Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1900-10-19

Some Facts Which Throw Light on Their
Inefficiency and cowardice.

lOr courage. lt is raODle plckeu up
in the slums, ill-equipped, ill-fed, i'll
clothed, ill-paid or paid not at all.
Even the Chinese laugh at their own
soldiers.
AT recent public meeting the
speaker, an American, urged Chris
tian courage and fortitude, saying
that his hearers must endure hardship
and be brave like good soldiers. When
his Chinese interpreter cam to trans
late this passage he interpolated the
remark: "Of course he does not mean
Chinese soldiers"
Why should they be brave? They
have no high motive to urge them to
heroism. Patriotism, as We under
stand it, does not exist Pride of race
there is, but no love of country or
government. A race Of Manchu rob-
bers has been in power for 250 years.
Their authority is tottering on the
brink of ruin. What soldier would
risk his life unnecessarily for such
gang Of bandits?
Moreover. these soldiers know that
they are constantly starved in rations
and cheated in arms and munitions of
war by their .u1<",r officers. Tons
and tons Of gu A,owder are filched
every year from Chinese forts and
magazines and sold to the frecracker
makers, and doubtless a1arge proper
tion of the noisy little fuses with
which American youngsters usher in
the Fourth Of July are made of stolen
powder AT the time of the japanese
war hundreds of government rifles
and even some cannon were in the
pawn-shops, where they had been
placed by patriotic officers who did
not have time to get them out before
the war was finished.
During the early Boxer troubles
squad Of Chinese soldiers was detailed
from fort to guard the premises of
some friends of mine at Paoting-fu,
near Peking. Night after night the
soldiers marched into my friends
compound and camped in one of his
outhouses. AT last it occurred to him
TO request the soldiers to fire a salute,
so that all ill-disposed persons might
know Of their presence. To this they
gravely replied that they would glad
ly do so had any powder been given
them, but that before the next night
they would get some powder and fire
the salute at nine o'clock. Thereaft-
eI, for week or more, promptly at the
appointed hour, the welkin rarg with
a tremendous discharge Of small arms.
But one night it was omitted, and my
friend, inquiring the reason, was told
that the soldiers were out of wadding.
1t was afterward discovered that when
the soldiers had powder and wadding
they had nc bullets.
The fact that fiint-locks are still
made and sold in China-as well as
the huge, antiquated harquebuses
that require two men to hold and fire,
the long barrel resting on the shoul-
ders of one man while the second
touches of ;he fuse-speaks volumes
for the inet6ciency of the Chinese
sharpshoctsr. But the most amusing
spectacle Shich the martial defenders
of the celestial empire make of them
selves is al their drill, especially when
practicing for military degrees.
There ala military as well as literary
degrees conferred by the emperor, and
these coveted honors are given largely
for skill. But not for skill with a
Mauser or HenH-Martini, not for ac-
curacy or rifeo cannon practice or
daring craftsmanship, but-save the
mark!--for skill in archery, and that
in the closing year of the nineteenth
century! Evidently China has not
yet heard that the bow and arrow are
out Of date. The favorite practice is
shooting from horseback, and this
idea stems to retain something of the
romance of chivalry until we see the
maneRverS for ourselves. Then the
possibly sublime quickly subsidies into
the ridiculous. A trench is dug for
the archers, and the old hacks which
they mount amble along in this ditch
while the bowmen, as they slowly pass
the target, discharge their arrows at
it. Even under these easy conditions
the target is rarely hit,
In the treasurer'S yamen at Foo
chow, as in other cities, are stored i'm
plements which the candidates for the