5. Education to be thoroughly reformed on modern lines. · Part 2

The Ting-Yuen opened firing about twelve thirty P. M. at a range of five thousand seven hundred yards. The concussion of the first discharge threw every one off the bridge. As they came nearer, the Japanese appeared to form in quarter lines, to which the Chinese replied by turning two points to starboard, thus keeping their bows directed towards the enemy. Approaching within four thousand four hundred yards, the whole Japanese fleet seemed to turn eight points to port, thereby forming a single line ahead, and steaming across the Chinese line they turned its starboard wing.

The Japanese manœuvred swiftly throughout the battle, and the Chinese scarcely had a chance for effective firing from beginning to end. When the Japanese were firing at the starboard section of the Chinese squadron, the ships of the port section were practically useless, and could not fire without risk of hitting their own ships. The Japanese cruisers attacked first one section and then the other. As soon as the Chinese on the port side had brought their guns to bear and had attained the range accurately, the Japanese would work around and attack the starboard side. At times as many as five Japanese vessels would bring the whole weight of their armament to bear upon one Chinese ship, their consorts keeping the attention of the other vessels of that line fully engaged, while the ships of the diverging line lay looking on almost as useless as hulks in the water.

As compared with that of the Japanese, the fire of the Chinese was very feeble and ineffective. The men fought bravely, however, and there appeared to be no thought of surrendering on either side, but a constant intention to fight to the end.

While the fleet was getting into its formation the Chao Yung and Yang Wei, which were slow in taking up stations, were disastrously exposed to the Japanese fire, and one of them in consequence began to burn. On the port wing the Tsi-Yuen and Kwang Kai, occupied a similar position behind the Chinese line. The Japanese steamed around by the stern at a distance of five thousand yards and cut off the Tsi-Yuen. The Kwang Kai, which was as yet keeping touch with the fleet, soon fell back. Nothing more was seen of these two during the action, and they escaped unhurt.

The Chinese, unable to keep pace with the enemy, endeavored to follow their movements by keeping bow on to them, as they circled around, maintaining a heavy bombardment. The Chinese fleet that kept in the thick of the fight consisted of six ships of the Yuen class, including the ironclads. The Japanese, having completed one circle, hauled off to a distance of eight thousand yards, and went through an evolution with the object of separating in two divisions, the first consisting of the seven best known cruisers, and the second of five inferior ships which stood off to some distance.

The Japanese gunners were making much better practice than their enemy. Very few of the Chinese shots reached their mark, while the Japanese were constantly hitting the opposing vessels most effectively. After a time the Chinese admiral apparently became desperate. His formation was broken, and two or three of his ships advanced at full speed. The fighting became furious, but the weight of metal told and one of his ships, the Lai-Yuen, was crippled in this venture. Then for some unknown reason the Japanese ceased firing and cleared off, while the Chinese retired nearer the shore. The respite was a brief one, for the Japanese returned in about fifteen minutes, renewing the battle with great vigor and upon the same effective plan.

Late in the afternoon the Chinese cruiser Chih-Yuen, the captain of which had several times shown a disposition to disregard the admiral’s signals, deliberately steamed out of line and, although again ordered to remain in the place assigned to her, went full speed at a Japanese cruiser. The latter received a slanting blow which ripped her up below the water line and it was believed she would founder. She succeeded however, in pouring several broadsides into her enemy at close quarters, and the Chih-Yuen was so injured by her fire and by the effects of the collision that she herself sank.

When the Chinese resumed their line formation, the Japanese guns were directed upon the disabled ships, particularly the Lai-Yuen. She had been riddled by shot and shell, and it was evident that she was sinking. The Chinese gunners worked their weapons to the last. Finally she went down slowly, stern first. Her bows rose clear out of the water and she remained in this position for a minute and a half before she disappeared in one last plunge. The Japanese had used no torpedoes upon her, but sunk her by fair shot and shell fire. It spurred all the men to additional effort, and the officers were naturally exultant. They regarded the sinking of a double bottomed ship like the Lai-Yuen by gun fire alone as no mean achievement.

The battle then arranged itself into two great groups, the four Chinese cruisers becoming engaged with the second division, while the ironclads attacked the first division. The fighting of the second division was irregular and difficult to follow, and ended in the Japanese disappearing in the direction of the island of Hai-yung-tao.

The first Japanese division carried on the fighting with the Chinese ironclads by circling round at a distance of four thousand five hundred yards. The Ping-Yuen and Chen-Yuen keeping together, followed the enemies’ movements in a smaller circle, the whole evolution taking a spiral form. Occasionally the distance between the opposing ships was reduced to two thousand yards, and once to one thousand two hundred yards. The Japanese aimed at keeping a long distance away, so as to avail themselves of their superior speed, and make the most of their quick firing guns, in which armament they vastly excelled the Chinese. The object of the Chinese was to come into close quarters, so as to use their slow firing guns of large caliber with full effect.

Other Chinese vessels endangered were the King-Yuen, which was badly injured by fire, the Chao Yung, which foundered in shallow water, and the Yang Wei, which was partially burned, and afterwards destroyed by a torpedo.

[Illustration: THE YOSHINO.]

On the Japanese side, in addition to the vessel which was rammed by the Chih-Yuen, the Yoshino and the Matsusima were badly injured by fire. The former of these two, after receiving a series of volleys from two Chinese vessels, was enveloped in a cloud of white smoke which lay heavily on the water and completely covered the ship. The Chinese vessels waited for the cloud to clear away and got their port guns ready, but before the Yoshino became visible their fire was diverted by a Japanese ship of the Matsusima type which came on the port quarter. The guns which had been laid for the Yoshino were fired at this newcomer with the result that she too began to burn.

In the latter part of the battle the Chinese ironclads ran short of common shell, and continued the action with steel shot, which proved ineffective.

[Illustration: JAPANESE ADVANCE AT THE CROSSING OF THE YALU RIVER.]

An officer of the Japanese navy who was on one of the vessels in the engagement, was sent to make a verbal report to the mikado, and related some interesting details of the battle. He says that the fleet consisted of eleven war ships and a steam packet, Saikio Maru, which had been fitted up with guns as a cruiser, conveying Admiral Kabayama, the head of the naval command bureau, on a tour of inspection. Here is what he says about the latter boat: “It was our own turn next to suffer. The Saikio Maru had worked her deck guns to the best of her ability, but she was scarcely adapted for fighting in line against ironclads. Frequently she was in imminent danger, the Chinese quickly perceiving that she was a weak ship. A well placed shell from the Ting-Yuen pierced her side, and exploding made a complete wreck of the steering gear as well as doing other damage. She was put out of action, and pointed the best course she could by means of her screws. But this was a poor makeshift, and in trying to get away, she ran to within eighty metres distance of the Ting-Yuen and Chen-Yuen, both these ships having starred in pursuit of her at full speed.

The two Chinese commanders evidently thought that the Saikio Maru intended to ram them, for they sheered off and thus left her room to escape. She went away southward at her best speed. The Chinese discharged two fish torpedoes after her, but the projectiles either passed underneath the ship’s keel or missed their direction. The fire which had slackened during this incident, recommenced with redoubled energy, but we still made better practice with our guns. The Chao Yung was partially disabled, though she still fought on against two of our cruisers who were closing upon her. The doomed vessel went astern and settled down in shallow water. She was covered, but two-thirds of her masts were visible, and the rigging was soon crowded with scores of Chinese crying loudly to be saved. It was a pitiful sight, but the fighting was too hot to allow us to help them. At the same moment the Yang Wei was reported disabled. She retired slowly from the fighting line rolling heavily, masses of dense smoke emerging from her. We had suffered on our side, but not nearly to such an extent.

A shell had burst upon the flagship Matsusima, dismounting the forward quickfiring gun, and killing a number of men. The gun too was flung violently against the ship, doing considerable damage. The Matsusima had received a great part of the Chinese fire throughout and this last disaster had rendered her useless for further fighting. Her commander and first lieutenant had been killed. One hundred and twenty of her men had been killed or wounded; but the ship still floated. Admiral Ito and his staff were transferred to the Hasidate and in a few minutes they were again in the thick of the fight.

[Illustration: THE MATSUSIMA.]

[Illustration: H. SAKOMOTO, _Commander of the Akagi_.]

