When Thompson saw the main body of the bannermen riding over the sand
ridge he knew it was useless to resist, so he quietly awaited his fate.
After surrounding him, one of their number grasped the sailor by the
collar and attempted to lift him off the ground, upon which Jerry
clambered up and seated himself behind his captor. Having secured the
dead body of their companion, the party set spurs to their horses, and
were soon out of the captain's sight. Puffeigh knew it would be useless
to fire at them, as such a proceeding would only make matters worse for
the prisoner. When they had proceeded about a mile they threw the dead
body into a field, then dismounting and placing Thompson in the centre
of the group, squatted round him, lighted their pipes, and held a
council of war.
"This barbarian looks like a western devil to me," observed their
leader. "I am uncertain whether to kill him now, or to take him to the
military governor."
"If we slay him at once we shall be sure of his body," put in a
squint-eyed bannerman. "These western devils are all necromancers,--here
this moment, when--_pouf_--you look, and they have vanished. I vote we
kill him by degrees. We need not return until sunset,--then dismember
him, leave his body as an offering to the Kiang-shi, who walk at night,
and take his head to the governor."
"That's like you, Kwo, always jumping at ideas. Why, do you think we are
little fools to indulge in torturing this devil? What will our rulers
say if they do not witness his death struggles?"
"Bah! you know everything, Ting. But listen! Here is a foreign devil,
calm, unmoved, and as resigned to his fate as one of the most favoured
nation. If we take him in, the people will say, 'Where is the tiger?'
and lo, you will show this lamb, when they will jeer at us, and insult
our bravery. 'What,' they will cry, 'thirty braves, and only this mouse
captured!' See! if we carry in his head, a large reward will be paid us,
and we can lie as much as we like as to the manner of his capture. My
plan is all benefit." Saying which Kwo rose, and, in order to show his
contempt for Jerry, slapped the latter across the face, crying, "Ha,
dog! ha, coward!" and was at once knocked over by the sailor, who
remarked, "Come, stow that little game," and then resumed his squatting
position.
As Kwo was by no means a favourite in his corps, they only laughed at
his mishap, and did not attempt to punish their prisoner for his
audacity.
These bannermen are not regular troops, but a sort of volunteer corps,
who are ordered out for drill four times a year. They are drawn from the
shopkeeper class of citizens, and this service entitles them to many
privileges. When called upon during a war, they are employed in
defending their native towns. Upon some occasions they have fought
bravely, and in many parts of China monuments are erected to commemorate
the prowess of gallant bannermen. However, as a rule they are very
timorous soldiers, and not much depended upon by the military governors.
Some of the northern bannermen are mounted upon Tartar ponies, while in
the southern provinces they are foot soldiers. Their weapons consist of
bows and arrows, spears, knives, and tridents. Firearms are of course
known to them, but a wise and benevolent government has prudently
ordained that "only in exceptional cases shall they be armed with such
dangerous engines."
The party who had captured Thompson had, upon the preceding day, been to
a grand review of the bannermen of the Eleven districts, and as most of
their number had friends in the city near which the review took place,
it was determined that they should not return to their native town until
daylight the next morning. They had bidden their hospitable entertainers
farewell at sunrise, and being brave with wine when they sighted
Puffeigh and his companions, and thinking they were a party of southern
merchants who travel about those parts with Chinese trinkets, the
bannermen laid their heads together, and determined to attack and rob
them, it being a custom of the volunteers, when upon what they called
active service, to behave like the regular troops of his Highness and
Mightiness the Father and Mother of the Empire, who were never known to
leave a sapeck in the pouch of any unfortunate wayfarer they chanced to
fall in with during a march. Great was their astonishment upon finding
they had fallen across some Western devils; and when they succeeded in
capturing one of the party they felt as brave as lions, and quite as
eager to see blood.
