The war tiger; or, Adventures and wonderful fortunes of the young sea chief and his lad Chow : a tale of the conquest of China

Front matter

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The Idol attacked.

Tage 5!).

Preface

which caused the starving people to arise in rebellion throughout the empire.

Taking advantage of this disorder, several ambitious lords collected together bands of vagabonds, set themselves up as petty kings, and plundered and oppressed the innocent people, till the land grew damp with their tears.

At the same time, the chief, or king, of the Mantchou Tartars, learning that China was like a house divided against itself, rode with a large army upon the frontier of Pe-tche-Lee, the capital province.

The appearance, however, of this great enemy aroused what little nationality remained, and three great lords came to the Emperor’s assistance. The first was Woo-san-Kwei, who, at the head of an army, kept the Tartars at bay ; the other two, Li- Kong and Chang, were sent into different provinces, where, although bad men, being good generals, they succeeded in crushing all other rogues but themselves. The last-named generals, however, on their return, becoming enraged at the Emperor’s ingratitude, took up arms against him, and, finding no great difficulty in subduing a people who preferred any other Chinese to their Emperor, seized upon two of the richest provinces, and established themselves as independent royalets, or petty kings.

PREFACE.

Now, as in the great revolutions of England, Amer* ica, and France, so in China, anarchy brought forth its great men ; but foremost among them all stood Chin- Chi-Loong — a kind of Paul Jones, a pirate in the eyes of his enemies, a patriot in those of his friends.

Found starving when a boy, by the Portuguese priests at Macao, they took him under their care, taught him Christianity, and baptized him by the name of Nicholas Gaspard. While quite a youth, he took service on board a trading ship, in which humble position, the strength of his intellect and will BO soon exhibited itself, that at an early age he became second in command, and his captain dying soon after, left him sole owner and commander of the vessel and its rich cargo.

Then it was that his true character began to develop itself ; he sought to accumulate great wealth ; for this purpose he traded with Japan^ Siam, and the Europeans, so assiduously, that at the outbreak of the rebellion, he had become the richest merchant in an empire of rich merchants ; but what to him was of far greater importance, a powerful sea-chief — for he then commanded and owned the greatest fleet that ever sailed in the Chinese seas, and as he had taken care to arm every ship, he became the terror of the three great contending parties; namely, the Em-

PREFACE.

peror, the rebels, and the Tartars, who, all in turn, at times, offered great rewards for his head, and at others, for his services.

Remarkable, however, as were the fortunes of this sea-chief, they were less so than those of his distinguished son, the hero of this story.

The Author will only add, that, although many of the adventures here set down may not be found in the pages of Chinese history, if, entwining information with amusement, they bring vividly before the mind’s eye of his young reader, the manners, laws, legends, superstitions, history, or character of that great, though quaint people in whom more than a thousand years have failed to make any material change, his satisfaction will be the greater that he has again deserved well of those to whom his gratitude is due for the kind, thorough, and hearty reception they gave to the Adventures of “The Wolf-Boy op China.”

WILLIAM DALTOiT.

Contents

Chapter ^ aob

I. — ^The Young Sea Chief. — His Mission, . . 11

II. — The Demon Ship. — The Boy Chow, . . 19

Chapter I. The Toitn'g Sea Chief. — His Mission

!N'eaely midway between Formosa and the most southern point of the Chinese province of Fokien are the Pescadores, a cluster of small islands, which are so barren that their few inhabitants are put to the trouble of procuring food, and even fuel, from the main land.

These islands, however, have a value of their own in the shape of a capacious harbor and safe anchorage, that was readily seen by the Dutch, the first civilized people who established themselves upon the neighboring island of Formosa, which, although a beautiful and fertile land, has not a sufficient depth of water for vessels of great draught.

It was in this harbor that a large fleet of trading vessels, laden with pearls, red copper, sabre-blades, fan-paper, porcelain, and many other articles of commerce purchased at Japan, and on its way to the large trading cities further south, sought shelter from one of the violent tempests so common to the China seas.

