The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-01-31
Crafty Chinese Took Advantage
of the Scarcity of Troops
on the Island.
ADVANCED ON SEVERAL POINTS.
Japanese Teachers Sent TO Educate the
Heather Were Brutality
Slain.

pOlntment OF the Japanese, who imagined
that order had been restored in the island.
No doubt exists any longer that the Jap
hnese have treated the Formosans with
Undue leniency.
y There is in the island large population
of folks without any fixed property or en-
ployment. These people are ready at any
noment to engage in enterprises giving
promise of plumber. They are supplied
with funds from Foochow and Annoy,
where the Chinese officials, at the instiga-
ton of the VIceroy of Marking, have ap-
piled themselves, more sinico, to foment
trouble for the new rulers of Formosa,
and they possess a certain quantity OF
weapons, left with them in consideration
of their crafty representations that with
out arms they would be unable to oppose
tie frequent raid of the aborigines. and
must, therefore, require the protection OF
a large force of japanese police or soldiers.
1t seems certain that for several weeks
they had been planning an emeute, their
idea being to make sudden dash at Tai
peh, Tamsui and the other principal towns
in the northern districts. Thinking that
the withdrawal of the Imperial Guards
left the field comparatively free for their
essay. they planned a simultaneous attack
upon Taipeh and the neighboring posts,
the time originally chosen being the early
morning of New Years day, when it was
supposed that the Japanese would be en-
tirely engrossed IN the festivities of the
season.
IN some respects the insurgents could
not have selected their opportunity better.
The Japanese troops occupying Taipeh
and the surrounding districts consisted of
one regiment only, and that, too, a regi-
ment of the Territorial army, or Second
Reserves, as they are sometimes called.
Required to defend a district of large ex-
tent and TO garrison many military posts;
the regiment could not spare more than
one battalion for the defense of Talpeh,
where, consequently. not more than 500
men were available for fighting purposes.
The exact number of the insurgents is
not known, but it seems to have aggre-
gated fully 10000. Either their arrange
ments were not perfect or they found it
impossible to synchronize the assaults
delivered by their various sections. At
any rate instead of a simultaneous attack
upon several places at dawn of New Years
day they commenced by launching their
forces, on the 9th and 18th of December,
at Gilang, Zuiho and other places near
Kelung with the object, evidently, of sew
ering communications between the last
named town and the capital Talpeh. On
the whole, success rested with the insur-
gents in these early encounters.
The little parties of Japanese stationed
at the assaulted outposts were not only
greatly outnumbe red but also taken by
surprise. They nevertheless fought stoutly,
either retreating in good order or making
q determined stand. By midnight on the
last day of the old year the tide of insur-
rection had swept TO the neighborhood of
Taipeh. -Four outposts were attacked, the
first police station, where nine of the con-
stables were killed, the rest escaping; the
second a telegraph post, where ten ope-
Tators we've butchered; the third a military
station, the garrison of which retired in
safety upon Taipeh, and the fourth, also
military station (Hobe), where the assail-
ants were driven back.
An hour and half earlier Q0:30 P. NJ
Deem Der 81 a desultory demonstration
was made against Taipeh from point out
side the northeast gate, but the garrison
being on the alert the rebels were held in
check for time. BY and by, however, be-
the outposts mentioned, the Chinese made
a fresh advance. But they never fought
with anything like gallantry or nerve.
Resolute and ready enough when there is
question of butchering half a dozen JAP
aDese soldiers or land-transport coolies,
they show interminable hesitation and dis
cretion in the presence of any real resist
ance on however small a scale.
Throughout the 1st, ID and Sd of Janu-
airy they continued volley or independent
firing against Taipeh, without attempting
any real assault. By that time their OPP
portunity was lost. A transport carrying
400 men. sent from Japan to re-enforee the
second division, which is stationed in the
south of the island, reached Kelung on
the Ist of January. This force was i'm
mediately diverted to Taipeh, and on its
arrival there the Japanese at once assumed
the offensive, quickly clearing the vicinity
of its cowardly occupants. During the
night of January 3 another force OF
thousand Japanese, the transports carry
ing which had similarly touched at Kelung
en- route from the south, marched into
Taipeh, the safety of which was thus as
sured.
Meanwhile Tamsui also had been as
saulted, but had beaten off the rebels, and
communication between Kelung and Tai
pen had been restored. All danger of the
Instruction assuming serious dimensions
was now at an end for the moment, but
the Japanese were not yet sufficiently
strong to undertake an offensive campaign
on large scale. A hundred and fifty
japanese lives were sacrificed up to Janu-
airy 3, including eighteen constables and
six schoolteachers.
Inc Chinese practiced their wonted bar
parties. Near the village of Sikkow were
1ouhd the headless bodies of thirteen 'Japa-
nese' ali brutally mutilated. The fate of
the SIX schoolteachers was particularly
sad. They were all comparatively young
men, in the prime of life. Natur-
ally, IL had been from the first
paramount object with the Japa-
nes@ to start educational work in