After much discussion, the leader of the party, a tailor by profession,
named Choo-Too, the combined words forming also a nickname which might
be translated "pig-stomached," commanded silence, and thus addressed his
fellows,--"My honourable persons, will you with reverence hear the words
of this little one? I, Choo, had this morning a dream, in which I saw
Kwan-ti, the god of war, sitting on a cloud which smelt of gunpowder.
Abject, I grovelled in the dust, as I (in my own mind) never before
believed in Kwan-ti. Then crackers exploded and gingalls discharged all
around him, after which he spake as follows:--'Choo, arise, and get thee
to the sea-shore, you and all your company, there ye will meet with
fortune, and capture a devil, fear him not, he will be harmless, but
watch well that he escape not, or woe be to ye all.'"
At this moment his speech was interrupted by the prisoner requesting
"one of the _old ladies_ to hand him a chaw of baccy."
Choo frowned upon the undaunted one, and thus continued:--"This little
one then swooned, and so remained until found by you, my honourable
friends."
"Wonderful! wonderful!" exclaimed the other bannermen, but added aside
to each other, "Why, we imagined Choo-Too was drunk."
"Now, my honourable friends, I think it better we secure this malignant
western devil, and take him to our native town. None of the regular
troops, with all their bravery, have ever been able to catch sight of
one of these creatures, much less capture it alive, so we will gain
honour and perhaps a reward, if we take him to the military governor, or
even give him up to our own mayor, who will probably pay us for such a
curiosity."
"But why not torture him a little now?" observed a weasel-faced dealer
in bean-curd.
"No, no!" cried the majority. "Let us take him to Sse-tsein; he will
then be properly tortured, and we shall be able to show our valour
before our honourable parents."
Thompson tapped the last speaker upon the shoulder, and quietly
observed, "Well done, old man; I don't know your lingo, but if you're
going to skin me alive give us a chaw of baccy;" saying this he pointed
to the tobacco-pouch suspended from the soldier's girdle, and which the
Tartar handed him, whereupon the sailor took a pinch, and gravely placed
it in his mouth, then closed the bag, and returned it to him, winking as
he did so in such a sly manner, that the whole party roared with
laughter.
"He eats tobacco! he eats tobacco!" they cried.
Before they re-mounted Choo made another speech, in which he instructed
his men what to say concerning the capture of the sailor.
"My honourable friends must all speak thus, even if put to torture. We
were returning from Hong-loo, when suddenly a body of at least five
hundred western devils opposed us, and commenced an attack upon our
party. We, with swelling breasts dilated with over-bravery, eyes
flashing like the hands and feet of Luepo, with headlong prowess
spurring our steeds to the death, in hopes to salute heaven in doing
such bravery, we, a handful, rushed upon our foes, and killed them all
but about a dozen, who fled in a small boat. Suy-peh (old Suy), whose
hands have become palsied by age and breeches making, first seized the
demon we have captured, but it took the whole of us to secure him.
Mo-tim was killed--we left his body upon the field, after having carried
it out of the reach of the retreating barbarians; and as he was killed
in action, the owner of the land will be able to bury him at his own
expense, without inquiry, which will be a saving, as otherwise a dead
body would be a bad present for him."
"Stop!" cried Suy-peh, "your words are golden, yet vain ones. Do you
think, my illustrious friends, that Chung-sung, our learned mayor, will
believe such shallow lies? He will ask, 'Where is the blood upon your
garments? where your wounds? where the dead bodies or even heads of
those western devils you have slain?' Tell the truth, and you will gain
all credit, and be considered great warriors enough, without each of us
endeavouring to get by memory the bombastic speech of Choo-Too. I think
he might have invented something better, and, for my part, I don't
believe a word about his vision. I'm too old to be cheated in that
manner."
"Suy-peh, you're a breeches-mending old fool!"
"Choo, you are well named Choo-Too. I spit at you."
Probably a fight would have ensued, but the friends of the parties
separated them, and having taken Jerry up behind him, Choo scowled at
Suy-peh (who made a face at him by way of retort), and then gave the
order to march.