One of these vessels was anchored in the direction

THE WAR TIGER.

of Formosa, some distance in advance. Larger than the others, she was also of European build, and mounted with ten guns. A horde of wild half-naked men swarmed about the rigging, and decks, interspersed here and there with an officer garbed in the wide-sleeved robe common to the Chinese prior to the Mantchou Tartar conquest.

The aflerpart of the deck was taken up with a tent formed of poles and matting of bamboo, the interior of which was luxuriously fitted with chairs, tables, and sofas, tastefully wrought from the wood of roses or, as it is termed in this country, rose- wood. The walls, highly painted and glittering with japan, were hung with Chinese pictures in gilded and japanned frames. Between these were long strips of satin up on which, imprinted in colors and gold, were some of the choicest moral maxims from the books of the philosopher Confucius.

The panes of the windows, four in number, were formed of stained transparent paper. In the piers between, supported by glittering branches, were painted lanterns, and from the ceiling, which shone with colors and carvings of celestial blue and burnished gold, was suspended a gong of pure silver. So far there could be no doubt that it was the floating habtation of a wealthy Chinese, but then, curiously, lliere was a total absence of those idols, altars, and burning incense, which to this day are to be found in aU Chinese vessels. The truth was, that although a Chinese, the owner was a Christian, as was evinced by a niche at one end of the room, in which stood a

THE YOUNG SEA CHIEF.

handsome Pril Dieu^ surmounted by a fine painting of Christ upon the cross.

At this altar, with his hands clasped, knelt a boy of seventeen, whose high cheek bones, dark eyes, and long black hair, declared his Chinese origin. His head and neck were bare, and his ample robe of green silk, which reached nearly to his close fitting leather boots, was confined in the middle by a crimson girdle, fastened by a clasp of agate stone. From the girdle hung a short straight sword. Although a .Chinese, the youth was a Christian; one, indeed, of those whose faith had been gathered from the teachings of the early European missionaries, whose indefatigable exertions and untiring patience amidst much persecution, contumely, and even martyrdoin, will forever keep their names green in the memories of the Chinese.

As the youth arose from his kneeling position, the report of a gun rang through the air, so snatching up his cap of sable, he went on deck to welcome the arrival of his father, who ascended the side of the vessel followed by some half-dozen officers, attired like himself in loose robes of thick brown silk, oiled to withstand the weather and without one warlike vestment, except the short swords which hung from their girdles.

Standing with his head bent foward and his arms straight by his sides, the attitude of respect, the youth waited for his father to salute him, after which he followed him through the rank of officers to the cabin, when observing the gloomy aspect of the chief »

THE WAR TIGER.

countenance, he said “Has my honored father, the great chief, not prospered with the barbarian Hollanders ?”

“ To the full, my son, for like the ' greedy wolves they have purchased the whole of my merchandise, and I have more than sufficient wealth to destroy the vermin enemies who are turning the children of the Son of Heaven from those habits of peace which ha\e so long rendered them the greatest and most prosperous of the world’s people.”

“ Of what enemies does my honorable father speak? Surely there are none but the savage Tartars.”

“ Of three, my son, — the Tartars, who are now within a few leagues of the palace of Ten Thousand Years himself; the European savages, who under pretence of commerce have obtained a footing, that, if not soon rooted out, will last forever ; and worse, by far worse, — for internal rebeUion is as destructive to an empire as to an household, — the rebel mandarins who are now at open war with their holy sovereign.”

“Is this treble sore fresh, that it should now so rankle the heart and cloud the brow of my venerable parent ?”

“ Truly so, my son, for although long festering it has but now reached a head,” replied the chief, adding, “ To the days of my great-grandsire the empire had been free from the profane feet of barbarians.

Then the different governments passed into the hunds of cowardly mandarins, whose weakness became the advantage of the pirate Li-Lao, who ravaged the whole coast with fire and sword, and to get

THE YOUXG SEA CHIEF.

rid of whom the puny officials sought the aid of the Portugals, who traded at one of the outer ports. These barbarians, however, were brave ; they sought, fought, and killed the pirate, and destroyed his ships and, as a reward, were permitted to settle at Macao.”