“The Hiyei in the mean time had been receiving the fire of two powerful Chinese vessels. She was manœuvered skillfully and returned their fire, until a shell bursting within her set the woodwork in flames. A second shell exploded in the sick-bay, killing a surgeon and his assistant, and some of those who had been wounded earlier. The captain was compelled to run her out of action, to extinguish the flames, and this having been accomplished his wounded men were transferred to another ship, and he steamed once more into line. The Yoshino had been fought throughout in a magnificent manner. She steamed in advance of the Hiyei when the latter was disabled and was backing out of line. She took the enemy’s fire, and replied with the greatest spirit. She was hit frequently, and her forward barbette was damaged, but her injuries can soon be repaired. The Chinese used their torpedo boats at times and incessant care was necessary to avoid their projectiles. On our war ship, the Akagi, the captain was aloft in the tops watching especially for torpedo movements and signalling by flags directly they were detected.

He was in this position when the mast was shot away, and the top-hamper fell with a crash upon the deck. The captain and two lookout men were killed. The first lieutenant took command and fought the ship till darkness stopped the action. Towards the close of the day dense smoke was seen issuing from the war ships Ting-Yuen, King-Yuen, and Ping-Yuen, and it was believed by us that all were on fire. Great confusion prevailed on board them, but they did not retire from action. Firing was still kept up intermittently on the Chinese side, though the guns of many of their ships were silenced. At sundown the Chinese squadron was in full retreat. We took a parallel course intending to renew the battle in the morning. The night was dark, the speed was only equal to that of our slowest damaged ship, and we were compelled to keep at some distance from their course on account of their torpedo flotilla, which might have attempted a night attack. We lost sight of the enemy during the night. At dawn we endeavored to discover their position, but failed.

The Chinese squadron must have reached protected shelter. Then we returned to the scene of the action, and found that the war ship Yang Wei, which had been disabled when the battle was half over, had been run ashore. Her crew had abandoned her. We fired one fish torpedo and completed her destruction. This was the only torpedo fired by the Japanese either in the action or after it.”

From a concensus of the opinions of eye witnesses, it appears that the Chinese were at least as anxious to continue the fight as were the Japanese. Before five o’clock the Japanese ceased firing. It was observed that the distance between the fleets was rapidly increasing and the Chinese failed to diminish it. The Chinese then saw the Japanese change course in a westerly direction towards the islands of Yang-tao and Hai-yung-tao. The Celestials followed them for an hour, and saw the course changed again to a southerly direction, while some of the ships of the second Japanese division that had vanished earlier in the fight now joined those of the first. By this time nothing but the smoke of the withdrawing fleet was visible and the Chinese returned. They were joined by the ships which had been partially disabled but were still in condition to proceed, and altogether withdrew towards Port Arthur. A message was sent to the transports from which the troops had disembarked on the banks of the Yalu river, ordering them to weigh anchor and follow the fleet.

It is evident that there remained room for each side to claim the victory in this naval battle. The Chinese succeeded in disembarking the troops, which was the avowed object of their expedition. They fought brilliantly, inflicting considerable damage upon their opponents, and assert that the battle was terminated against their will by the withdrawal of the Japanese vessels.

The Mikado’s men on the other hand, destroyed several of the best battle ships in the Chinese navy with great loss of life to the crews, and plead that the Chinese withdrew from them. The truth probably is that each fleet was so damaged and the men so exhausted with the long contest that they were mutually willing to quit. Inasmuch as casual spectators of impartial mind are not in a position to observe the details of a battle royal of this sort, it seems that the decision must be left unsettled except as the destruction of so many Chinese vessels may be certainly credited as a victory for the Japanese. The withdrawal of the Chinese fleet towards Port Arthur, and its previous inactivity seem to be partially responsible for the handing over of Corea to the Japanese, giving them first the advantage of possession in the invaded country.

The peculiar constitution of the Chinese navy is partially an explanation of the discipline prevailing. The navy is not properly an imperial or even a national force. The four fleets are provincial squadrons raised, equipped, and maintained by the viceroys or governors of the maritime provinces to which they are attached. No arrangement could possibly be more unsuited for the purpose of naval war, and to it may be partially attributed the previous inaction of the Chinese fleet while their numerically inferior antagonists were using the sea at will. Stirred up at length, doubtless by peremptory orders from Peking, the Chinese admiral, in place of throwing his whole strength into a decisive operation, seems to have committed himself to a subsidiary objective. Naval history teems with examples of the drawbacks that inevitably result from being thus led away. To have attacked the Japanese when convoying troops to Chemulpo, or to have fought a naval battle at Chemulpo or Ping-Yang inlet might have led to important results. In place of adopting such a course, the Chinese utilized their fleet for the first time in convoying troops to the mouth of the Yalu river in the north-east corner of the bay of Corea. The great difficulty experienced in advancing overland from Manchooria doubtless suggested this plan, but the object at best was purely secondary. And with the fleet scattered and partially destroyed it would seem that the troops, both artillery and infantry, with their stores landed at the mouth of the Yalu river, would be practically helpless so far from support or a base of supplies.

The Japanese fleet which met that of China in the battle of the Yalu river was composed as follows: The Matsusima, Itsukusima and the Hasidate, each of four thousand two hundred and seventy-seven tons displacement and seventeen and one-half knots; the Takachiho and the Naniwa, each of three thousand six hundred and fifty tons, and eighteen and seven-tenths knots; the Akitsushima, of three thousand one hundred and fifty tons, and Chiyoda, of two thousand four hundred and fifty tons, and each nineteen knots; the Yoshino, of four thousand one hundred and fifty tons and twenty-three knots; the Fuso, three thousand seven hundred and eighteen tons, and the Hiyei, two thousand two hundred tons, each thirteen knots; the Akagi six hundred and fifteen tons, and twelve knots; beside the Saikio Maru, a steam packet fitted as a cruiser and four torpedo boats. It will be seen that in numbers the fleets were about equal. But in tonnage the Chinese fleet was superior, having several vessels larger than any of the Japanese, while on the other hand the speed of the Japanese vessels averaged very much above that of the Chinese. The armament too of the Japanese fleet was superior to that of the Chinese, being composed more largely of quickfiring guns. In type the vessels of the opposing squadrons differed considerably. While six of the Chinese ships had side armor, only one Japanese vessel was thus protected; and while ten Chinese ships had protection of some form, only eight Japanese carried any armor.

The Japanese had the advantage of their opponents in speed, but to a less extent than might be expected. The number of knots shown for each ship in the lists was of course the best possible, and is equally delusive for both sides. Notwithstanding, the Japanese had so much the greater speed that they were able to steam around their opponents to some extent. There are some lessons to be drawn from this battle by those who have wondered what the result of a contest between the modern war ships would be. The Chinese made one attempt to ram, and discharged one torpedo from a ship and three from a boat. The attempt to ram resulted in desperate damage, though not in destruction to the ship attacked. The rammer herself was afterwards sunk, it was believed by gun fire. All the torpedoes discharged were ineffective. The Japanese tried to use neither the ram nor the torpedo. Beside the Chih-Yuen, the Lai-Yuen and Chao Yung were sunk by shot and the Yang Wei was run aground to avoid foundering in deep water.

The Japanese flag ship Matsusima was so severely injured that Admiral Ito had to shift his flag to the Hasidate. The Hiyei was forced out of action for a time, and the armed packet steamer Saikio Maru had to go out of action altogether. The mast of the Akagi was shot away, and by the fall killed the captain and two men, all of whom were on the top. Such being the variety of the ships engaged, important lessons are forthcoming from this first great modern naval battle. Many theories fondly beloved and eagerly proclaimed have had to be abandoned for their holders to fall back upon the old and well tested principles of naval war. The gun has maintained its position as a weapon to which all others are merely accessories. The best protection, as Farragut pointed out, is a powerful and well directed fire. Stupendous losses, unimaginable destruction, have been confidently predicted as a necessary result of a naval battle fought with modern weapons. This did not prove to be the case, and the damage inflicted in the five or six hours’ fighting at the mouth of the Yalu might have occurred in the days of the '74s.