Thompson stuck to the tailor, who was not a good horseman; but the
sailor hung on to the animal as well, and in this manner got along very
nicely, until they arrived at the suburbs of the town, where the party
dismounted and partook of hot rice spirit. This increased their valour
to such a degree, that they treated their prisoner to sundry kicks and
cuffs, to show their friends how they had tamed the foreign devil. Upon
remounting they placed him on a miserable scarecrow of a horse, borrowed
from the landlord of the inn, and proceeded towards the town gates,
stopping every few yards to tell their story, and enable the women and
children to pelt the prisoner with mud, filth, or stones, or spit upon
him, as their playful fancy dictated.
Poor Jerry experienced some very rough treatment, but never for a moment
lost his pluck. When a heavier stone than usual was thrown at him, he
would turn round and cry, "Come, missis, stash it;" but otherwise he
took the proceedings as part of the rites upon such occasions, and when
a pretty girl abused him, would reply in a most admiring strain. As they
neared the gates they fell in with a party of women headed by the wife
of the bannerman who had been killed by the master. The woman was
supported by her sons, who did not seem to be much concerned about their
father's fate, as they laughed and chatted with the crowd; this was
strange, as the Chinese always profess to venerate their parents in the
highest degree.
After Choo had spoken his piece, to which the widow listened with the
deepest attention, she advanced to the prisoner, and raising her voice
to a shrill falsetto, thus addressed him, "Oh!!! you lwan lwan
(mean-looking) fuh-hwy (reptile), wo yaou ne teih naow kae (I want your
skull)." Then she proceeded with increased volubility to abuse his
father, who she declared was hangman to the devil, and his mother, who
she swore was anything but a lady; his sisters and all his female and
male relations were likewise abused, the excited widow winding up with
the following, which she poured forth in the patois of her district,
without once stopping to take breath. "Ha! white-livered bear-faced
red-nosed blue-lipped silk-haired bull-eyed pig-skin'd blood-drinking
hairy-headed man-eating woman-featured foreign devil--Ha! Haw!! Hah!!!"
"Thankee, mum, ha! ha!--I ses too, I hopes you're well."
Upon this the widowed one ran towards him, seized him by the right leg
and threw him off his horse, then turned and fled. Thompson was not long
upon the ground, but in the confusion he got separated from the
bannermen, who had to fight their way towards him, as the crowd wished
to lynch the prisoner. At last, however, he was rescued from their
clutches and carried in triumph through the outer gate into the
guard-house, where the regular troops took charge of his case; and
making prisoners of the whole party, carried them to the ya-mun of the
military commander, a Tartar by the name of Keong. An immense crowd
followed the procession; and when they arrived, the great gates were
opened, as it would have been impossible to admit the party through the
ordinary entrance. When they were all inside the court-yard the guards
shut the gates, and refused admission to the curious. The prisoner was
now secured by formidable-looking chains made of rod iron, each link
being about a foot in length. They looked very strong, but Jerry coolly
surveyed them and inquired of the executioner "if them were his best
darbys." As the man of blood could not understand him, he contented
himself by scowling at the western devil, who laughed at him and
declared "he was the rummiest old keove he had met with since he
landed."
The bannermen were seated upon the flag-stones, smoking their pipes and
drinking hot spirit, which they purchased of the executioner. Thompson
motioned them to give him a drink, upon which the official held out his
hand for the sapecks. Jerry seized it, and gave him a good hearty grip,
which made the grim one dance and swear, much to the amusement of the
volunteers. However, the fellow thought it best to take it
good-humouredly, and bringing him a cup of the spirit, bade him drink.
After a time it was announced that the bannermen might go to their
homes, as the mandarin did not intend investigating the matter that
night, he being too far gone in opium. So having given in their names to
the scribe, the valiant band departed. Thompson nodded to them, and
observed "that he was very sorry to lose their cheerful society," and
then followed the executioner, who, seizing his chains, pointed to a low
doorway, and motioned him to go before.