“ Surely, my father should be grateful to these Portugals, whose priests first shed upon his eyes and heart the light of Christianity,” said the boy bowing reverently.

“ They taught me for their own ends, and I would not trust the rats.”

“ But the red-haired barbarians of Formosa, from whom my father has just returned, are they of the same race ?”

“ ISTot so, my son, these Dutch dogs are from a distant country called Holland, where the people are so miserably poor they cannot afford even a king.”

“Then why, O my father, were such pauper barbarians permitted to place the soles of their feet on the land of Formosa ?”

“ By fraud and artifice the rogues obtained their hold. During a tempest one of their vessels was driven upon the coast : the crew finding the island to be well situated to their wants, partly by presents, partly by force, persuaded the simple inhabitants to give them only as much land as could be encompassed by the hide of an ox, when the rogues cut the hide into thousands of narrow slips, tied them end to end and therewith measured the earth, to the great surprise and indignation of the inhabitants, who, however, were too powerless to offer resistance. In a short

THE WAR TIGER.

time they were joined by multitudes of their country menand erected yonder fort, which they call the Castle of Zealand.”

“Surely the fleet of my father can exterminate these wasps?” said the boy, whom I shall for the future call by his Christian name of Nicholas.

But as at that moment an oflicer entered the cabin and reported the approach of a strange ship, father and son went on deck, prepared to give either a salute to a friend or a broadside to a foe.

The vessel proving to be a war junk and carrying the dragon flag of the Emperor, they fired a salute of respect, when a signal was made from the junk that she had on board the Mandarin, or Deputy- Governor of Amoy, with a secret communication for the illustrious merchant Chin-chi-Loong, whereupon the chief bowed respectfully at the name of so great a personage, and prepared to receive him with all the customary tedious formalities.

This visit from so important a personage very much puzzled Nicholas, who stood the whole time the mandarin was closeted with his father, leaning against a gun, in deep thought. When the mandarin had finished and the official had taken his departure, Nicholas returned to the cabin, where he found the chief sitting thoughtfully with his hand upon the satin wrapper of a letter, which from the great seals affixed and the characters Hong Fong (guarded and sealed), he knew must be of great importance and from some high personage.

“My information is truthful,” said the chief;

THE YOUNG SEA CHIEF.

“ there is treason among the lords of the court, and the dogs believing Chin-Chi-Loong to be as vile as themselves, have offered him the title of king and the island of Formosa, if he will aid them with his ships, wealth, and men.”

“ What answer made my honorable father ?” said Nicholas.

“ A promise to consent, that the traitors may be caught like rats in a trap.”

“ Surely this is not well, for why need the brave stoop to such villainy ?” replied the youth boldly.

Not noticing this reply, the chief became pensive for a few minutes, then exclaimed, “Would that I could place a letter in the hands of the Son of Heaven himself!”

Surely that cannot be a difficulty,” said Nicholas.

“Alas! my son, Wey-t-song is so resigned to his pleasures and the company of the vile bonzes, that the audience-denying tablet is for ever suspended at the gates of the inner palace.”

“ Truly it is a maxim that nothing is impossible to the brave. Let my father place the letter in the hands of his son, and it shall reach the imperial eyes !”

For a minute the chief gazed proudly at the boy, then passing his hand across his eyes, as if to chase away some sad thought, said, “ It shall be so, but for nothing less than the safety of his Emj)eror w^ould Chin-Chi-Loong risk the life of his only son ; but haste, and assume the dress of a traveling merchant, while I prepare these important characters.”

IS

THE WAR TIGER.

Without another word Mcholas left the cabin, returning, however, shortly afterward, dressed in a plain robe of coarse brown silk, with a girdle of the same color, a couple of short swords beneath his garment, and thick staff of bamboo.

