Chinese guns--The Japanese cavalry--Ten guns captured--Success
after success--Maxims--An amusing incident--In the Chinese
trenches--A ghastly spectacle--The Russian and French--The Japanese
Engineers--Sharp fighting--To pursue the enemy--A report--The Chinese
troops--A severe blow--A great battle--The pontoon bridge--Japanese
Red Cross.
The Chinese guns were still giving considerable trouble, and the Royal
Artillery had taken up a second position near the granaries (north of
its first position), from which, as the Japanese were advancing so
rapidly, it soon shifted again, and occupied a third position still
further north.
In the meantime the Japanese cavalry, with a dash that could not be
equalled, also charged the enemy, now retreating towards Pei-tsang
village, and with great gallantry succeeded in capturing eight guns.
The Chinese had, however, withdrawn nearly all the artillery from their
central position.
The photograph shows a captured Chinese gun being taken away from its
position by Japanese cavalry.
When once the retreat began, it was rapid, success after success being
gained by the victorious army. One position after another fell, and the
main body of the enemy was retreating even from Pei-tsang itself, but
had left sufficient men to cover the retreat. Their heavy artillery
ceased to fire on us as we advanced, but they had some vicious Maxims
which still poured lead into us.
One of these weapons was trained on a small bridge over a brook which
we were bound to cross, and many a soldier was wounded in the hail
of bullets that could not be escaped. The first soldiers who came
unexpectedly into it fared badly. Fortunately I was not hit. Others
made a passage under the bridge.
[Illustration: CAPTURED POSITION OF CHINESE GUN]
A curious incident happened. I saw a number of Japanese coolies running
along, following the soldiers, and I had just time to shout to them
“_Abunai! Abunai!_” (“Look out! look out!”), and while the bullets
made a noise like hail on the wooden boards of the bridge the little
fellows covered their heads with their blankets, as they would do in a
hailstorm, and dashed across. One man was wounded in the leg.
When we reached the place where the road crossed the Chinese trench, a
commanding position, where the enemy had placed three guns, we found
interesting sights. The earthworks and trenches, several miles in
length, had been constructed with extraordinary skill, and in them
stood the picturesque tents and sheds of the soldiers, many of whom
now lay dead, mostly shot in the face. In the trenches themselves
were thousands of empty Mauser and Mannlicher cartridges and packages
of unused ammunition, while in the camp could be seen their cooking
utensils, big bowls and vessels, in which, apparently, rice was being
cooked when the attack began, as well as cups and swords and soldiers’
discarded clothes. By the roadside, where one gun had been, was a
horrible spectacle.
[Sidenote: IN THE CHINESE TRENCHES]
[Illustration: CHINESE SOLDIER WITH LEFT LEG BLOWN OFF BY A SHELL
(The missing limb to the extreme right of photograph)]
A Japanese or British shell had apparently dropped in the midst of a
group, and had frightfully mutilated one man; another, of whom I give
a photograph, was not so badly gashed. His left leg, however, had been
blown clean off. The missing portion of the limb can be seen to the
right of the photograph.
As the British cavalry was not forthcoming, the Japanese filled the
centre with their own infantry.
The enemy was now driven out of all his positions except Pei-tsang
village itself. The Russians and French, who, owing to inundations, had
found great difficulty in advancing on the opposite side of the stream,
were threatening them from the south-east, and the Japanese engineers
were working hard at cutting roads and trenches along the banks of the
river, notwithstanding the heavy fire of the enemy.
It was curious to note how many Chinese wounded had gone to hide in the
cornfields, preferring to die there rather than fall into the hands of
the Allies.
Sharp fighting took place near the village itself, but eventually the
Japanese entered it, and put the enemy to full retreat.
The right wing (Japanese) was ordered to pursue and cut off, if
possible, the flight of the Chinese, but the fighting had been very
hard for these brave men--nearly eight long hours of it--and the enemy
had a good start.
At Pei-tsang itself the fight was over at about noon. Sniping continued
for some time afterwards from the fields on the opposite side of the
Pei-ho. The Japanese and British, followed later by the others, pushed
on directly to the second village, finding no further resistance.
I was talking to Generals Yamaguchi and Fukushima, when up galloped a
cavalryman, who jumped off his horse, and, saluting, gave a report from
the party pursuing the enemy. The Chinese were well ahead, with twelve
flags and six guns. Their number was estimated at 6000, and they were
falling back on Yangtsun.
The Chinese troops which had been fighting at Pei-tsang had been
reported as 8000 in number, besides a great number of Boxers who had
joined in the fighting. These, like the soldiers, had been armed with
excellent rifles, and provided with lavish ammunition.
[Sidenote: THE MOST IMPORTANT BATTLE]
There is no doubt that at this, the most important battle fought in the
advance on Pekin, the Chinese troops received a blow from which they
never recovered. They ever after offered no determined resistance, and
although occasionally giving considerable trouble, were driven from
position to position with comparative ease.
[Illustration: THE CAPTURED PONTOON BRIDGE
(Soldier shot in the head by sniper)]
The battle of Pei-tsang was a great battle, well fought on both sides,
and will always remain a fine page in the history of Japan, for the
Japanese alone did practically all the work, and won the victory for
the Allies.
Some little distance beyond Pei-tsang the Japanese captured a pontoon
bridge, leading to a handsome but deserted Chinese camp on the other
side of the river. There were a number of huge, conical white tents
with flags. Here, too, several cauldrons were found full of boiled
rice, and large bowls with sundry vegetables--evident signs of an
interrupted meal. The quantity of cartridges found was very large.
In the illustration (page 351) the camp can just be perceived in the
distance, while almost in the centre, in the foreground, a man may be
seen falling, shot in the head by the stray bullet of a sniper.
[Illustration: JAPANESE RED CROSS COLLECTING WOUNDED UNDER FIRE]
The Japanese Red Cross workers did marvels that day, and were kept very
busy, for the Japanese losses were heavy. According to the official
list, they had one officer and forty-one soldiers killed, eight
missing, and twelve officers and two hundred and thirty-four soldiers
wounded.
In the photograph, the men with stretchers were taken collecting
wounded during the battle, under heavy fire. Their Red Cross men were
armed with rifles in battle, as can be seen in the illustration.
[Sidenote: CAPTURED GUNS]
[Illustration: ENEMY’S GUNS CAPTURED BY THE JAPANESE AND FIRST MAN WHO
REACHED THEM]
Eight guns were captured from the Chinese, and here I give a picture
of them, with a proud officer standing by their side. Seventy muskets,
a lot of ammunition, seventy-five swords and bayonets, and sixty-nine
tents, were also seized.