They passed across immense court-yards and by large buildings, many of
which were in the last stage of decay, and at length emerged into the
open air. Jerry looked about him, and found they were in a beautiful
garden, surrounded on all sides by high walls. After walking for some
moments they came to a low building partly sunk in the ground, which
Thompson correctly imagined to be a magazine. Having skirted this the
executioner stopped, unlocked a door, and motioning the prisoner to
enter, proceeded to fasten him by his chains to a staple driven in the
wall. This done, he drew forth a cord, and placing the sailor's hands
behind his back, lashed his wrist-irons together and left him. When the
sound of his jailer's footsteps died away, Jerry quietly slipped off the
iron rings, and lighting a match looked round his cell, which he found
was the guard house of the magazine. Seeing a lamp near, he reached it,
and having lighted it proceeded to rid himself of his other irons. He
stopped several times to ascertain if any one were about, but finding
all quiet, resumed his occupation, and in a short time freed himself of
his encumbrances; then took the lamp, and made a careful examination of
his prison. It was merely the outer court of the magazine, and before
him he found the door leading into the same, the only fastening of which
was a bolt. It appeared to him that the keeper of the place usually
occupied the outer chamber, as he found a leathern chest secured by a
curious ark-shaped brass padlock, and a complete suit of Tartar's
clothes.
Knowing how small his chances of escape were if he did not attempt to
get away before he was tortured, he determined to fire the magazine,
even if he had to go with it. The chest he coolly cut open, and found in
it one silk holiday suit, one artificial queue, two common suits, one
cotton helmet--an article much worn in the northern provinces--(it is
like a cap with an all-round curtain attached), one holiday cap, and
about 600 cash or sapecks--small brass coins pierced with a square hole,
and strung upon twine for convenience of carrying. In a few moments he
divested himself of his sailor's attire, and was dressed in one of the
ordinary suits of clothes, his curly hair being concealed under the
cotton helmet; then making the other garments into a bundle--retaining
only the little bag containing the waist-ribbon given him by Mary Ann,
his ring, the gift of Miss Moore, and a tin box of lucifer matches--he
secured the money to his girdle, took up the lamp, and cautiously
entered the magazine. Before him he saw several hundred packages of
joss-stick, but no powder--the place was large, and partly empty. As he
advanced, the rats would dart out of his way, and run squeaking into
their burrows among the joss stick. He was about to give up his search,
when he spied a door, and having drawn the bolt, found himself in a vast
chamber, which had no doubt at some time contained an immense store of
ammunition.
"Here's a place to perform Ally Barber! Here's jars enow for forty
hundred thieves!" he cried, as, carefully setting down his lamp, he
lifted the lid of one of the jars and found it was empty. Taking up his
light he cautiously advanced until he saw before him a large heap of
powder, which had evidently been emptied for some special reason, as it
was carefully enclosed with boarding so that none of it touched the
floor. Having placed his lamp in a safe position, he proceeded to pull
down the end board, and to make a train towards the door. This was the
work of a few seconds, and when he had run it across the joss stick
compartment, he headed it by heaping up a small pile of powder in his
cell. The door of his prison proving too strong, he tried the window,
through which he found he could, with a little exertion, manage to
squeeze himself. Upon this he threw out his bundle, placed two long
pieces of well-lighted joss stick with their unburnt ends in the powder
piled upon the floor of his cell; then worked himself through the window
or air hole, and made the best of his way across the garden: calculating
that the joss stick would burn about a quarter of an hour, and by that
time he would be out of danger.
He walked along for some time until he stumbled over something, which
proved to be a man, round whose neck was fastened a cangue, or collar of
wood. The poor wretch groaned when he felt the shock; and as the sailor
soon found out what was the matter, he proceeded to undo the fastenings.