“ This promptness is good and bespeaks success,” said the chief, laying his hand on a letter which was enclosed in three wrappers of satin, the outer being sealed in many places, adding, “ Secure this packet beneath thy inner robe, for upon its safety may depend the fate of the empire. I know not by what means thou mayest reach the Emperor, therefore, when in Pekin it would be well to seek the merchant Yang, in the great square, who will aid the son of the great merchant of the south.” Then taking another letter from the table, he added, “ As you pass through the city of Hang-tcheou, seek out Father Adam, the chief priest of the Christians, and place this in his hands ; but guard it weU, for the contents are such that were they to meet the eyeballs of the bonzes it might prove thy destruction.”

Then placing a valuable ring on the boy’s finger and telling him to take what silver he might require, till he reached the merchant of Pekin, who would ftupply him with more, he bid farewell to Nicholas, who, signalling one of the consort ships, went on board, and was soon landed at the port of Amoy.

THE DEMON SHIP.

CHAPTER n.

THE DEMON SHIP. — ^THE BOY OHOW.

Taking a passage in a merchant junk bound to the port of Ning-Po, Nicholas continued his journey for some days without meeting with any event of importance. The voyage was, however, rendered very tedious by the idolatry of the sailors, who spent a great portion of their time in offering up presents to a dirty little wooden god stuck behind a small oil lamp, the odor from which was any thing but agreeable. They would moreover frequently stop the ship to offer meat and incense to the images of the sea goddess Ma-tsoo-po, which are perched upon almost every promontory upon the Chinese coast.

They had been at sea, or rather along the coast, for these sailors never venture far from land, six days, when the murky atmosphere, the heavy swell of the waves as they rolled inward, and the fluttering flight of the sea-fowl, betokened a coming storm; and the crew, trembling with fear, thought of little else but making offerings to the dirty little god, praying of him to stop the storm. A sailor • and a Christian from his childhood, Nicholas was no less disgusted with their cowardice than their foolish su-

THE WAR TIGEK.

perstition, and really fearing that the ship would he dashed to pieces upon a rock, he earnestly entreated them to exert themselves. His efforts, however, were useless, for their faith was firm in the power of their gods, whose protection they sought to purchase in the following curious manner : —

Taking a quantity of gilt paper, kept on hoard for the purpose, they cut it into the shape of copper tchen, the only coin in the empire, and threw them into the sea as a bribe to the goddess Ma-tsoo-po ; hut finding that the marine lady’s favor was not to he bought so cheaply, the whole crew began to busy themselves in building a paper ship, which, by the way, was so ingeniously constructed that it formed an exact model of their own junk, being complete with masts, ropes, sails, flags, compass, rudder, a crew, victuals, and even a book of accounts.

When this redoubtable vessel was finished they let it into the sea with great ceremony, and amidst the deafening clatter of drums and instruments, and their own shoutings to the goddess, to wreak her vengeance upon the toy instead of her adorers’ ship.

Nevertheless the hard-hearted goddess was not to be caught with tinsel, for the storm raged with such terrible violence that the frail bark would speedily have been dashed to atoms but for Nicholas, who, after persuading a few of the least obstinate if the men to help him, set to work and managed to keep her head so straight that they passed through the channel without touching the rocks by which it was bounded on either side. So fearful was the hurricane of circular winds that the shivering crew could see trees torn up by the roots as easily as corks out of bottles by corkscrews. At length, however, the storm subsided, and the sailors believing that nothing less than a deity could have enabled their vessel to live in such a storm, fell upon their knees before Nicholas and thanked him for quelling the fury of the elements.

“ Let my brothers toss their stupid idol into the sea, and offer up thanks to the One true God of heaven, who alone has saved them,” said the boy.

Enraged at this insult to their god, the sailors gave full vent to their disapprobation, and would have tossed the bold youth into the sea but for a sudden cry from the look-out man.

“ The wasps of the ocean ! the wasps of the ocean are upon us !”

