opponents fought for pay. Had this campaign been one of foreign warfare, doubtless it would have had its numerous chroniclers, and high encomiums passed upon its gallant commander, which have been few and far between. But for his skill and perseverance, in all probability the Taiping rebellion would be still raging, and paralyzing the industry of the chief marts of China.

When glancing over the history of the rebellion I am almost at a loss to discover what it was that formed a bond of union between the heterogeneous elements that composed it. It cannot be believed that the followers of the rebel leaders were actuated by any pious zeal for the spread of that bastard Christianity which was at first professed. To the myriads of people who flocked to the insurgent standards, the overthrow of one dynasty and the establishment of another would be words without meaning. No personal love or admiration for the Tien Wang could have entered into their motives, for he was as shadowy and unapproachable as the legitimate emperor.

The answer to the question, Why the Taiping rebellion numbered so many millions of supporters ? lies, I believe, in the fact that the common people of China, ground down by exactions, and kept in a degraded political condition, are at times liable to obtain a glimpse of their real position, and to speculate on the rights of man as a free agent and their claims to self-government. Once committed to the support of the rebellion, fear was sufficient to deter them from any attempt at escape. Should they cast off the new allegiance they had sworn their fate was sealed, and should they even throw themselves into the arms of the Imperialists, they had little to expect but punishment or death. Thus the only explanation which can be given of the long

REMARKS ON THE TAIPING REBELLION.

337

continuance of the rebellion was the fear of punishment on one hand or the other. It was only towards its close that clemency prevailed with the Chinese Government, through the representations of the foreign powers, and caused the great body of the rebels to surrender and to give in their allegiance to the rightful ruler of their country.

I return to Shanghai wounded.-Slow recovery, attended by Loo A-Lee.-Recovery and Marriage with the Mandarin's Daughter.-— The Mandarin in Consular employ.-Conclusion.

FTER being wounded before Chang-chow I was brought down to Shanghai, and for a long time hovered betwixt life and death. It was during the hot season, and had I not received the closest attention I should not be talking with you now. Fever set in, and both Meng-kee and Loo A-Lee thought my hours were numbered as I tossed restlessly on my couch and raved in delirium. When I recovered consciousness she was sitting by my side, pale and thin, and her face marked with lines of anxiety and fatigue. Still she would not give up her nightly vigils by the sick-bed of her betrothed.

My recovery was slow whilst the humid heat prevailed, but when it was over, and the bracing wind of the northeast monsoon set in, I rapidly gained strength. By this time the campaign was at an end, and my fellow-officers, including my kind-hearted commander, came to say goodbye before their departure from China for home. I should have gone with them had I been differently situated, for my time as a non-commissioned officer in the Engineers had expired; but my affections were intertwined with those of

MY MARRIAGE WITH THE MANDARIN'S DAUGHTER. 339

the mandarin's daughter, her people became my people, and China the land of my adoption.

Whilst serving with the "Ever-Victorious Army" I had acquired far higher pay and rank than any I could expect in England, and I saw no reason to prevent my accepting permanent employment in the service of the Emperor of China, as many of my comrades had done. One old friend had received the lucrative appointment of superintendent of the Shanghai arsenal, where cannon, rifles, and ammunition were manufactured upon a large scale after European models, and to him I applied for a post, and shortly afterwards received that of an assistant superintendent.

Health and position attained once more, there seemed nothing to hinder marriage with my beloved, Loo A-Lee except legal difficulties, for marriages between British and Chinese subjects have not been provided for by the laws of either country. I consulted the consul, who said that a native wife could not secure the privileges of an English one, and that any children from such a union would be debarred from the hereditary rights of property. The missionaries, however, were of opinion that we could be married legitimately according to the ecclesiastical law, and this satisfied us, even though our privileges were curtailed. So we were quietly united, by a worthy missionary, according to the rights and ceremonies of my own church.

Meng-kee, my father-in-law, had some time before this entered our consul's service as interpreter and Chinese writer, and though he had done so under an assumed name, and was conscious that there was no probability of his being identified as the Mandarin of Peking, he frequently felt nervous and apprehensive of evil when brought into contact with his own countrymen. After the rebellion was fairly

340 THE MANDARIN'S DAUGHTER. -CONCLUSION.

crushed, the Government displayed leniency towards those who gave in their allegiance, by pardoning them, and even by bestowing offices upon the most deserving. When Mengkee learnt this he sent in a petition setting forth his services in the cause of order whilst accompanying the allied army, and praying for some post in the province where he dwelt. The result of this application was an appointment in the department to which I had been promoted, and shortly afterwards, when the arsenal was removed to Nanking, we all shifted our quarters to that city, and have remained there ever since. The head of the department showed himself so zealous in his duties that the Emperor conferred upon him the rank of a mandarin of the third order, and at the same time I received a title of the fourth grade. So Loo A-Lee has now a mandarin for a husband as well as a mandarin parent, and we expect that our son and heir will receive in course of time similar honours to those which have been bestowed upon his father and grandfather by his own merits; for titles are not hereditary in China among the mandarins.

Finis.

WERTHEIMER, LEA AND CO., FINSBURY CIRCUS.