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Page 6
CHAPTER II
We reached Tientsin without further mishap, and turned over our cargo
to Mr. H----'s agent, who disposed of it at a handsome profit, though
hardly sufficient, I thought, to warrant the risking of so valuable a
ship as the _Columbia_. We lay in the port about a week, to effect
the repairs rendered necessary by the Japanese gun practice.
At Tientsin a war council was sitting, and one morning Mr. Mac----, the
agent, came on board and informed us that he had received a
proposal for the _Columbia_ to be chartered as a transport to convey
troops to the Corea. It was only, he said, for an immediate special
service, and the terms being exceedingly advantageous he had resolved
on his own responsibility to accept the offer, as the work would not
occupy us more than a few days. We were to be one of a convoy of
transports which, sailing at different times from different ports,
were to rendezvous in Talienwan Bay on the east coast of the Liaotung
Peninsula, where the troops were to be embarked under protection of
an armed squadron. There was no time to be lost, and we were to weigh
anchor and make for the bay as soon as possible.
On the afternoon of the same day two Chinese emissaries came to make a
visit of inspection, and in the evening we steamed out of the port,
flying the American colours, with nothing of course to fear at the
moment. On arriving at Talienwan we found the bay full of shipping.
Four large transports were already engaged in the work of embarkation,
and another arrived after we did. The warships presented a gallant
array, twelve in all, belonging, with two or three exceptions, to the
North Coast Squadron. There were four torpedo-boats in addition. The
most powerful vessels were the _Chen-Yuen_ and the _Ting-Yuen_,
barbette ships, English-built, I think, of 7280 tons. The _King-Yuen_
and _Lai-Yuen_ were two barbette ships of smaller tonnage--2850. Then
came the _Ping-Yuen_, of 2850 tons, a coast-defence armour-clad; a
turret-ship, the _Tsi-Yuen_, of 2320 tons; the _Chih-Yuen_,
_Ching-Yuen_, _Kwang-Kai_ and _Kwang-Ting_, all of 2300
tons, deck-protected cruisers; and the _Chao-Yung_ and
_Yang-Wei_, each of 1400 tons, unprotected cruisers.
I have forgotten to say that we took a Chinese agent on board at
Tientsin for the trip. He was alleged to be able to speak English,
but rarely indeed was his jargon intelligible. I asked him to
translate the names of the Chinese warships, but this was a task far
beyond the linguistic capacity of my friend Lin Wong. I understood him
to say that it would require "too muchee words" to render in our
prosaic tongue the amount of poetic imagery concentrated in the
expressions "Chih-Yuen," or "Kwang-Kai." Of what the names mean I am
in ignorance still.
We were speedily boarded by a boat from the flagship, to the officer
of which Lin Wong gave an account of his stewardship, and we received
directions to draw up to the landing-stage in turn and receive our
human freight. The troops were still arriving from the roads to Talien
and Kinchou. They seemed for the most part an undisciplined lot, and
came streaming on board in no particular order; here and there a
mounted officer directing with shouts, gestures, and blows too, the
movements of the surging masses that crowded along the water-side. The
number embarked I reckoned at about 18,000. There was also a large
quantity of military stores to be shipped, and busy enough we were. In
the evening I had a glimpse of Admiral Ting, who had been ashore and
was returning to his ship. His barge passed close alongside the
_Columbia_. I saw a young-looking man, very pleasant in expression
and manner; altogether what we should call highly gentlemanly in
appearance. It is well known that he expiated his failures by suicide
after the final ruin of Wei-hai-wei.
All was complete on the second day after our arrival, and shortly
before noon the flagship signalled us to weigh anchor. I may remark
that the Chinese Navy is English trained, and the duty is carried on
in English, owing to the intractable character of the Chinese
language, the fact that officers and men have thus practically to
learn a foreign tongue in order to work their ships being an obvious
disadvantage. The transports were grouped together and the warships
disposed in sections abreast and ahead, with the active torpedo-boats
in the rear. Our destination was the estuary of the Yalu, the large
river which divides China from the Corea. We left Talienwan on
September 14, and reached the river on the afternoon of the 16th. The
work of disembarkation commenced immediately, although rumours reached
us from Wi-ju of the disastrous defeat of the first Chinese army at
Ping-Yang in the Corea the day before. It illustrates the ridiculous
inefficiency of the Chinese measures from first to last, that troops
should thus have been landed at hap-hazard far from any point of
communication with the interior of the Peninsula, the very day after
an action which extinguished their prospect of maintaining their
ground in the Corea.
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