At this cry the crew took alarm, and ran to different parts of the vessel, and armed themselves with pikes, swords, or any weapon upon which they could place their hands.

Taking the glass from the trembling hands of the ook-out man, Nicholas endeavored to make out the cause of the alarm. It was a large floating object at a great distance, and bore some resemblance to a ship, still, notwithstanding the track it left behind in the water, he was doubtful ; but before he could make up his mind the captain snatched the glass from his hands, glanced through it, declared his opinion that it was a wasp of the ocean, or pirate,

THE 'VVAPw TIGEE.

and ordered his vessel to be put back, with the hope of outrunning her.

Then the first officer took tlie glass, and after gazing for some time, said, “Truly, my brothers, this is no ship, but a frightful demon that the insulted Ma-tsoo-po has sent from the bottom of the sea to devour us for carrying this impious youth.”

This was sufficient for the superstitious fear of the the crew, who, clustering toward Nicholas, with one voice cried, “ Over the side with the irreligious dog.”

Seeing no other chance, the boy ran to the stern of the vessel, and, keeping them at a distance with his sword, said, “Let my brothers open their ears. Their servant has brought this calamity upon them, but will yet save them from the anger of the demon by seeking him before he reaches the vessel, for surely the demon will be satisfied with one victim.”

“ The boy’s words are good, and if he will pay for the boat it shall be so, otherwise it is not well that we should lose its value,” said the artful captain, fearing he should lose any money Nicholas might have about his person.

“Back, rat!” said he to the advancing captain, keeping him off with his sword and springing sideward on to the edge of the junk, adding, “Lower the boat, with provisions, and I wiU give you silver ; refuse, and I will leap into the sea.”

Fearing he would keep his word, the crew placed some rice cakes and a small water cask in the boat

THE DEMON SHIP.

and lowered it; and when Nicholas saw it fairly afloat, and held but by one cord, he scrambled down the side like a cat, drew his sword across the rope, threw a handful of silver upon the deck, and pulled so hard at the oars that in a very short time ho was far out of the cowards’ reach and on his way to the floatmg demon ; which, however he had no sooner caught full sight of than he laughed till he could handle the oars no longer, for the terrible demon who had scared the wits of the sailors proved to be neither more nor less than a great tree which the circular winds had wrested from the earth with such violence that the root had dragged with it a mass of earth and pebbles sufiicient to keep it afloat in a perfectly upright position, when, with its spreading branches and lower boughs, it bore in the distance no bad resemblance to a well-rigged vessel.

Rowing cautiously, for fear the tree might topple over and upset his boat, he heard a faint cry. Surely it could not be human ; he listened ; again he heard it ; and looking upward you may imagine his astonishment at seeing a boy sitting across one of the upper branches.

“ Who cries for help ?” said Nicholas.

“It is the miserable Chow, who must die if the benevolent stranger will not aid him,” was the reply.

“ Canst thou swim, O Chow ? If so, drop into he water, for I dare not come nearer,” said Nichos ; but scarcely had he spoken when a strong gust of wind toppled the tree over with its great arms

THE WAR TIGER.

Stretched out as if to save itself from falling. Fortunately it fell in an opposite direction to the boat. In the fall the boy was dashed so violently upon the water, that becoming instantly senseless he would have sunk but for Nicholas, who, getting hold of the long hair of his head, managed to drag him into the, boat. Upon recovering his senses he said, “ Alas ! then, Yen-Vang has poor Chow after all.”

“ Thou art far away from the king of the lower regions, my poor Chow,” said Nicholas.

“ By the social relations, I am alive and on earth — ^no, on water — and ungrateful to the benevolent stranger,” said the boy, holding his head with both hands, as if the better to comprehend his situation.

“ Satisfy thy hunger and say how it happened that Chow came to be perched like a wild goose on a masthead,” said Nicholas, giving the boy some of the rice cakes, which he devoured as ravenously as if he had not tasted food for a week.