Allowance must be made for the probable defects in the Chinese gunnery practice, but their seamen fought like heroes, and greater endurance than was shown on either side can never be expected. The accuracy of naval fire is always over-estimated in time of peace. The disablement of the heavy guns of the Chen-Yuen and her continued fighting with her light armament are a useful object lesson. This vessel like many others was built solely with a view to carry her four thirty-seven ton guns. The remaining armament was doubtless distributed promiscuously as space offered. Both barbettes were quickly disabled, and machinery gave place to man power. On board ship, as on land, it is the man who ultimately counts, even though in time of peace he is often forgotten.

From this survey of the characteristics of the two fleets, it may be perceived that each fairly represented a different principle. The principle represented by the Chinese was that advocated by the school which puts matter above mind, for their fleet contained the biggest ships, the less numerous but heaviest guns, and the most extensive torpedo armament. The principle of which the Japanese may be taken as the representative is that of a school which appeals to history and experience, and not to theories evolved out of the inner consciousness of people without practical knowledge of the sea, and which maintains that the human factor is both the most important and the unchanging factor in war, which must in its broader features remain much what it has always been.

Whatever the claims of victory made by the opposing forces, the fact remains that Admiral Ito stayed at sea with the Japanese fleet and that the damages were repaired as fast as possible on board the ships; while the Chinese went into port, where their repairs could be made in safety and at leisure. Japan unquestionably had command of the sea. The menace which operated successfully in the early stages of the war was changed for the prestige of a great moral and material victory.

[Illustration: JAPANESE INFANTRY ATTACKING A CHINESE POSITION.]

JAPAN'S FORWARD MOVEMENT IN COREA.

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Effects of the Battles of Ping-Yang and the Yalu River—How the Two Nations Received the News—Withdrawal of the Chinese Fleet—Armies Moving North to the Boundary—Li Hung Chang Losing His Rank and Influence—Possible Destination of the New Japanese Army—Prince Kung—Chinese Driven out of Several Positions in the North of Corea—Abandoning the Peninsula—Danger to Foreigners in China—Captain Von Hannecken—The Japanese Advance into Manchooria.

The effects of the battles of Ping-Yang and the Yalu River upon the governments and peoples of the two belligerent nations were characteristic. Japan was the scene of rejoicings most hearty in every city and village of the empire. Congratulations were sent from the emperor to the commanders of the military and naval forces, and memorials complimentary to them were voted by the Japanese parliament. Additional levies of troops were made and hurried into Corea, with the intention that the war should be prosecuted with renewed vigor.

In China, on the other hand, the dazed government was scarcely able to realize what had happened. Reports were made to the emperor which caused him to declare that the defeat was merely the result of the cowardice of his commanders, and that they must be punished for the losses. The emperor at once began to contemplate a change of counsellors, and the dismissal of all mandarins and others who had been concerned in the conduct of the war. Li Hung Chang’s position in imperial favor began to waver. The captain of the cruiser Kwang Kai was beheaded for cowardice. At the battle of the Yalu River he saw one of the enemy’s ships approaching to attack him, and immediately turned and fled with his vessel as rapidly as possible. He intended to escape to Port Arthur, but as he was endeavoring to shape a course thither which would keep him out of range of the enemy’s guns, he ran the vessel ashore and she became a total wreck.

The Coreans, except those under the immediate influence of the home government, were not yet willing to accept the Japanese influence for that of China, which had been so strong throughout their lives. A body of two thousand Japanese left Fusan just before the battle of Ping-Yang, to march to Seoul. Their advance was, however, opposed by the Coreans, who harassed them continually by a guerilla warfare. The Japanese lost heavily, and were compelled to return to Fusan, having lost nearly half of their number. Two thousand fresh troops were immediately sent to that port from Japan to guard the neighboring settlements, where some three thousand Japanese permanently resided. Another uprising of the armed Tonghaks, whose rebellion had been one of the first features of the war, was apprehended.

The remnant of the Chinese fleet sought refuge after the battle of the Yalu river under the protection of the Port Arthur forts, where they were soon locked up by Japanese ships which patrolled the neighboring waters, preventing the exit of Chinese vessels. The Chinese army defeated at Ping-Yang fled to Wi-ju, at the apex of the most northerly angle of the Bay of Corea, on the Corean side of the mouth of the Yalu River. About seven thousand Chinese troops had been landed there from the transports which were escorted by the Chinese squadron engaged in the battle at the mouth of the river. The governor of Manchooria began to concentrate all the troops raised in that province upon Mukden and the route between that city and Wi-ju, and extensive earthworks were thrown up along the road.

It was believed by the Chinese that Mukden would be the scene of the next great battle of the war. This famous Manchoo city possessed a political and dynastic importance, which might easily render its downfall decisive for the war, irrespective of all strategic considerations. It was the sacred city of the royal house, the ancestral home of the reigning family of China. It contained the tomb of many of the emperor’s august ancestors, and accordingly was invested in the eyes of all good Chinamen with a halo of sanctity reflected on the Lord of the Dragon Throne himself. The capture of the city in which so many sons of heaven had found sepulchres would be accepted throughout the empire as an omen that the present occupant of the royal seat was not worthy of divine protection, and such omens, in days of disastrous wars, are often fulfilled with remarkable celerity. As the politicians about the court were perfectly aware of what the consequences of the fall of Mukden would be, it was natural that they should take every precaution to prevent such a catastrophe. Furthermore, in Mukden the Chinese emperor was supposed to have gold and silver accumulated in the course of two centuries, to the amount of $1,200,000,000.

Mukden is only one hundred and fifty miles from Wi-ju, with which place the Manchoo city was connected by a road, comparatively good for China, as it had been the main route to Peking, and even the Chinese recognized its strategic importance by running telegraph wires along it. It is easy to see why the Chinese began to increase the fortifications of the sacred city, and why they made a stand at Wi-ju in the hope of interrupting the Japanese advance.

[Illustration: PRINCIPAL STREET OF MUKDEN.]

The levies of troops concentrating upon Wi-ju, Mukden, and the intervening territory were hardy men from the north, of excellent material to be worked into soldiers, but they were badly armed. Only about four thousand had good rifles, but further supplies were being hurried up from the southern arsenals. The Chinese force intrenched upon the Yalu River was about thirty-eight thousand, including the troops that had escaped from the Ping-Yang defeat to fall back upon Wi-ju. Many of the forces which they found there were also raw levies, badly armed. The loss of field guns, rifles, and ammunition at Ping-Yang greatly embarrassed the Chinese war department. It was recognized that a battle must be fought at the river, and it was earnestly desired to retrieve the disaster of Ping-Yang.

It was immediately after the series of defeats in Corea that the effort began to be made by the enemies of Li Hung Chang to find a means for his degradation. Even two weeks before the battle of Ping-Yang, the government at Peking appointed two officers to act as censors of his proceedings, and especially of his conduct of the war. One of these officials was a notorious enemy of the viceroy. The censors at first contented themselves with taking note of Li Hung Chang’s actions and movements. Immediately after the news of the disaster at Ping-Yang reached Peking, the emperor was persuaded that the defeat of his army was due to the mismanagement of the viceroy. The intrigue was completely successful, and on the morning of September 18, an imperial edict was issued depriving Li Hung Chang of his three-eyed peacock feather, the reason assigned for the disgrace being incapacity and negligence in making preparations for the war. Much sympathy was expressed for the viceroy, who was thus made the scapegoat for the disasters. The real responsibility rested with the Tsung-li Yamen, which had been making war with an inadequate force inefficiently organized and hampered by tradition. Li was not a member of the Grand Council, but it was sought to make him responsible for its blunders.

[Illustration: CHINESE TROOPS FLYING TO SAVE THEIR ARTILLERY.]

Within a few days after the Corean engagements, another Japanese army was mobilized at Hiroshima for service in the field. The destination of this fresh expeditionary force of thirty thousand men was kept a secret, nothing being known except that another effective blow was contemplated by General Kawakami, the Von Moltke of Japan. The sea-going fleet of China was practically paralyzed for the time, and the Japanese were free to transport a force in any direction. The island of Hai-yung-tao, in Corea Bay, had been made a coaling station for the Japanese fleet, thus enabling the Japanese torpedo boats to keep a constant watch at the mouth of the Gulf of Pechili and secure advance warning of offensive or defensive operations. It was believed that Count Yamagata favored an attack upon Niuchwang from the sea. This city in the possession of the Japanese would form a base for a movement upon Mukden or upon Peking itself, and the forces landed there could co-operate with the army advancing from Corea. A second possible destination for the new force was Peking itself. It was believed that an army of that size could reach the capital by disembarking at a point on the coast about half way between Taku, the city at the mouth of the Peiho River, on which Peking is situated, and Niu-chwang.

