The Taiping emissary broods mischief.-A thunderstorm overtakes the Junks.-Rebel recruits in one of them.-They try to pass a customs station unnoticed.-Brought to by a shot from a mandarin gun-boat. -Obliged to land and cargo examined.—Cut-sing in danger, having an imperial robe in his trunk.—Meng-kee arriving opportunely saves him from arrest.

OONG CUT-SING, the Taiping emissary, with his band of recruits, occupied one of the two boats. which preceded that containing the mandarin and his daughter, the other being loaded with merchandise. As they dropped down the Peiho River, the boats kept within hail of each other. When the storm came on, and the mandarin's boat was moored alongside the right bank, Cut-sing gave orders to the boatmen to follow its example. Then all on board improved the occasion, notwithstanding the fury of the tempest, by partaking of their evening meal of rice and fish.

The Taiping emissary sat aloof from his companions in the stern of the boat, glancing furtively between the matting at the craft in the distance, as if to catch a glimpse of its inmates while lit up by the vivid flashes of lightning. His countenance wore its natural sinister expression as he brooded over the contemptuous manner in which he had been treated by Meng-kee, and the slights A-Lee had cast upon his advances.

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"I will tame her proud spirit," thought he to himself. "She will be glad yet to share my rice with me and cling to me for protection. Her weak points are known to me, as concentrated in her intense devotion to her father. He is in my power should she thwart my designs, and I will threaten to sacrifice him if she continues to slight me or reject my suit. As to her foreign lover, she is not likely to meet with him again, so I need have no further apprehension of his being a rival. Even now they are both in my power, if I chose to gain my ends by declaring to the authorities that they are fugitives from Peking going to join the rebels. To do so, however, would lead to my own destruction. No! no! I must bide my time, until they enter the territory under the dominion of the Taipings."

While this train of evil thoughts was passing through his mind the storm was at its highest, and the reverberation of the thunder appeared to his fancy to echo his sentiments. When it cleared off his reflections gave way to the emergencies of the moment, and he became alive to the perils of the position in which he was placed. Although he had no reason to suspect the loyalty of his recruits to the Taiping cause, yet he dreaded, what was just possible, that at some unguarded moment one more simple than the others might divulge their secret. Hence he had planned their movements on the route so that they should avoid being seen by the authorities. As there was a customs station on the river under the charge of a mandarin, where passengers and goods were examined, he had arranged with the boatmen-who were friendly to the cause-to try and evade that post under cover of the darkness. The delay caused by the thunderstorm had thrown him out in his reckoning, and he eagerly inquired if they could now reach the spot before daylight.

To his consternation he learned that it was as much as the boats could do to sail so far by that time; consequently, he gave orders to start at once without waiting for the mandarin's boat.

All was bustle now on board, and the passengers willingly assisted the boatmen to get their craft under way. These recruits were twenty in number, and formed a motley crew, even under a Chinese flag. Some had been ordinary tradesmen who had fallen into difficulties, and were indifferent as to the religious or political phase of the cause they had espoused so long as they could make something by it.

Others were of even a less sincere frame of mind, who bent their thoughts upon plunder during the raids of the Taiping hordes on the industrious loyal inhabitants. Only a few of them joined the movement from religious convictions, and these were Christian converts like Mengkee. One motive, however, united them to join the rebellion, and that was to aid in overthrowing the obnoxious Manchow-Tartar power, and restore the ancient Chinese

rule.

The majority of these men were not without means, as the second boat was well laden with merchandise which was likely to find a profitable market where they were going. Moreover, this cargo of goods would give colour to their ostensible object as traders proceeding to traffic with the foreign troops at Tien-tsin.

At starting the breeze was light but favorable, and continued so well into the night. Most of the adventurers were confident of passing the barrier station without molestation before daylight, and after drinking their tea and smoking their pipes they lay down to sleep. About midnight, however, they were aroused from their slumbers by

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the boatmen calling on them to rise and assist in propelling the boats by oars, as it was almost a calm, and they were yet many miles from the mandarin's post.

Up jumped the sleepers with alacrity, and manned the steer-oars of the two boats. There was only one to each boat, but they were enormous sweeps, requiring two pair of hands to scull with. The labour was heavy to those unaccustomed to it, but they worked with a will, making good progress where the current was most favorable. Then the breeze freshened towards morning and the sails were lowered. As the dawn lightened the horizon over the Gulf of Pee-chee-lee, the two banners, which are hoisted as official insignia at every custom-house station were fluttering in the breeze.

Up to this, the scullers with the heavy, long sweeps kept time by singing a Chinese sailor's refrain, accompanied by stamping with their feet on the deck, as the handle of the sweep was swung to and fro, which had a spirit-stirring effect upon the men. Now as they approached the customs station the song and tramp were hushed. Silently and softly the boats were propelled by the huge oars, and there was every prospect of their passing it without being observed. As they neared the post, it was seen, to their dismay, that a gunboat belonging to the Chinese navy was at anchor in the river. This class of vessels are not so formidable as those in our own navy, yet they are well armed and manned for native warfare.

Steering close in shore on the opposite bank, they tried to slip past unnoticed, but when they came abaft of the gunboat, a dog on board commenced barking, which raised an alarm, and the watch on deck hailed them to stop. No notice was taken of this, excepting to ply the sweeps more

vigorously. Unfortunately for the adventurers, the river at this point formed a straight long reach, without a tree or shrub on the banks to screen the boats from the outlook at the station. That they were visible from there was soon unpleasantly evident, for the gunboat fired a shot right ahead of their course. Then they observed her unmooring and preparing to give chase.

Matters now began to look serious, and it became a question whether they should risk the chance of escaping or bring to at once. Cut-sing and his recruits were for attempting the former, but the boatmen were resolved on the latter. A second shot which struck the water not far from the leading boat settled the question, and it was deemed most prudent to stop and sail back to the customs station. Accordingly the boats' heads were veered round, and the sails hoisted to the favouring breeze up the river. In order to avoid suspicion also, the passengers were told to resume their sleeping places, as if they had nothing to do with working the boats.

The commander of the gunboat seeing them retiring under sail ceased his preparations for a chase. When they came within hail he rated the boatmen soundly for attempting to pass without reporting their passengers and cargo at the station. They humbly excused themselves by saying there were no goods on board liable to duty, and that the passengers were going to trade with the foreign troops at Tien-tsin. Cut-sing corroborated this statement, and begged in the most humble manner that he and his fellow-passengers should be allowed to proceed on their voyage. This the commander peremptorily objected to, saying that he had strict orders from the government to examine all boats and passengers on the