BURGEVINE'S SCHEMES. 393 he believed that it was only his due to have the direction, but still hesitating as to what decision it behoved 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 over-reached, and predisposed him to regard with no unfavourable eye the idea of joining his fortunes to those of the rebel Taepings now that no opportunity presented itself for forming a third and independent party of his own. 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 endeavour to do for them what they had failed to perform for the Imperialists, and what the opposition of the Futai and the discipline of Major Gordon prevented their attempting a second time. On the 15th of July 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 chose a special flag, a white diamond on a red ground, and containing a black star in the centre of the diamond. On the 21st of the same month Burgevine wrote to Major Gordon saying that there would be many rumours 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 He was too much disposed to think that, as the officer who had to a certain extent superseded Burgevine in the command, he was bound to take the most favourable view of all his actions, and to trust implicitly in his good faith. Although Beechy, Burgevine's agent, was arrested, the real conspirator himself remained at large, simply because Major Gordon, trusting to his word, had made himself personally responsible to the Chinese authorities for his good faith. Burgevine's plans had been deeply laid. He had been long in correspondence with Mow Wang. His terms had been accepted, and he had finally made up his mind more than a fortnight before he wrote to Major Gordon declaring that he was coming to see him at Quinsan. On the 2nd of August Dr. Macartney left Shanghai in charge of a new steamer, the Kajow, and he reached Sunkiang in safety with his vessel; but during his absence to communicate with the town the Kajow was seized by "a party of thirty-two rowdies," who eventually proved to be Burgevine and his men. In this open manner did Burgevine first proclaim his adhesion to the rebel cause, and had he only possessed the natural capacity he might have inflicted an immense amount of injury on the Imperialists, reopened and extended all the old injuries, and prolonged the struggle for an indefinite period. Fortunately his capacity was not equal to his opportunites. At this time Major Gordon came to the decision to resign, and he had 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, GENERAL CHING. 395 where the English commander, General Brown, consented to guard them, while Gordon himself 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 favourable opportunity. Instead of hastening with his prize from Sunkiang to take part in the operations against Kahpoo and Wokong, he made for the Taho lake, where he felt himself secure, and by which he proceeded to join his new ally, Mow Wang, at Soochow. Meantime that chief in person, assisted by a portion of the Europeans, had got a 12-pounder howitzer into position opposite the stockades at Kahpoo, which placed the rebels on a greater equality with Gordon's force, as even the steamers had to be careful of the shell fire. The fighting now became severe. The rebels fought with greater confidence, and it was evident to the young commander that each battle would be more and more stubbornly contested. But of the ultimate success of the Imperialists he never felt doubtful for a moment; and, after a week's continual engagement, he had the satisfaction of perceiving the whole Taeping force burn most of the villages in their possession and retire into Soochow. About the same time the present Sir Halliday Macartney took the towns of Fongching and Tseedong. 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 the 30th of August 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. Towards 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 1000 yards distant from the rebel stockades in front of the East Gate. Major Gordon had at this time been reinforced 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 reconnoitred, 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 travelling 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 BURGEVINE LEAVES TAEPINGS. 397 Patachiaou, and on the 1st of October 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. This action was followed by a suspension of arms and by the commencement of a correspondence and even of conversations between the Europeans who were brought by such a strange combination of circumstances into hostile camps on Chinese soil. On the 3rd of October Burgevine wrote Major Gordon in terms of confidence on the success of the Taepings. Three days later Burgevine met Major Gordon at the front of the stockades, and expressed his wish to give in his surrender on the assurance that no proceedings would be taken against him or those who served under his flag. He attributed this sudden change in his plans to the state of his health; but there was never the least doubt that the true reasons of this altered view were 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 loth 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 |