[Illustration: TRANSPORTING CHINESE TROOPS.]

The third alternative was an expedition to Formosa. The island had hitherto remained outside the sphere of operations, and Chinese troops from the southern provinces had been transported there in considerable number. This movement of forces had been interrupted only by the wreck of one steamer, and the necessary caution required to avoid a collision with Japanese cruisers, which at times patrolled that portion of the China sea. There were probably fifteen thousand men in the island, drawn in part from the Black Flags, and excellent in quality, but lacking in military training and even arms and equipment. The natural wealth of Formosa was known to be considerable, and its geographical position from a commercial point of view immensely important, so that there were good reasons to believe this a possible destination for the forces.

It is interesting to note the general order issued by the Japanese minister of war September 22, to the troops which were about to take the field, and to the others which were already in active service. It went far to prove to the civilized world, whose eyes were upon the operations of the war, that it was the desire of the Japanese authorities to conduct their hostilities with as much consideration for the humanities as is ever possible in war. The order was as follows:

“Belligerent operations being properly confined to the military and naval forces actually engaged, and there being no reason whatever for enmity between individuals because their countries are at war, the common principles of humanity dictate that succor and rescue should be extended, even to those of the enemy’s forces who are disabled either by wounds or disease. In obedience to these principles, civilized nations in time of peace enter into conventions to mutually assist disabled persons in time of war, without distinction of friend or foe. This human union is called the Geneva convention, or more commonly the Red Cross association. Japan became a party to it in June, 1886, and her soldiers have already been instructed that they are bound to treat with kindness and helpfulness such of their enemies as may be disabled by wounds or disease. China not having joined any such convention, it is possible that her soldiers, ignorant of these enlightened principles, may subject diseased or wounded Japanese to merciless treatment. Against such contingencies, the Japanese troops must be on their guard. But at the same time they must never forget that however cruel and vindictive the foe may show himself, he must nevertheless be treated in accordance with the acknowledged rules of civilization, his disabled succored, his captured kindly and considerately protected.

It is not alone to those disabled by wounds or sickness that merciful and gentle treatment should be extended. Similar treatment is also due to those who offer no resistance to our arms; even the body of a dead enemy should be treated with respect. We cannot too much admire the course pursued by a certain western nation which in handing over the body of an enemy’s general, complied with all the rites and ceremonies suitable to the rank of the dead man. Japanese soldiers should always bear in mind the gracious benevolence of their august sovereign, and should not be more anxious to display courage than to exercise charity. They have now an opportunity to afford practical proof of the value they attach to these principles.”

[Illustration: JAPANESE MILITARY HOSPITAL.]

At the very time that these actions were occurring in Japan, measures of increased severity were being taken in China to punish those who were supposed to be responsible for the defeat. The emperor and his counsellors were in a state of alternate terror and indignation, at the break down of the war arrangements and the possibility of a Japanese invasion. The emperor declared that the recent defeats could only have been caused by incompetence, or corruption, or both, among those charged with the conduct of the war, and the enemies of Li Hung Chang sedulously encouraged this mood. The viceroy himself remained to all appearances entirely unmoved. He made no preparation to proceed to the headquarters of the army in the field as it had been reported he would do, and it was believed that he would not leave Tien-tsin as long as his enemy had the ear of the emperor.

As Chinese fortunes went down, and admirals and generals and princes lost their high standing in the good graces of the emperor, other officials rose in favor to take their place. The personality of some of these men is peculiarly interesting because of the intimate connection and high authority they had from this time in the conduct of the war.

On the 30th of September an imperial decree was issued, appointing Prince Kung, the emperor’s uncle, and the presidents of the Tsung-li Yamen and the Admiralty, as a special committee to conduct the war operations in co-operation with Li Hung Chang.

Prince Kung, whose proper title was Kung-tsin-wang, or the Reverend Kindred Prince, whom the emperor of China brought back to honor from retirement and disgrace by appointing him co-director with Li Hung Chang of the war arrangements, was a man who in the past had played a very important part in the history of China. At the outbreak of the war he was some sixty-three years of age, having been born about 1831. He was a man of great vigor and determination of character, and was possessed of abilities of a very high order. Prince Kung was the sixth son of Emperor Tankwang, who died in 1850. His personal name, which was used only by his family, was Yih-hu, while the people called him Wu-ako, or the Fifth Elder Brother. Prince Kung came to the front first in 1860, when Emperor Hien Feng the son of Tankwang fled from Peking, on the advance of the allied armies of Great Britain and France. At this critical moment the former returned to the capital, assumed the reins of government, and entered into negotiations with the allies. Having accepted their ultimatum, he surrendered the northeast gate, which commanded the city, on October 13, and eleven days later the treaty of Peking was signed by him and Lord Elgin.

[Illustration: REVIEW OF CHINESE TROOPS AT PORT ARTHUR.]

The following year Emperor Hien Feng died, leaving a son as heir, whose age was only five years. Four of Prince Kung’s elder brothers were already dead, and the fifth had lost his position in Emperor Tankwang’s household by being adopted into the family of another emperor. There was thus no one to claim precedence of him as the first prince of blood royal, during the minority of Tung-chi, the new emperor. A conspiracy had, however, been formed against him, with which he found it necessary to grapple immediately. The late emperor had left the administration of affairs practically in the hands of a council of eight, of whom Prince I was at the head. This council had decided upon a plan of action for seizing the reins of power. They proposed to obtain possession of the emperor’s person, to put the empress-regents out of the way, and to kill Prince Kung and his two surviving brothers. Prince Kung, however, was not to be found napping. Having received news of the plot, he at once took measures to prevent its successful accomplishment, by carrying off the young emperor to Peking. The conspirators were then arrested and brought to trial. The Princes I and Chin, being of the blood royal, were permitted to take the “happy dispatch.” The rest of the conspirators were either beheaded or banished. Thus did Prince Kung save from destruction the reigning dynasty of China.

For his great services he was at once proclaimed “Regent Prince,” and in conjunction with the two empress-regents assumed the government of China. He immediately adopted a vigorous policy in dealing with the Tai-Ping rebels, which was crowned with success. After Colonel Gordon’s capture of Suchow, at the head of his ever victorious army, Prince Kung bestowed upon him a medal and ten thousand taels, which were refused. Prince Kung also successfully put down the Mohammedan rising in Yun-nan and Kan-pu, and opened up diplomatic intercourse with European powers. Prince Kung’s determination not to accept the gunboats purchased in 1861 nearly led to serious results, and cost England $5,000,000. This crucial period was followed by another in 1870 when the Tien-tsin massacre occurred. In all these events Prince Kung showed that he possessed the gifts of a great statesman. When Emperor Tung-chi died childless in 1875, the choice of a successor to the dragon throne lay between Tsai-ching, the son of Prince Kung, and Tsai-tien, the son of Prince Chun, his younger brother. As the election of the former would have compelled the retirement of Prince Kung from active participation in the government of China, and as a continuance of his services was a matter of absolute necessity for his country, Tsai-ching was passed over in favor of Tsai-tien, a child of only four years of age, who adopted the name of Kwang-Su, or illustrious successor. Prince Kung, however, continued to act as regent of the country. The present emperor assumed the reigns of power in 1887, and subsequently he dismissed with disgrace the man whom he was afterwards pleased to honor, and who had rendered to China and the reigning dynasty such services as ought never to be forgotten.

When the Chinese fled from Ping-Yang towards Wi-ju they left behind them nearly a million dollars in treasure, thirty-six guns, two thousand tents, one thousand three hundred horses, and a considerable quantity of rice and other stores. Hard pressed by the pursuing Japanese, they abandoned their remaining four guns at An-ju, a town some seventy-five miles north of Ping-Yang. Thirty miles farther on, at Chong-ju, an important provincial town, they made a temporary halt, having received orders to hold the place pending the arrival of large reinforcements from the north. But the pursuit was too hot, and Chong-ju was evacuated without fighting. The next stand attempted to be made was at Ngan, where the troops were reinforced by orders from Shin-King, the province in which Mukden is situated. For a few days it was prophesied that the decisive battle of the war would be fought there, but the Chinese again abandoned their position and fell back upon Kaichan.