The man at first resisted, fearing he would be punished, but finding the
"silent one," as he dubbed Thompson, was really a friend, he let him go
on. Having released him, Jerry gave him the other plain suit of clothes;
and when he was dressed in it, the pair made their way towards the wall.
Suddenly they saw a flash, upon which the sailor threw himself upon the
ground. Up shot a light, bang went a report, and the Imperial magazine
of Sse-tsein was blown into atoms. So terrific was the shock, that the
ya-mun was totally destroyed, the mandarin and a great number of his
household killed, and the walls levelled to the ground. Hundreds of
prisoners were released, and these ran about crying to their gods to
help them. The mandarin's women hobbled about and wrung their hands,
and the place looked like an ants' nest when it is disturbed by the kick
of a passer by.
Thompson's companion cried, and called upon Buddha; but finding himself
unhurt, ceased his supplications, and motioning his companion to follow
him, led the way out of the place. As they passed over the heaps of
ruins, they noticed many of the prisoners making good their escape, but
no one seemed to know by what means the magazine had been fired, and
Jerry did not understand what they were taking about, and had he done
so, would not have enlightened them. After threading their way through
dense crowds of people and walking for some time in comparatively
deserted streets. Mo, that being the name of the Chinaman released by
Thompson, suddenly motioned his benefactor to stop, then walked forward
and left him.
"He ain't agoin' to give me the slip now we're safe," muttered the
sailor; however, in a few moments the man returned and signalled him to
follow, when he found the reason for the caution exercised by Mo. They
had to pass through one of the gates of the outer wall, and as at night
the guards sometimes stop those who seek egress, the clever Mo had gone
forward to ascertain how matters stood, and to his joy found the place
deserted, upon which they passed through without trouble, Jerry taking
the opportunity of acquiring a dirk, which was hung upon a nail near the
doorway. Mo walked on until they arrived at a canal, when he began to
peer cautiously at the various boats. Having proceeded some distance
along the bank, he at last made out the craft he required, when he
placed his fingers in his mouth and blew a shrill signal. In a few
moments it was answered, and a woman launching a small sampan, sculled
towards the spot where they were standing.
"Mo! is that you, my lord?"
"Yes; make haste, Jow! I have one with me. I have broken from
prison,--Come!"
The men entered the crank sampan and were quickly conveyed on board a
cargo boat; and as there was a little breeze. Mo and his wife pulled up
the anchor, hoisted sail, got out their oars, and were soon on their way
down the canal. Great was their astonishment when, upon going below,
they discovered their friend was one of the great western devils, but,
as Mo observed, "He is a good devil, since he has rescued me from that
infernal prison, let us therefore chin-chin him (be friendly,) and we
shall be fortunate,--besides, he will assist us without payment."
Jow saw no reason why they should not ship this man provided he kept
quiet, and did not betray them. It seems that upon their arrival at
Sse-tsein a few days previous to the one upon which the sailor was
captured, Mo had landed with his only man to receive the cash for some
salt which they had smuggled on shore upon a previous visit. The person
to whom they had sold it, instead of paying them as he promised, had
informed the military mandarin, whereupon the latter seized Mo and his
man, and threw them into prison. As neither of them would give the name
and number of their boat, or say to what place they belonged, the
mandarin directed them to be beaten, and condemned the principal, Mo, to
wear the cangue until such time as he should confess his crime, when
probably his boat would be seized, his wife sold, and himself strangled.
Mrs. Mo, or rather Jow, was very pretty, and she knew it; so did her
husband, who had great difficulty in obtaining a _crew_ who did not want
to make love to her. Now, he thought he had found the very man, so,
devil or no devil, he made up his mind to ship Jerry as second mate and
crew combined. He told his wife what he had determined, and as Jow saw
that the devil was not quite as ugly as he had been painted to her, she
reluctantly gave her consent, the truth being she had determined never
to speak well of the crew in future.
