During the Boxer rebellion the railroad tracks laid by the Russians
in Manchuria were torn up, and the Russian troops were sent on an
expedition to punish the Chinese insurgents. The Russians marched
from city to city destroying and looting, meeting with practically no
resistance. But at one place something unexpected happened, as told by
Mr. H. J. Whigham in _V.C._ (London):
The Russians marched up to the gates and were just about to
enter when the Boxers opened fire upon them. The army was
withdrawn, the batteries were got out, and the general was just
going to smash up the city when the Scotch missionary, Doctor
Westwater (acting as interpreter) approached him and asked for a
moment’s truce.
“I undertake,” he said, “to enter the city and to induce it to
surrender without a shot being fired on one condition.”
“Which is?”
“That there shall be no destruction and no looting; none
whatever.”
The general yielded, and mounting his pony, Doctor Westwater
rode forward to the city alone.
Now, when you consider that the city was full of Boxers, you
will realize that it was a pretty considerable act of courage
for a minister, of all men, to ride unarmed through those
seething streets. This was what Westwater did. The city was a
roaring hive of armed Boxers, muskets peeping from roof and
window, and the streets ringing with the noise of arms. At the
missionary quarters Doctor Westwater was fortunate enough to
find a Christian convert, who conducted him to a place where the
merchant gild were holding a sort of cabinet council.
Westwater explained matters, appealed to the citizens to avoid
bloodshed, and pledged his word that neither destruction nor
looting should mark the Russian occupation of their city. The
appeal was successful, and he rode quietly back to the Russian
general.
The general was an awful brute, as bad as he could be, but
Westwater’s action seemed to impress him, and his orders were
very exact. During his occupation of the city there was no
single instance of crime. Westwater’s gallant action, too,
imprest even the Boxers. They named him the savior of the town,
and when, some months later, he took his departure for home, he
was made the honored guest of extraordinary banquets, and was
accompanied to the railway station by all the grateful citizens,
half of them waving flags and half of them banging musical
instruments.
(601)
See TROUBLE BRAVELY MET.