The Japanese army, while pushing forward towards Manchooria, showed the greatest consideration in their dealings with the Coreans, and any attempt at robbery or outrage on the part of the soldiery was most severely punished. The private soldiers were under the strictest orders to pay cash for everything that they obtained from the natives, and pains were taken to see that they should carry out their instructions. The result was that the Coreans began to appreciate that the Japanese were better friends to them than were the Chinese. The latter had been very severe in their exactions of supplies from the populace, and even though the Corean sympathies had been with the Chinese, the common people objected to the expense of quartering the army without recompense.

[Illustration: JAPANESE SOLDIERS DIGGING A WELL.]

On the 4th of October the main portion of the advance Japanese column reached Yong-chon, a little to the south of Wi-ju, after the difficult march from Ping-Yang, retarded by an extensive commissariat department and many guns. No sign of the enemy was reported at this place. Four days later, scouts reported that a small Chinese force still occupied Wi-ju, and a detachment of Japanese infantry and cavalry was thrown forward, supported by light artillery, to dislodge them. The Chinese offered but a slight resistance and fled precipitately before the smart attack, finally succeeding in getting across the Yalu. The larger body of Chinese troops had withdrawn across the river before this time, so that the forces remaining in Corea numbered not more than two thousand. Their loss in killed and wounded probably did not exceed one hundred. Wi-ju was occupied by the Japanese on the same day, and on the day after they began a reconnoissance which revealed the fact that the Chinese were still in force in the northern bank of the river. Eight intrenched batteries were discovered, and the enemy were rapidly throwing up fresh earthworks and building new batteries. Obviously the next fight was to be expected at this place, and if the Chinese held their grounds it would be a sanguinary one.

Marshal Yamagata still maintained his base at Ping-Yang, as being more convenient for securing his supplies by sea, while General Nodzu remained in advance with the forces. The Japanese line of communication was now complete throughout Corea, a sufficient number of troops being scattered through the peninsula at Fusan, Asan, Chemulpo, Seoul, Gensan, and Ping-Yang to guard against any hostilities on the part of the natives, and to make reinforcement by land safe. The government of Wi-ju was placed in the hands of a Japanese officer acting as special commissioner. The field telegraph was established in working order within two days after the capture of the place, and a regular courier service to the rear was inaugurated at once.

At the same time two or three detached revolts were in progress, the most important one being that of the Togakuto rebels in the province of Kiung-sang. These rebels were still in arms and in the mountain fastnesses it was hard to get near them. They had with them fifty Chinese soldiers who escaped when the Chinese were defeated at Asan and then joined the rebels. Those who had taken up arms against the corrupt Corean officials in the Province of Chung-chong had been dispersed, however, and the more formidable ones were now being gradually hemmed in.

When the middle of October came, the two armies were still facing each other on the banks of the Yalu. The Chinese had not yet fired a shot but kept at work night and day improving the natural advantages of their position. On the Japanese side there was no desire unduly to hurry the fighting, Marshal Yamagata choosing to wait for his heavier artillery and supplies before attacking. Spies kept him admirably informed as to the movements of the enemy, their defenses, and their artillery. They estimated the total strength of the Chinese massed along the north bank of the Yalu as between twenty-five and thirty thousand.

While the two armies are thus facing one another across the Yalu River, the Chinese having been driven from their last foothold in Corea, let us turn to the condition of affairs in the capitals of the two nations. The enemies of Li Hung Chang in Peking were busy in their efforts to cast disgrace upon him. Sheng, the taotai or chief magistrate of Tien-tsin, fell into disgrace and it was immediately alleged that he was a nephew of Li Hung Chang’s and that the latter was probably a sharer in the results of his dishonesty. Just before the war broke out Sheng was commissioned to purchase arms and ammunition for the imperial troops, to be distributed to them as they arrived from the interior on the way to Corea. Rifles and cartridges were duly purchased, and nearly all were served out to the troops. As soon as they were put to the test of actual service they were found to be almost worthless, and strong complaints were sent to Peking and Tien-tsin. Li Hung Chang himself conducted an inquiry, and learned therefrom that Sheng bought from German agents three hundred thousand rifles of obsolete pattern, part of the discarded weapons, in fact, of more than one European army.

The contract price of these rifles as between Sheng and the German sellers was two taels each, but the price charged by Sheng to the imperial treasury was nine taels each. The cartridges were of very inferior quality and of various pattern, and Sheng made a large profit on them also. After Sheng’s guilt was proven upon him by the viceroy, he retired to his palace and for a time was seen no more in public. It was stated semi-officially that he applied for and was granted leave of absence on the ground of ill health. But a few days later it was reported that he was again enjoying the authority of his office, having been sustained against Li’s wishes by some of the viceroy’s enemies. Li’s enemies became bolder and bolder. Placards denouncing him as the cause of China’s troubles were posted on the walls of Tien-tsin and children in the streets sang doggerel songs ridiculing and insulting the great viceroy.

The foreigners resident in Peking and Tien-tsin became very restless under the impending invasion of China by the Japanese. Assaults on foreigners in Peking and its environs, which have been of constant occurrence during the last ten years, increased in frequency and gravity. Several English and American families withdrew to Shanghai because of the prevalence of street rowdyism. Tien-tsin was full of troops from the interior, but nearly all of them were the merest rabble, wretchedly clad, mutinous through lack of pay and insufficient rations, and useless for real war because of their antiquated weapons. Their continued presence in Tien-tsin was a distinct danger alike to Chinese and Europeans. An imperial edict published in Peking assumed full responsibility for the protection of foreign residents, denounced rowdyism, and ordered the punishment of certain culprits who had assaulted travelers. It assured the strangers the protection of their persons and their property, and was especially favorable to missionaries. The whole tone of the edict was considered highly satisfactory, and yet the government had failed to punish those who were responsible for the assaults and had taken no cognizance of the murder of a missionary, except to permit the governor of the province where the crime was committed to retain his high position.

A rebellion broke out in the district of Jeho, in the province of Chihli early in October, consequent on the rumored invasion of the Japanese. The imperial summer residence was in this city. Another Chinese rebellion broke out in the province of Hoopih about one hundred miles from Hankow. The local authorities attempted to quell the first rising but failed. Some of their soldiers were killed and others joined the rebels. Two mandarins lost their lives. In consequence of the urgent demands of the imperial authorities the province had been quite denuded of troops and there was practically no means at the command of the authorities to keep them in check. The Europeans at Hankow were seriously alarmed and many of them withdrew to Shanghai.

The emperor of China, early in October, began to take the initiative, attempting to infuse new energy into the national defense. It was indeed reported that he had disguised himself, and in person visited Tien-tsin, accompanied only by a few trusted servants, in order to see for himself what was going on, and particularly to learn the truth as to the alleged incapacity of Li Hung Chang to carry on the arrangements for the war. It was not, however, the emperor who made the journey in disguise, but his former tutor and trusted adviser Weng Toung Ho, the President of the Board of Revenue, or Finance Department. He also went to Port Arthur, Wei-hai-wei, and other places, and thoroughly informed himself of the state of affairs, civil, naval, and military. On returning to Peking he made an exhaustive report to the emperor, upon which the latter immediately began to take more interest in public affairs. He declined to sign documents until they had been previously read and explained to him, and called for special reports from the naval and military commanders. His next act was to summon to Peking the viceroys and governors of provinces, to receive from them accounts of the steps taken to comply with the demands of the imperial government, and to obtain from them their views as to the state of affairs. It was believed however by foreigners most able to judge that throughout all these actions the dowager empress of China was the active power in control. It was also believed that she was really a friend to Li Hung Chang, and that he would not suffer ultimate destruction unless she turned against him.

[Illustration: CONSTANTINE VON HANNECKEN.]

Another important action taken by the emperor was to confer the highest grade of the Order of the Double Dragon upon Captain Von Hannecken for his services at the naval battle of the Yalu River and to place him under practically sole control of the naval forces of China.