Mo shaved Thompson's head, face, and eyebrows, then attached the
artificial queue they had brought from the ya-mun, and sent him on deck
for his wife's inspection.
"What do you think of him?"
"Ugly beast! frightful! he makes me tremble!" cried Jow in an affected
voice, while secretly she thought she had never seen such a handsome
crew in her life.
Mo treated him very kindly and passed him off as a dumb man from
Kwantung, and Jerry began to like the life immensely. Jow was, as her
name suggested, a soft fascinating woman, and whenever her husband was
away would, when addressing the crew, relax her severe expression of
countenance, and before he had been shipped a week, they were
desperately in love with each other. He was so handsome, so daring, so
kind, and so a hundred other things, while poor Mo, who was an excellent
fellow as Chinese husbands go, was (behind his back) so stupid, so
cowardly, so ugly, so in-every-way-mean. Women are clever in finding
excuses even for their little peccadilloes, and Jow was as smart as the
rest of her charming sex. Being a Chinese woman, this little weakness
must be forgiven her, remembering she was almost sold to one, who, like
all his countrymen, consider women to be mere animals created to
minister to the wants of men; therefore, when she found a being who
treated her kindly, waited on her, showed he considered her his equal,
ay and in many things his superior, she sinned according to our ideas,
but really unconsciously avenged the wrongs of her sex; and Mr. Mo being
the victim, let those be sorry for him who have no better opinion of
women than he had.
The Big Dog, that being the name of the boat, discharged her cargo at
Yungping, took in a load of skins for the southern market, and proceeded
towards the Pei-ho. All went on pleasantly, and Mo began to teach his
crew Chinese, and when that gentleman was absent, Jow continued the
lesson, so in the course of a few weeks the sailor became quite
proficient; but when upon duty Jerry was scolded and frowned upon by the
lady in such a splendid style, that Mo would brag to his fellow captains
that he had a woman who was as women go priceless. "She is young, she is
beautiful, can cook, sing, and make clothes. Her words are all for me;
she is my wife, my slave, my little puppy; at my frown she quakes, at my
command she flies. She is mine in thought, and I do not beat her,
because I have no friends to be edified with the punishment. When I
leave her she takes her seat by the rudder, and watches for my return;
she is to me as the earth is to the potter,--I mould her to suit my
taste; she remains as I form her ideas, if women can have any but what
we gods give them."
Thus, in his sublime egotism, would Mr. Mo descant upon the excellent
qualities of Jow; while all the time Jerry was paying the most gallant
attention to that lady. True, it was a harmless flirtation, as he had
not learnt enough of the Chinese language to enable him to propose an
elopement, but he was getting on very rapidly, and in six weeks, by the
time they arrived at Lin-tsin, the crew made up his mind, come what
might, he would run away with the fair Jow, boat and all. Mo discharged
his cargo, loaded his boat with merchandise, on account of a house in
Ngan-tong, and upon the first "lucky day" the Big Dog proceeded down the
Imperial Canal, and in due time arrived at her destination, where Mo
received instructions to go on to a place called Hong-hien, on the
borders of the lake Hong-tse.
It was one of Mo's fixed principles "never to do to-day what can be put
off until to-morrow," so when he heard he was to go on to another port,
he determined not to start until he had enjoyed a run on shore. Having
provided himself with a bag of cash, he, after bidding his wife sit up
for him until he chose to return, proceeded to a noted gambling-house,
where he played cards until morning, then picking up his weary frame,
walked down to the wharf, when, lo! he found his Big Dog was gone.
Mo sat down upon a pile, and uttered the following lamentation, which
soon drew about him a crowd of loafers who seemed much amused with his
outburst.
"Alas--unfortunate I. Last night I left my boat as I thought safe. Now,
in my absence, cruel, relentless thieves have seized upon her, taken my
boat, and have probably killed that excellent animal, Jow. Poor beast,
how she will miss my voice."
