The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-10-01
THRILLING ACCOUNT
OF PEKlN SIEGE

tConciudcd from Page 81
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| cntcry and had to have quiet place. Out doors
is really the pleasantest, when a good cover Is
obtainablc Every available foot OF space IL
crowded, as VIC have nearly 100 people (scrvants
includtD living where about 150 have lived.
THE HORRORS OF WAR.
Well, that night the horrors Of war began. I
will not attempt to follow II day by day. ny
fair means or foul they, the Chinese, were
bound to get In TO murder us. Not content
with rife and cannon, they have tried over and
over again to set fire to our buildings from
the outside. After several exciting experiences
Of this kind, fighting fire behind which were
hundreds Of soldiers and BOXERS ready TO shoot
any man who showed his head to throw water,
we put stop to II by burning and tearing down
all buildings bordering on our north and west
sides. We had thought ourselves safe on the
north from fire, as we adjourned there the Han
Lin Yuan, where reposed the empires most valu.
able books, including the $1,000 volume encyclo.
pcdid, all In writing, not print of which there
are not more than three or four copies in the
world, thousands Of blocks for printing, the win.
ming essays OF ages Of examinations for high
degrees, etc. One morning the hends set fire to
buildings In that compound. and threatened
thereby everything in the legation. We fought
the fire and the fcnds, and then destroyed
number of the buildings. Threc.fourths Of the
blocks and books, I suppose are destroyed by
hrc or water, and the pride Of China's scholars
is sadly wounded. We now hold large piece OF
that compound and have fortified 1t. The people
Of the legations have every reason to be thank.
ful to us for saving the hundreds Of converts,
for we never could have created all our FORTH.
cations without the help Of their labor We
have spent our days in experimenting them in
all sorts of work, and they have faced the shot
and shell with much courage, not few Of them
having lost feir lives for the general safety.
Willie have built barricades, made loop.holcs,
dug bitches. and lodged bullets, my chief work
has been in connection with one Of the things
in which Gods loving kindness has been most
clearly manifcst--I have been the "millur."
DESTRUCTION OF LEGATIONS
After the destruction by the Chinese of the
Austrian, italian, Belgian and Dutch legations,
the customs, postoffce and other places. there
still remained within borders several grain
shops. and three foreign stores These have, thus
far, furnished abundant food for our almost 5000
people. The rice supply was not as abundant as
the wheat. one shop having just received thous.
ands Of bushels OF new wheat from Honan. Had
it beer two or three weeks earlier we should
have had none. In this shop there eleven
Chinese mills for grinding wheat. After carrying
away some Of the wheat to the legation, lest
we lose 1t all, We set the mills going, and day
after day, worked by mules. they ground out for
us far more than we could nse at the time Of
graham -four and cracked wheat Later on as
those quarters seemed dangerous we moved away
seven Of the mills and set them up in safe places.
From the beginning, as member OF the food
supply committee, l have had chief charge OF
this work. We should have been in need OF
bread by now had it not been for those mills.
The original shop and mill were at the corner
of a bridge. which ! will show you in the plan
mean to draw for you. Bullets whistled by all
day long, and we had to 'dodge" them always
in going and returning. Gilbert Reid was wound
ed in the leg there, and saw two Chinese Ro.
man Catholic children shot through, one killed,
the other shot through the two shoulders, in
front of the door, Shell and shrapnel exploded
over us and fell about us. had fine view from
the mill of the portion of the city wall held
from the beginning by our American marines,
with some help from others. 1t has been the
most exposed position Of all. and seven Of the
original ifty-three have been killed, nine Others
seriously wounded. 1t was that wall that
received my own wound, happily, a very slight
one, on my heavy pith hat. l had already spent
one night directing ten men and helping them
to face the sand bag baricade with huge bricks
from the wall itself, while the rifle balls screamed
within foot or two Of our heads, and an occa.
sional brilliant rocket from the Imperial City
exposed us to the direct fire Of the enemy from
the east Several days later took ten men up to
work for two hours on the western barricade
which had been but recently taken from the
enemy by brave charge in the night. when
two Americans were killed and Captain Myers
wounded, while they killed thirty or forty Chi
nese and took their barricade. Peering
through the rifle loop-holes / could see dead
Chinese soldiers lying in and out OF their desert
cd tents, and the odors from their bodies
simply awful There had been no cannonading
fnrc n tbn nd
casional rifle ball whistlcd past When we were
almost done with our work suddenly I was
knocked fiat, my pith hat flew off, and knew
that | had been struck in the head. put up
my handkerchief and found the blood flowing
though not excessively. A shell had been fired
from the west, struck our barrcade. burst, and
knocked down the top of the wall on my head,
| happened to be just behind the spot. l
think two bricks must have struck me, one
mashing portion OF my three.quartcr.inch pith
hat to the thinness of postal card, the other
cutting my head slightly. The Chinese laborers
made tracks for the foot OF the wall, but I
stayed while two shells passed me and one
more struck, and our men on the wall and the
Russians from below so volleyed the gunners
that they fired no more. Then went down and
had the cut washed and was none the worse
for it except that had to wear my hat on one
side for a few days Mr.. Reid and !, and Mr..
Norris (Englsh are the only missionaries who
have been hurt at all, and none Of our wounds
We're serious, though Reid's laid him up for two
weeks. Ffty-siN marines OF all nations have
been killed, and 12O wounded (No, the fifty.sx
includes four Ave civilians). In referring to
the wall, | started to tell you Of one blue day.
when I saw the American barricade attacked
with shell, one after another bursting either in
or against it. The men could not stay, as their
barrcade was much weaker then than now, and
they came running down the vamp Of the wall,
the captain last, My heart went down, down.
AS expected, the word was soon passed along
by the guards that it would be unsafe for me to
stay at the MILL so, unhitching the animals, we
took all the wheat we had ground and carried
1t as quickly as possible to the legation. l had
not finished this work, however, before ! saw
our marines stealing back to the barricade, which
the Chinese had not dared to occupy. They were
reinforced by some Russians and British and
have not only held the place ever since, but
have enlarged their holding fve,fold. Both my
experiences on the wall were after this.
THE SAND BAGS.
Another Of the most remarkable Provdences
in connection with this siege is the never-ending
supply of material for sandbags. These bags
have saved many life on the tops OF baricades.
There was very little to make them OF at first,
hut what had was used, We "looted" the
shop Of Chinese tailor and got two hand,powe
sewing machines, and Miss Dorno had one with
a treadle The foreign stores furnished consider
able cloth. A large number Of native shops.
dwellings, temple, ETC., within our borders,
provided dozens OF rolls Of cloth, silk. brocade
embroideries (worth several dollars a yard some
Of thcm); the legations offered curtains, table
linen, etc., so that day after day our ladies have
been able to turn out hundreds and thousands
of sand,bags, which, filled with dirt. have made
The best possible barricades. We have been spc.
cially favored also in the presence of Mr.. Came