +Like the Central Asian peoples, the Chinese possess in a high degree the +virtue of passive bravery. At first the Russians, in their contests in +Central Asia, expended much time and wasted many lives in besieging towns. +They acted with caution, throwing up approaches and opening trenches. This +method, however, was presently abandoned for that of open escalade, as, +for instance, at Tashkend, Khojand and Uratapa. Finally, the plan was +adopted of storming breaches, to permit of which breaching batteries would +be thrown up at very close quarters, after which, a favorable time being +chosen, the place would be carried by storm. From every point of view, +this proved to be the most effective method. The Chinamen, as has been +proved repeatedly, is like other Central Asiatics in this respect, that, +under cover, he sustains the heaviest fire with indifference; he never +surrenders except under bold assaults, which he cannot withstand. + +What is the conclusion to which the observations of all first-hand +students of China have conducted them? Their conclusion is that it is a +question of vital importance, a matter of commercial life and death, for +England to maintain and consolidate herself in the Yangtse basin, which +cannot possibly be done except by an effective occupation of the upper +Yangtse, and by developing in every possible way her communications along +that watercourse, and by the West River from Hongkong, also by railway +connection with Upper Burmah and through that province with India. Mr. +Colquhoun, for his part, also believes it to be high time that countries +like the United States, Australasia and Germany should set themselves to +watch with attention, not to say anxiety, the situation in the Far East. +He advises them to reflect upon the history of the ancient empire formed +by Genghis Khan and his successors, for that history is repeating itself +to-day. Russia is conquering by modern methods the kingdoms of Genghis and +Kublai Khan, and the Russian Czar, once emperor of China, will take the +place of the Tartar conquerors who carried fire and sword beyond the +Carpathians and the Vistula and throughout eastern, western and southern +Asia. + +THE END + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of China, by Demetrius Charles Boulger + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHINA *** + +This file should be named 6708.txt or 6708.zip + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Charles Franks +and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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