Constantine von Hannecken, the German officer who was put in supreme control of what was left of the Chinese navy, had already seen a great deal of service in the war with Japan before his promotion to that post. He was on board the Kow-shing when she was overhauled and sunk by the Japanese cruiser Naniwa-Kan, with a loss of more than a thousand Chinese soldiers. Von Hannecken was left struggling in the water when the Kow-shing sank, but had the rare good fortune to be picked up by a boat. Still more recently he was high in command of the Chinese fleet at the disastrous battle of the Yalu River. He was slightly wounded but was soon ready for action again. This brave man was born in Wiesbaden, Germany, in 1854, and was a son of the late Lieutenant-General von Hannecken. He served the usual term in the German army, and in 1879 went to China, where he was soon high in favor with Li Hung Chang. He mastered the Chinese language in a single year. His technical military knowledge, amiability, and tact, gained for him the position of personal adjutant to Li Hung Chang, with a large salary. He devoted much of his time to the construction of bridges and forts, and the fortifications at Port Arthur and Wei-hai-wei were built under his personal direction. He was rapidly promoted to the highest military places within the gift of Li Hung Chang and the government, and received buttons, feathers, and jackets galore.

About a year before the outbreak of the war, having grown rich in the service of the dragon throne, he resigned from the Chinese army and returned to his home in Germany. After a stay of a few months he sailed again for China with the intention of settling his affairs there and retiring to Germany. The war with Japan changed this plan, and he promptly reëntered the service of China.

[Illustration:

THE ATTACK ON PORT ARTHUR. Japanese Drawing. ]

Admiral Ting and Captain Von Hannecken visited Wei-hai-wei to examine its defenses, and satisfied themselves that the harbor was practically impregnable from the sea. Japanese war vessels continually patrolled all parts of the Gulf of Pechili, and were frequently seen from Port Arthur, Chefoo and Wei-hai-wei. The Japanese fleet was also sighted several times ten miles off Shan-hai-kwan, less than two hundred miles from Peking.

The main body of the Chinese army was now entrenched in a strong position protected by a line of rectangular forts newly constructed across the northeast border of the province of Chihli. The Manchoos were held in reserve nearer Tien-tsin than Peking. Sung Kwei, the emperor’s father-in-law, was in command of five thousand picked Manchoo soldiers at Shan-hai-kwan, which was a city of great strategic importance, the starting point of a great highroad to Peking from the coast.

General Sung, formerly commander of Port Arthur, was appointed to be Generalissimo of the Pei-Yang army corps in manchooria and Chief Commander of the Manchoo levies, with the exception of the Kirin division, which remained under the command of the Tartar general. The Chinese headquarters were established at Chiu-lien-tcheng. Generals Yeh and Wei were degraded by imperial edict.

On the 15th of October the newly-elected Japanese Diet met for a short preliminary session at Hiroshima, where the mikado had established his headquarters. The election of officers was immediately proceeded with, Mr. Kusumoto being chosen president, and Mr. Shimada vice-president. The formal opening of the Parliament took place two days later. The mikado in his speech announced that he had decided to convene an extraordinary session, and had given direction to his ministers to submit for the deliberation of the Diet a bill providing for increased expenditure for the army and navy, which was an important matter. His Majesty declared that he was greatly pained that China should have forgotten her duties in regard to the maintenance of peace in the east in conjunction with Japan, she having brought about the present state of affairs. “However,” proceeded the emperor, “as hostilities have begun we shall not stop until we have obtained our utmost objects.” In conclusion, His Majesty expressed the hope that all subjects of the empire would co-operate with the government, in order to promote the restoration of peace by means of the great triumph of the Japanese arms.

The president of the two chambers of the Diet presented an address in reply to the speech from the throne, thanking the mikado for advancing the imperial standard and for personally assuming the direction of the war. The victories which had been secured by the Japanese arms by land and sea were the natural result. The address in conclusion said: “His Majesty rightly considers China the enemy of civilization. We will comply with the imperial desire to destroy the barbarous obstinacy of that power.”

In the House of Peers, on October 19, Count Ito, the premier, made an elaborate speech in support of the government measures for meeting the expenses of the war, and defended Japan against the charge of having precipitated the hostilities. He narrated in detail the circumstances which had led up to the war, and read the correspondence which had passed between the mikado’s government and the authorities at Peking, before the rupture of diplomatic relations. The premier’s statement made a great impression, and intensified the keenly patriotic feeling manifested by the members of the Diet, not a dissenting voice being raised against the ministerial bills. The following day the war budget of 150,000,000 yen passed both houses unanimously. This was the most important part of the proceedings of Parliament. The two houses fully demonstrated that they desired to hold up the hands of the government, and grant everything which might be asked to insure the success of the Japanese arms.

Simultaneously with the opening of Parliament an important diplomatic move was made by the Japanese. Now that Japan was practically in undisputed possession of Corea, the moment was considered opportune for the carrying out of those thorough reforms in the internal government of the country, to which Japanese statesmen looked forward as the best guarantee against foreign influence in the future. In order to strengthen the hands of Mr. Otori, the Japanese minister at Seoul, the emperor selected Count Inouye, minister of the interior, to proceed to the Corean capital to act as special adviser to Mr. Otori.

The Japanese Parliament had occasion to welcome an important Corean messenger. The second son of the peninsular monarch left Chemulpo on the day the session began, as a special envoy to the mikado, returning the visit made to the king by the Marquis Sainonji. The young prince and his embassy, consisting of eight leading nobles, were received by the mikado and his principal ministers, being welcomed most cordially.

Just prior to the opening of the session, the British government addressed a circular note to the ministers of the great powers, suggesting intervention in the affairs of the east. The Chinese were in readiness to make terms of peace, conscious of the enormous sacrifices and risks which would have to be incurred before she could bring her immense reserves of strength into action, and being devoid of military ambition. The British cabinet council which decided upon this letter met on October 4, and three days later it was generally known, in spite of government denials, that the action had been taken. The reception of it was not cordial. In reply to the proposals put forward by England, the German government formally intimated that it was not prepared to join in any measures for circumscribing the political results of the conflict between China and Japan. The French government shared the same view, and the United States was earnest in the same expression. Russia, too, decided to avoid interference in connection with other nations, preferring to retain the opportunity of individual interference. On the part of Russia, the military commanders in the Amoor province were ordered to hold troops in readiness, in view of the fact that the situation in China might make intervention necessary. There seems to be good ground for believing true the rumor, oft repeated after the battle of the Yalu, that China had made to Japan overtures for peace, on the basis of an acknowledgment of Corea’s independence, and payment of an indemnity for the losses and expenses of the war. The proposal was rejected by Japan as inadequate. Altogether it seemed that the initiative taken by the British foreign office was premature to say the least.

The mikado, in his address to Parliament, made no allusion to the proposals for peace, but seemed rather to look on the prosecution of the war to the end as the sole means of insuring lasting tranquility. With England’s effort for European intervention in mind, Parliament adopted a resolution that, “No foreign interference will be suffered to obstruct the great object of the national policy, to secure a guarantee of permanent peace in the orient.” A renewed offer of mediation in the interest of peace was made to China and Japan in the name of some of the European powers, after the adjournment of Parliament. China declared her willingness to conclude an armistice or a peace on any reasonable terms; Japan refused to consider the proposal until it should be made directly at Hiroshima “From a quarter formally accredited and empowered to offer it.”

The movements of troops, both Japanese and Chinese, were now multiplying to such an extent, that except for one familiar with the geography of eastern Asia, they were very confusing. Almost every day it was reported that some Japanese force had made a landing on the Chinese coast, rumor after rumor of this sort being circulated and denied. Chinese troops massed in the vicinities already named, their numbers constantly increasing. An army of five thousand Japanese was taken by transports along the east coast of Corea to Possiet harbor, near the boundary of Siberia, and five thousand Russian troops were posted on the other side, facing them, to guard the Siberian frontier. Corea was being steadily cleared of Chinese stragglers, deserters from the late army and others, who if allowed to be at large might develop into bandits or spies. The restlessness of the natives in the province of Chulla was difficult to restrain, and a combined force of Japanese and Corean troops was despatched to the district to quell the outbreak. Rumors of land battles in the north of Corea, on the lower Yalu, were circulated every day, but for a time were foundationless. Towards the end of October, troops began to pour into Tien-tsin in large numbers daily, and were disposed for the defense of the capital. Most of the new arrivals were infantry, the bulk of the cavalry being sent to the Manchoorian provinces to the northeast.