Here Mr. Mo was interrupted by a dirty-looking boatman, who demanded,
"How much will you give me if I tell you where your craft is?"
"I'll give you five hundred cash if you will take me to her," excitedly
exclaimed Mo.
"Well," replied the fellow, "hand over the sapecks, and I will put you
on board in a few hours. Your boat is at Mung-shang, she couldn't well
get farther than that, as the wind changed about an hour ago, and it
will probably blow so for two or three days longer."
Mo paid the money at once, and pretending not to hear the chaff of the
crowd, entered his friend's boat, and proceeded in search of his Big
Dog.
Upon the departure of his captain for the gambling-house Jerry, assisted
by Mrs. Jow, got the boat under weigh, and ran down to Mung-shang, where
after much labour, they contrived to anchor the craft. It was quite
daylight when they arrived off the town, and as they anchored among a
number of other canal boats, which had arrived from Ngan-tong that
morning, they thought themselves pretty secure.
Having got off safely with the fair Jow, Jerry proceeded to what he
called "make an honest woman of her," and after endeavouring to explain
to her that a union like hers was no marriage, he "asked" himself three
times in English, as follows:--
"I publish the banns of marriage, between Jerry Thompson, bachelor, and
Missis Jow--ahem!--Chinese female. If any of you fellers (looking across
at some people who were taking their breakfast upon the deck of a canal
boat anchored a short distance from the Big Dog) knows any just cause
why we shouldn't be jined in the bonds of matrimony, just sing out."
As the "fellers" addressed did not take the slightest notice of his
appeal, the sailor took Jow by the hand, pressed a ring upon her finger,
and a kiss upon her lips, and, as she appeared to acquiesce in the
proceedings, declared they were properly wedded, and the articles
signed.
This remarkably concise ceremony being concluded, the happy pair began
their honeymoon, Jerry by descending to the cabin, where he poured out a
cup of Mo's choicest samshoo, in which to drink success to the wedding,
while Mrs. J. (Jow or Jerry according to taste, the initial serving for
both) proceeded to prepare breakfast for her new lord. Alas! that such a
simple act as the latter should prove so fatal to all their dreams of
future happiness, and give an affair with so comic a début a tragic
finale.
After having lighted the galley fire, Mrs. J. proceeded to the boat's
side to draw a bucket of water, but the rope being too short, the first
operation was unsuccessful.
"How provoking--the bucket didn't get nearly low enough," soliloquized
the fair creature. "It will never do to call Chè-rè, O-mi-tu-fuh! (O
great Buddha) what shall I do?"
Uttering this short "prayer under adverse circumstances," Mrs. J. stood
on tip-toe, shook the rope, lowered it until she felt the bucket touch
the water, reached over, saying, "Hech! he-ch! the bucket
won't--fill--he-ch!" when she suddenly lost her balance, and, with a cry
of fear, plunged headlong overboard. Poor Mrs. J.! in her descent she
must have struck her head against the boat's side, as, upon rising to
the surface again, she made no effort to swim, but quietly sank to rise
no more.
This catastrophe was calmly witnessed by a number of sampan-men and the
"fellers" on an adjoining canal boat, to whom Jerry had appealed, when
publishing his banns; but not one of them made the slightest attempt to
save her, believing "that the River God had got her," and it would be
calling his vengeance down upon their own heads it they tried to rescue
her from his grasp. They sat and watched the affair much as they would
have done the death of a kitten, and when it was all over, coolly
remarked to each other, "that she didn't kick much when the God grasped
her."
Jerry, busy below with the samshoo, did not hear the splash; and when he
again returned to the deck was informed by a sampan-man, who was waiting
for a fare alongside a neighbouring boat, that his woman had given
herself to the River God. Other spectators of the tragedy added their
testimony to the boatman's, and Jerry found that without doubt Mrs. J.
was gone.
