Wichita eagle., 1888-02-10
TIE YAMENI RUNNERS.
ADVENTURES OF BicYCL!ST STEVENS
IN THE CHINESE EMPIRE.

Saved from a Howling City Mob by the
Services Of the Yameni Runners-Ncvel
Distinguishing Marks-An Explanation.
Trip Through Ta-hc.
Taken ali in all my tour through China
was about the toughest bit of experience on
the whole journey around the world on a
bicycle. Nothing is more certain than that
l should have persisted at the hands Of some
bowling city mob in the interior except for
the good services of the yameni runners,
under whose protection l travelled during the
last two weeks was in the country
The yameni runners OF China correspond
to the zaptiehs of Turkey and the sowars of
Persia, Afghanistan and other central Asian
countries. Attached TO the government of
every city or district are a certain number OF
these yameni runners. Their duty is to carry
dispatches, convey prisoners, protect prop
erty, act as escort and otherwise obey orders
in the service of the mandarins.
TWO WHITE ''BULL's EYES"
The yameni runners wear the ordinary
Chinese garments with the exception of the
coat, which is embellished with sundry dis
tlnsuishing appendages. The most prominent
OF these, d by which the yameni runner
may readily be distinguished from other peo-
pie as far as can be seen, are two big white
bulls eyes, one on his back and the other
in front. These round white patches are
about eighteen inches in diameter and are
marked with big red characters which indi-
cate the district the wearer belongs to.
The real object Of these large disks of white
Is to form fitting ground work for the con-
spicuouS display OF the characters The Eu-
ropean residents Of the treaty ports, how
ever, facetiously call them ''bulls eyes, and
account for their adoption as follows:
Chinese soldier can never, under any
circumstances, hit the bulls eye Of target
Observing this, and in their egotism believ-
ing that what the celestial warriors couldn't
do the soldiers Of no other country could,
the authorities conceived the idea of attach
ing bulls eyes, front and rear, TO the yameni
runners, so that, in case of war, if the sol
diers fired at them, they would be sure TO
miss their mark
Whatever the explanation, a squad of
yameni runners drawn up in line present to
the foreigner very grotesque and amusing
spectacle. Looking at them front or rear
they present the appearance of a row of hui
man targets, with big, white bulls eyes in
the center. AT the back the long dangling
cue sewers the white disk in half with a black
streak.
AN ESCORT OF RUNNERS.
The first time was favored with an escort
OF yamenl runners was ct the city of Ta-ho.
place OF some Importance in the province
OF hlang-csi The mandarin at Ta-ho sent
an escort Of two with me to guide me to the
next city, days march distant. This city
was kIn-ngan-foo, and in its narrow,
crowded streets, by hurrying me along the
nearest way to the yamen, or official quarter,
the two yameni runners rescued me from an
Infatuated mob bent on the diabolical pur-
pose of burning ME alive
As | wheeled slowly through the gate of
the high brick wall that surrounded the city
of Ta-ho, trotting along ahead Of me was a
slim young yalneni runner, with short bam-
boo spear. He was bareheaded, barefooted
and barelegged. In the poverty of his ap-
parel and the all around contempt of per-
Sonal appearance and cleanliness one could
plainly read the total absence of individual
ambition
In striking contrast to him was the dandi-
fled individual who brought up the rear,
iipouJ Ten PAGES Cehlnu tne bicycle. lie Ike
wise was a yanaeni runner, but of superior
rank. Instead Of a bamboo spear with g
rusty head, he carried an Oil paper parasol, a
bright red article, ornamented with blue
characters and gold gilt Chinese ladies
golden lilies with tiny feet.
Besides this elaborate article he rejoiced
in the possession of both hat and shoes As
son as we got well away from the walls of
Ta-ho, however, he pulled off these latter
articles, and giving them TO his comrade to
carry, trotted along behind me in his bare
fcet-Golden DAYS