[Illustration]

SURRENDER OF CHINESE GENERAL AND STAFF.

The fleets of the two nations were now again in fighting condition, although the loss of many vessels suffered by the Chinese at the Yalu had left them in strength far inferior to the Japanese. The Chinese fleet was concentrated at Port Arthur and Wei-hai-wei, where it was believed to be safe from attack or favorably situated for offensive operations. The Japanese squadron under Admiral Ito was concentrated at Ping-Yang. On October 18 the last of the transports carrying the second Japanese army steamed out of the harbor of Ujina on their way to Hiroshima, where they were held in readiness for active operations.

The extraordinary session of the Japanese diet at Hiroshima was closed October 22, all the bills submitted by the government having passed unanimously. Before separating, the Diet voted a memorial urgently requesting the officers of the government to execute the desires of the Mikado, in order that Japan might achieve a complete victory over the Chinese, whereby peace would be restored in the east and the glory of the Japanese nation increased. A resolution was passed unanimously, placing upon record the thanks of the nation to the army and navy, for the gallantry and patriotism displayed by all ranks, and for the splendid success which had attended the Japanese arms.

[Illustration: MAP OF TERRITORY ADJACENT TO THE MOUTH OF THE YALU.]

On October 24 Count Yamagata, commander-in-chief of the Japanese forces in Corea, threw a small force across the Yalu, thus invading Chinese territory. In order to understand the subsequent operations, a brief topographical explanation is here necessary. At a little distance below Wi-ju, the Yalu, flowing west, receives a tributary, the Ai, coming from the northeast. Chiu-lien lies in the western, or obtuse-angled corner formed by the junction of the two rivers, some distance back from their banks. Within the eastern, or acute-angled corner the land rises to an eminence called Hu-shan. A traveler by the main road from Wi-ju to Chiu-lien, having crossed the Yalu, must pass on the left or to the west of Hu-shan, which overlooks the highway, and thus reaching the Ai must cross it also to Chiu-lien. The Chinese had intrenched Hu-shan, and posted there a force estimated by the Japanese at three thousand five hundred, but subsequently alleged by prisoners to have aggregated seven or eight thousand.

The plan pursued by Field-Marshal Count Yamagata was to occupy a long stretch of the Yalu River, so that his point of passage would remain to the last uncertain, and any flanking movement on the east by the cavalry, of which the enemy possessed a large force, was rendered impossible. Having rested his troops and completed his arrangement for a final advance, he threw a battalion across the river under Colonel Sato, at Shai-ken-chau, a place ten miles up stream from Wi-ju. The passage was made by wading and was unopposed. The detachment was composed entirely of riflemen, no cavalry or artillery accompanying them. A Chinese earthwork had been thrown up at this point to oppose a landing, but a slight deviation enabled the detachment to cross without interference. An attack was immediately opened on the Chinese position, which was garrisoned only by a few artillerymen and infantry. They fled after the first two or three rounds had been fired, and the Japanese captured the works with a rush. A regiment of Manchoorian cavalry arrived as the little garrison fled, and covered their retreat. The Chinese made for the batteries constructed lower down the river, the infantry throwing away their arms in their flight. The Chinese loss was about twenty killed and wounded, while on the Japanese side not a man was hit. The Japanese force now moved down the river and captured the Chinese fortifications at the Suckochi ferry, where they passed the night. The Japanese engineers had pontoons in readiness for passage across the river.

[Illustration: JAPANESE ARMY CROSSING THE YALU, ON A PONTOON BRIDGE.]

During the night of the 24th, the Japanese pontoon men threw a bridge across the Yalu at the ferry, and at dawn the main body of the army, having passed over unopposed, commenced an attack against Hu-shan, Colonel Sato’s brigade coming into action simultaneously from the other side. The battle began at 6:30 A. M., and lasted until a few minutes past 10. At first the Chinese held their ground with tolerable firmness, but presently, finding their position swept by rifle and artillery fire from a hill on their right flank, of which possession had been taken by a brigade under Major-General Osako, they broke and fled across the Ai to Chiu-lien. The reserves, however, did not join the rout. Posted advantageously, they preserved their formation and maintained a resolute fire, until thrown into confusion by a flanking movement, which placed a large force under Major-General Tachimi to the rear of their left. Then they too gave way, and retreated in confusion across the Ai, so hotly pursued that they had to abandon ten pieces of artillery. The Japanese had lost twenty killed and eighty-three wounded; the Chinese two hundred and fifty killed and a somewhat large number of wounded. Two divisions of the army then crossed the Ai and encamped on the east of Chiu-lien, the brigades of Major-General Tachimi and Colonel Sato posting themselves on the same side of the Ai, but further north, so as to menace the same road from Chiu-lien northward to Feng-hwang. Field Marshal Yamagata and Lieutenant-General Nodzu took up their quarters in a farmer’s house to the northeast of Hu-shan. Thus with all the advantages of elevated ground, a position fortified at leisure, and a force ample for defensive purposes, the feebleness and faulty strategy of the Chinese converted into a mere skirmish what ought to have been a sanguinary battle.

The following morning, October, 26, before dawn, a general advance was commenced against Chiu-lien. It was supposed that the enemy would make an obstinate stand there, since after Feng-hwang the fortified town of Chiu-lien ranks as a position of eminent importance in the defense of southwestern Manchooria. Moreover, throughout the night a cannonade had been kept up from the town against the Japanese camp, and though the invading columns were posted so that the enemy’s missiles passed harmlessly over them, this resolute service of guns seemed to promise stout fighting on the following day. But in truth the artillery was employed merely in the vain hope of intimidating the assailants, or in order to cover the flight of the garrison. The Japanese encountered no resistance whatever. At eight o’clock in the morning they entered Chiu-lien. The enemy had decamped in the direction of Feng-hwang before dawn, leaving behind him almost everything, twenty-two guns, three hundred tents, large stores of ammunition and quantities of grain and forage.

The series of defeats following the crossing of the Yulu River by the Japanese seemed to complete the Chinese demoralization in that vicinity. The defeated forces probably numbered more than twenty thousand men, the victorious army was considerably inferior in numbers, the batteries were well built, and the position was a strong one. The continuous loss of artillery, and throwing away of muskets and rifles wherever the Chinese made retreat, was gradually depleting the stores of arms possessed by the forces in Manchooria, leaving them unable to fight even if they had desired to. A little fighting evidently went a long way with them. Did they carry away their artillery and stores, these precipitate retreats might possess some strategical character, but they simply saved their own lives, leaving all their material of war behind them. The troops at Chiu-lien were not ill-disciplined or badly armed from a Chinese point of view. Coming from Port Arthur, from Taku, and from Lu-tai, they ranked among the best soldiers China could put into the field. If such men proved themselves so conspicuously invertebrate, it was to be questioned whether or not the addition to their number of a few thousand Tartars would make them stand more stiffly in a subsequent conflict. It seemed even to the friends of China that her capacity for resisting the invasion of Manchooria in the face of well-organized and resolute attack, was simply contemptible.

[Illustration: THE JAPANESE AT PORT ARTHUR.]

The second invasion of Chinese territory was made by the second Japanese army corps, twenty-two thousand strong, under the command of General Count Oyama. These forces sailed in transports from Hiroshima, and on October 24 commenced landing in a little cove northeast of Talien-wan Bay and protected by the Elliot islands from the open sea. Talien-wan Bay was avoided because the Chinese were known to have made some preparations to resist a landing there. The peninsula which juts out southwestward between the Gulf of Liao-Tung and Corea Bay is known variously as the Liao-Tung peninsula and the Kwang Tung peninsula. Every yard of it was familiar to the Japanese military staff, and had been included in their system of minute cartography, so that whatever point they selected was well chosen. Up to the last moment it had been supposed by the general public that Port Adams, on the west of the peninsula, would be the port of debarkation, but as that would have involved the passing of a great flotilla of transports into Pechili Gulf, it was considered too hazardous an operation. The last of the flotilla of fifty transports left Hiroshima October 18, and the fleet having assembled at Shimonoseki, steamed westward on the morning of the 19th. A distance of eight hundred miles had to be traversed, and in this case as in all previous operations everything worked with smoothness and success. On the evening of the 23rd the great flotilla reached its destination, and on the following morning the landing was commenced.

