New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1890-08-27
that the govern ent would buy her
i she proved up to her guarantees.

Now, to test such a boat, it was
clearly useless to send her to sea
with Chinese officers; and even a
Chinese crew could hardly do her
justice in the engine room and stoke
hole. So it was determined to make
a trial trip with a scratch crew OF
white men; and when I heard they
were looking about for somebody to
command her | jumped at the OPP
portunity, and FASTENED to offer my
services. You know I was in the
navy before the war, and [ had pass
ed good examination in steam, so
felt myselfcompetent to manage this
gunboat, which was only a small
craft, calculated for shallow waters,
and carrying a crew of one hundred
men. Well, l had friends, and got
the command; and after the usual
trouble in scraping a ships company
together, and then drilling them in
to something like working order, l
was ready for sea.
''The Chinese authorities had con-
sidered that it would be as well to
make the trial trip pay expenses, if
possible, by extending the test SO as
to ascertain what the gunboat was
good for in action At that time the
mouth ofPearl river was infested by
piratical junks, which found shelter
and easy means Of escape in the nu-
merous small islands and estuaries in
to which the delta of that stream is
divided. The pirates usually confined
their attention to the craft of their
own countrymen, but occasionally,
when the grist was very short or the
opportunity very tempting, they
would attack some small foreign mer-
chantman; and, in these cases, they
made it rule to kill every soul on
board, as the simplest way of pre-
venting those awkward fereign pro-
tests which were sure to stir the
mandarlns up to a serious crusade
against them.
"You, of course, understand that
piracy in China is not regarded as a
heinous crime. The Monaghan view
of the business is pretty much that
which all the western nations held in
the Sixteenth and Seventeenth CEN
turtles; only there is less romance and
more practicability about the pig
tails. Very respectable Chinese bus
mess men interest themselves in pi-
racy along the Kwangtung coast,
just as staid old English merchants
used to interest themselves in smug-
Cling a hundred years ago, and no.
body thinks the worse of a man for
having been a pirate, provided he
has been lucky at it. AS to the TAX
ing of life, there is SO much superfu-
Gus humanity in China, and life there
is SO little worth living for the ma
jority, that public opinion is quite
Indifferent on the subject. ..
"While [ had been drumming up
my crewin Canton | had fallen in with
an American skipper who had for
some time been sailing good sized
coaster for a.wealthy Chinese house.
He had his wife with him, and they
were both very pleasant people. He
was a Cape Cod man, not pretty to
look at, for he had the leanest frame
and the biggest hands and feet [ ever
saw. His hands, es pecialIy, would
have attracted attention. anywhere,
not only for their size, but for the
look Of the latent muscular power in
them. He was not one OF those disa-
greeable big listed men who thinks
it good joke TO crush your fingers
in shaking hands with you, but when
he did shake hands with restrained,
friendly grip you felt the possibilities
of his squeeze plainly enough. You
VIII see later on why l dwell upon this
physical popularity Of Capt. Winsar,
for that was his name. His wife
fancy must have come from the south.
At all events she hada southern COM
pleXion-a clear pallor-with black
eyes and hair and q southern supple
ness and grace of bearing. She was
not exactly a pretty woman, but de-
cidedly pleasing, and her composure
and quiet, gentle manners won upon
you steadily. Both of them spoke
Chinese fiuently, and they gave fa-
vorabEe account of the people.
t'They had especial pet in Chinese
steward named Tin-Ling, a burly,
round faced fellow, who would have
passed muster anywhere for an hon
est man but for his eyes. They struck
me as treacherous from the first. He
never looked anybody squarely in
the face, or encountered steady
glance without squirming. [ con
Guided, however, that his employers
understood him, and, anyhow. it
was no affair OF mine My acquaint-
ance with the Winsars lasted until
the captains vessel a small bark
named the So Kiang, was ready to
sail on one of her regular coasting
cruises. She would be away some
three months, and would visit a
number OF little ports I expected to
get away about forty eight hours aft
er her, and the evening before she
left | took supper aboard her with
the skipper and we drank a farewell
glass. As | was going away 1 hap
pened to see Tin Ling leaning over the
side talking to some rough looking
men in sampan alongside, and in a
h aif inkino War sold.