After diving in the water, and searching under the boat, in hopes the
poor creature might have "lodged" there, but finding that she was indeed
carried off by the River God, Jerry reluctantly gave up his search, and
returned to the Big Dog, which was by this time swarming with
sampan-men, who, taking advantage of the owner's trouble, were
plundering the craft in a most business-like manner.
Jerry was overcome with grief and despair, but even under these
circumstances did not choose to be robbed; so after thrashing the
thieves out of the boat, he prepared to leave her. Mo's dog, a most
savage brute, was chained up forward, and when the sailor had
provisioned the sampan belonging to the craft, and secured the cash he
had taken from the magazine at Sse-tsein, he released the beast, and
quitted the boat, which by this time had become odious to him.
Mr. Mo arrived at Mung-shan soon after Jerry's departure, and was duly
informed of his bereavement, upon hearing which he sat down and
uttered--not a prayer for the departed--but some very naughty words.
After sailing a short distance in the sampan, Jerry landed at a little
fishing village on the other side of the lake; and having found a young
fellow who was desirous of seeing something of the world, he shipped him
as his crew, and the pair worked their way back to Ngan-tong, and thence
down the Imperial Canal, during which trip Thompson became very
proficient in the Chinese language. At Kuachú his crew abandoned him,
and he proceeded alone until he reached Lake Tai-hú, where, selling his
boat, he landed and tramped his way toward the green tea district. The
world seemed a weary place for Jerry; and although he saw many pretty
girls working in the fields, he did not care to enter into conversation
with them. Everything appeared to go wrong with him since Mrs. J. died,
and he wanted a severe shock to rouse him from his lethargic state.
One morning he entered the town of Whey-chú, in the heart of the green
tea district, and as he spoke rather peculiar Chinese, the guard
arrested him as a Canton rebel. After having floored several of the
soldiers, he was overpowered, and thrown into prison, and found he ran
an excellent chance of being beheaded, as the public prosecutor declared
him to be a rebel spy. There was no opportunity of escaping, as at
Sse-tsein; and, to add to his trouble, he was taken sick with fever.
After being incarcerated in a horrid hole for more than three weeks, he
was examined, when he declared "that he was no rebel, but an Inkili
Hung-mow-jin," or foreign red-headed man. This announcement was received
with derision; but, upon consultation with his assistants, the mandarin,
before whom he was taken, determined to send him to Hang-chow, where a
commissioner was sitting to decide upon the fate of all rebels who were
captured in the province of Che-Keang. As he argued, "If this is a
western barbarian, although he isn't vermilion-headed, I ought not to
put him to death, the emperor having instructed me to forward all such
to Canton, or the nearest port where those Fanquis congregate. Now, as
that would involve a large expense, which, in these times of rebellion,
we cannot very well afford, I will send him to Hang-chow, where the
Imperial commissioner will determine whether he is a rebel or not."
One day as Jerry was dreaming his time away in his cell an executioner
entered, and, bidding him follow, led the way into the Court of Mercy,
where he was forced upon his knees, and ordered to bow to the mandarin
who presided. The father and mother of the city addressed a long speech
to his prisoner, and then dismissed him with a gesture of contempt, upon
which he was dragged off, as he imagined, to execution, they leading him
into a room, and striking off his irons.
"I'm glad it'll soon be all over," he observed in English. "I'm tired of
this dog's life."
The executioner called in two Tartar soldiers, who seized the prisoner,
and fastened a rope round his neck, each of them taking an end; the door
was then opened, and he found himself once more in the sun-light. His
guards led him with every show of caution until they got clear of the
city, then they coiled the rope round his neck, and jogged along in a
very friendly manner.
"Ha!" he exclaimed, as he cast his eyes back towards the town.
"Good-bye, you infernal pest-hole. Jerry is himself again, and if all
goes well will be upon his own hook in twenty-four hours, at the
furthest."
[Illustration: Decoration]