There was no resistance. The Pei-yang squadron did not show. Had there been any ordinary exercise of vigilance on the part of Admiral Ting’s war ships they must have sighted the Japanese flotilla in ample time to strike at it. That they would have effected nothing in the face of the convoying squadron may be taken for granted, but if the prospect of failure deterred them from making any effort to protect their own headquarters, China’s only dockyard and really important naval station in the north, they certainly deserved the indifference with which the Japanese treated them. From the time of the naval battle of September 17, the Pei-yang squadron played no part in the war. Many attempts were made to prove that it had not been vitally hurt in the encounter, and that a few days would suffice to put it in a thorough state of repair. But whether repaired or not it disappeared from the scene, and the Japanese cruisers thenceforth roamed at will along the Chinese coasts.

With the move towards the investment of Port Arthur, and the crossing of the Yalu, the war entered upon a new phase. In selecting Port Arthur as an objective point, the Japanese were well advised. By such an attack a dockyard of the first importance was threatened, and full advantage of naval superiority could be taken. The Kwang Tung peninsula, or “Regent’s Sword,” was peculiarly inaccessible by land, while a power in command of the sea could land men at pleasure at several points within a short distance of Port Arthur, and with a small force only could isolate it from the mainland.

Two days after the landing of troops on the peninsula, the collection of a third army at Hiroshima commenced. This force was to number twenty-four thousand, and be under the command of Lieutenant-General Viscount Takashima. At the same time another revolt of some little magnitude arose in the south of Corea, and two thousand rebels attacked the quarters of the Japanese commissary at Anpo. The malcontents were afterwards dispersed by a military force though not without difficulty.

We have now reached the end of October. The first Japanese army is safely installed on the north bank of the Yalu River in Manchoorian territory, threatening the road to Mukden, Niuchwang and the intervening cities. The second army is safe on shore on the Kwang Tung peninsula, threatening China’s proudest naval station. The next month will see the fall of Port Arthur and the practical destruction of all Chinese hopes of ultimate success.

REVIEW OF THE PROGRESS OF THE WAR TO THE FIRST OF NOVEMBER.

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Characteristics of the two Nations in War—China’s Ignorance of the Coasts of Corea—Japan’s Knowledge of Chinese Topography and Climate—Patriotism in the Two Countries—Bad Judgment of China in Methods of Conducting the War—The Governmental Weather-Vane and its Revolutions—No Commander-in-Chief for the Chinese Army—Official Corruption in Civil as Well as Military Officials—The Battles of Ping-Yang and the Yalu River—Handling the Forces of the Enemies.

At this period in the war, occurs a lull which makes it possible and wise to take a glance at the whole course of affairs during the hostilities, since the declaration three months earlier. The war has advanced far enough to prove the mettle of both combatants, and to furnish data for judging of the probable issue of the struggle, at least from a purely military point of view. At the beginning of November, prophets were quite well equipped with material for predictions that were surely not to be disappointed, and it is from the aspect at this date that the present chapter takes its view. On the one side there is little but praise to be offered. The Japanese have proved themselves assiduous students of all modern armaments, and have in many points bettered their European instruction. They have made good their claim to be the rising power of the Orient.

Of the Chinese a diametrically opposite account must be given. From a military standpoint nothing favorable can be said of them, and the only palliation of their failure is that they were wholly unprepared for an unexpected aggression. The course of the war has brought out in strong relief what has not always been clearly recognized, the essential differences between the two belligerent nations. A stronger contrast is scarcely imaginable than that between China and Japan, though they are so near and have been nursed on a common literature. With passionate effort the Japanese have ransacked the western world for its treasures of knowledge, and have vigorously applied what they have learned. The Chinese, on the other hand, have set their faces against the science of other nations, and with an unhappy mixture of apathy and contempt have rejected the teaching which has pressed upon them. In the same spirit they have spurned the knowledge of their own country and of their own forces, while the Japanese have been for years making a minute study of both, and possess maps and details which the Chinese themselves have not and do not care for.

The Chinese have carried on a large trade with the Yalu river, but the government knew nothing of the coast. Captain Calder of Port Arthur made a holiday expedition to the Manchoo-Corean coast, found the country beautiful, and recommended the naval authorities to let the cadets go and improve themselves by surveying it. Nothing was done, the sole reason being that the incidental expenses of the ships would be increased by being at sea, and the captains would not save so much of their monthly allowance. Now the only survey the Chinese admiral possesses even of the scene of the late naval battle, is the outline made by Captain Calder himself. The Japanese navy has complete charts both of the Corean and the Chinese coasts. In the summer of 1893 a small expedition of Japanese disguised as Chinese, in a native boat surveyed the islands and coasts of the Gulf of Pechili, spending eight days in the immediate neighborhood of Port Arthur. The topography and physiography of North China have been their study for years.

A Japanese physician even devoted a whole year to the climate and pathology. With his headquarters in Tien-tsin, where he plied the foreign doctors incessantly with queries, this Japanese investigator thoroughly explored the province of Chihli, and probably knows more of the climatic conditions of North China than any other living man. He pretended he had the intention of practicing among the Chinese, as possibly he may in the not distant future. The Chinese have started exotic medical schools, but they have not overcome the elementary difficulty about dissection, and the enterprise is but half hearted. As for employing competent men to gather knowledge, the whole idea is foreign to the Chinese official mind, and they only accept ungraciously as a gift the results of the explorations of enthusiasts for science. It is not, therefore, the accident of being a little earlier in the field, or quicker in movement to seize the benefit of an opportunity, that gives the Japanese such crushing advantages over the Chinese, but rather a deep-seated, congenital love of improvement on one side and hatred of it on the other.

Another essential difference between the people is their exhibition of patriotism. The Japanese are saturated with it, while the Chinese have none. The instinct of loyalty is there, and it can be called out by any man, native or foreign, who is worthy of it, but in the sense of nationality the Chinese have no capacity for enthusiasm, and the people as a whole are indifferent as to who rules them, so long as they are left to cultivate their gardens. For want of a patriotic focus, what would elsewhere be treachery is in China a commonplace of official practices; every man to the limit of his small ability selling his country for his private benefit, and no one able to cast a stone at his neighbor. In Japan it would be impossible to get a man to betray his fatherland; in China where is the man who would not? From the same root springs the incredible difference between the peoples in their treatment of soldiers and sailors. In the one country they are made heroes of, the people at home send delicacies to the troops abroad, honor the dead, and nurse the wounded. In the other the men are treated worse than dogs, robbed of their small pay, deserted, discarded, or grossly neglected by their leaders whenever they can be dispensed with and their monthly pay saved. Attachment between men and officers in China is a rare, though not an unknown thing, for the Chinese are, after all, human at heart, if one can but penetrate the pile of hereditary corruption which has covered up the divine spark.

The foregoing are but examples which might be multiplied indefinitely, of the antitheses of Chinese and Japanese character and mode of action. If to all this is added the fact that the Japanese are a people who delight in war, while the Chinese abominate it, no further search is needed for explanation of the actual result. It is simply ignorance overcome by science, indifference by energy.

The Chinese have conducted the campaign in the manner those best acquainted with them would have predicted, doing on most occasions the utterly wrong thing, or stumbling on the right thing at the wrong time in the wrong way. But the most pessimistic prophet could hardly have predicted the utter inaptitude of the Chinese military movements. It is not only that they have failed to learn the modern art of war, but that they have forgotten the old methods. It was thought that Chinese troops, though deficient in enterprise, might at least make a respectable defense. They were advised never to risk a pitched battle, but to retreat slowly, giving trouble to the enemy by night attacks on his baggage, and compelling him to use up an army corps to keep open his line of communication. They failed in every point, and allowed themselves to be chased and caught like sheep, losing stores, guns, and munitions. When all else failed, it was said that winter would come to their assistance, as the Japanese could never stand the cold, while the Chinese and Manchoos were inured to it. But when the cold came it was found that it was not the Japanese but the Chinese who suffered, having abandoned their warm clothing in precipitate flight. Their heart was never in the business, and nothing therefore could go right with the Chinese conduct of the war.