The lad, who had so unexpectedly made the acquaintance of Nicholas, was a tall, bony youth of about sixteen, with a broad forehead, sparkling black eyes, and covered with a coarse robe, so torn and tattered, that he might have passed for a beggar of the lowest class.

When he had satisfied his hunger, Chow clasped the knees of his new friend, and with tears of gratitude flowing down his cheek, said, “ Chow will be thy slave, O generous stranger, for truly it could be for no other purpose that the gods have saved his life.”

THE DEMON SHIP.

“ Tush ! talk not of slavery or gods, Chow, hut say what is thy name, surname, and the rank of thy family,” said Nicholas.

“ Truly, the story of Chow is as miserable as his own mean person. I am from Tun-Hien, in Ching- Foo, in the province of Tche-Kiang. My father was a mandarin of the fifth rank, who having taken a good degree, held ofiice under the governor of the fort, till one moon since, when the terrible rebel, Li- Kong, took possession of the city in defiance of the Son of Heaven himself, and massacred all who would not submit; my father being one of the first to acknowledge the traitor, became the first to be punished for his disloyalty to our holy Emperor, which happened as thy servant will relate.

“ One day, my mother, who was accounted very handsome, so far forgot the social regulations laid down for women, as to stand gazing from a window while a body of soldiers passed through the street. For that unbecoming act, both my venerable father and myself suflered, for the officer clattered at the door, when the servants not daring to refuse so powerful a personage, admitted him to the house, when he ran into the inner apartment of my mother, who was so alarmed at such barbarian behavior, that she rose to leave, when the villain would have carried her away but for thy insignificant servant, who clutched his throat and sO gashed his cheek that, the waters even of the yellow stream will never wash them out.

“Hearing the struggle, the soldiers came to

THE WAR TIGER.

the rogue’s help, and would have killed poor Chow, but for my father, who, returning at the moment, compelled the officer, bad and bold as he was, to make his escape ; but, alas ! no sooner had the rogue left, than instead of being grateful, my father burst into loud lamentations, crying, ‘Alas, alas ! that ever so mean a person was born, for thou hast insulted the chief favorite of the prince, who will assuredly be revenged;’ and so it proved, for the next day we were all taken before the prince, who ordered the whole family to be exterminated, and our house burnt to the ground ; but what was worse, alas ! my father was not even strangled, but disgraced by being sent to the yellow stream incomplete, for he was beheaded on the spot, and the villain officer begged his wife as a slave, to which, in her misery, my mother offered to consent if they would but spare the life of thy miserable servant, her son. To this the prince consented, but the officer was so enraged at the wound in his cheek, that he ordered me to be dressed in beggar’s rags, and beaten out of the town toward the sea. Accordingly the wretches beat me till I could not stand, and left me to starve and die on the sea-shore.

“For days and days I wandered in the hope that some fisherman would take compassion upon me ; but alas ! none dared to encoumge so treasonous a youth fur fear of suffering similar nunishment ; then, but for the hope that retaining my nuserable existence would some fortunate day enable nieVto punish the villain, I should have thrown myself into the sea, although

THE DEMON SHIP.

even that consolation I could not seek without impiously forgetting my duty to my father, for has it not been wisely said that we should not live beneath the same heaven with the destroyer of our parents ?”

“ It is a pagan doctrine, Chow ; but how came you upon yonder perch ?” said Nicholas.

“ Without hope, tired, and sad, I wandered along the coast till the great storm sent the terrified wild animals in all directions ; to escape from them I climbed a tree upon the very verge of the sea, when shortly afterward the wind-demon blew one great gust which carried it into the sea, where its great spreading root and the earth around kept it fl’oatmg till the benevolent stranger came to my rescue.”

“ Thou shalt be revenged upon this villain officer, my poor Chow, and upon the greater rogue, Li- Kong,” said Nicholas.

“ How, — what words are these ? surely the benevolent stranger cannot be in his senses to speak thus of men so powerful,” rephed the astonished Chow.

“ What would Chow do to obtain the punishment of his enemies? Would he faithfully serve the stranger who has saved his life ?”