TREACHERY OF THE BONZES.—NICHOLAS SENT TO PRISON AS A TRAITOR.
With the proverbial rudeness of most small officials, the yah-yu threw cords around the arms of the prisoners and dragged them along the streets, amid the jeers and laughter of the populace, who, enjoyed the prospect of the probable punishment of so serious an offence as rioting, namely, being led about the streets with the cangue, a wooden collar as large as a small table, around their necks; but in this the Chinese crowd was not worse than others in Europe, for, with shame be it said, a tendency to indulge in the minor miseries of their fellows is the cruel propensity of most masses.
When they came to the tribunal they found it crowded with people, who were standing upon either side of the hall, so as to form a lane by which to approach the mandarin, who was sitting at a table, upon which stood a box of bamboo reeds, tipped with yellow; upon his left side sat the secretary, and upon his right stood three men with ominous-looking bamboo canes in their hands. The first case heard was that of a youth whose propensity for gaming had led him to squander a large sum of money lent to him by his father for the purpose of commencing business. I must tell you however, that before bringing the boy before a tribunal, the father had fruitlessly tried every method of kindness. Having listened patiently, the mandarin severly reprimanded the youth, then taking fifty of the yellow-tipped reeds threw them on the ground as a signal for the men with canes to give him fifty blows. Before, however, they could obey, his mother, with tears in her eyes, threw herself at the mandarin's feet, begging of him to pardon her son. Being a kind-hearted man the magistrate complied, but ordering to be brought to him a volume written by one of the emperors for the instruction of his subjects, and opening it at a particular part, said, "Promise O youth, to renounce gambling and to listen to your father's directions, and I will pardon you this time; but that you may not forget, go and kneel in the gallery of the hall of audience and learn by heart this chapter on filial obedience, which till you repeat and solemnly promise to observe obedience, you shall not depart from this tribunal."
The youth being delighted at this lenient sentence bowed his forehead to the earth, and, moreover, I must tell you, kept his promise, although he was three days learning the task. Such being the spirit of the laws, and the paternal mildness with which they are for the most part carried out, excepting only in cases of high treason, we need not wonder that this great population has submitted to their rule for four thousand years.
When this case was over the chief of the yah-yu bowed to the ground and charged his prisoners generally with rioting to the disturbance of the public peace.
"What has the priest of Fo to say to this disgraceful charge? let him open his lips," said the mandarin. Whereupon the bonze fell upon his knees and accused the innkeeper of attacking the idol and leading a mob to destroy the monastery.
"What sayest the innkeeper? for surely the offence is serious," said the mandarin.
Then, bowing to the ground, the innkeeper related the morning's adventure, stating that but for the assistance of Nicholas and Chow, the bonze would have killed him, adding, "Truly, O jewel of justice, thy mean servant demands the punishment of this rascal bonze and his trumpery god, who, notwithstanding the sums paid to them, have permitted his only child to be carried from this life."
Having listened patiently to both sides, the mandarin said, "It is true that two offences have been committed, the one against the public peace, and the other against a private person. The former, being the most heinous, must be first dealt with; and, as without the bonze and the innkeeper, there could have been no such disturbance, let both be corrected with twenty blows. As for the two youths, who were drawn into this disturbance, let them pay half a tael each to some poor person to receive ten blows for them."
The sentence having gone forth, the men with the bamboos caught hold of the culprits, threw them upon the floor, and they received a similar punishment to that dealt out by a schoolmaster upon a refractory pupil; after which, the delinquents, smarting with pain, humbly returned thanks for this benevolent and fatherly correction.
"As for the second offence," said the mandarin, "it is clear that the bonze is either a rogue or no good judge of the powers of the different gods, and knew not to which to apply for this particular favor, an ignorance that has caused the innkeeper to lose his goods; and, in either case, is unfit for his office; therefore, if he is found within the city walls after this night, he shall be placed in the cangue for three moons. As for the god himself, who is the principal party concerned, let him be plucked down from his seat as a useless and malicious deity."
Thus compelled, by custom, to recognize the foolish superstition of Fo, although he no more believed in it than you do, the mandarin humorously punished the bonze.
The wily priest, however, had not quite played out his game, so, dissembling his rage at the result of the trial, he fell upon his knees, saying, "Pardon, O ever-flowing stream of justice, but the meanest and most insignificant servant of Fo, dares claim a reward for a great act."
"What words are these, thou dog of a bonze?' said the angry official.
"If the eyeballs of thy contemptible servant are straight in their sockets, he has seen placards bearing the character of the illustrious tsong-tou (viceroy) of the province promising twenty taels for any follower of the Christian priests, whose houses of prayer have been so wisely destroyed.
"What useless words are these, for where in this city is such a dog to be found, since they were hunted down by the illustrious governor? may he live a thousand years," replied the mandarin.
"This was a terrible surprise to Nicholas, for not only did it convince him that the persecution of the Christians had commenced, but that his own mission had somehow been discovered by the priest; nor was he disappointed, when the latter said, 'Truly, O grand canal of justice, that turbulent youth is even now on a treasonable errand to the Christian priest, Adam, who has so traitorously fled the city.'"
"These are dog's words, thou rogue of a bonze," said the boy.
Not regarding the interruption, the priest added, as he placed a paper in the hand of the mandarin, "The dragon vision of the lord of justice will discover to him that his servant's words are pearls of truth."
Having glanced at the paper, the mandarin said sternly to Nicholas, "Thou art young to be concerned in treason, and yet these characters warn the priest, Adam, against the great Ching-Ti, whom the anonymous writer tells him is about to arrive at Hang-tcheou, specially charged by the Son of Heaven to root out the Christian priests."
"As this is the first time, O mandarin, that thy servant's ears drink in this intelligence he must have been innocent of the contents of that packet," replied Nicholas.
"The youth is young; but, like the body of a snake, his words are twirling and slippery. It is true, those characters may not have reached his eyes, but it is equally true that he was the bearer, for the cover is even now in his girdle," said the priest.
"Thy servant, O mandarin, cannot deny that he bore the letter, but it was in ignorance that it was a crime," said Nicholas, taking the envelope from his vest, now fully convinced that the bonze had picked his girdle.
"Although it is certain that the writer is a traitor, it is not equally so that this youth is an accomplice," said the mandarin, after examining the envelope.
"The dog is a Christian, O lord of justice; and in the name of the Son of Heaven, I claim the twenty taels," said the bonze, forgetting the submission due to a magistrate, in his rage and fear that Nicholas might escape.
"Thy words are dirt, thou turbulent rogue, for it is not clear that the youth is a Christian," said the angry mandarin, adding kindly to Nicholas, "Let the youth deny this charge and he shall be believed, for his words are straight as the flying arrow."
Here was a chance, for it was evident the mandarin was his friend. Still, notwithstanding that imprisonment for life, if not speedy death, stared him in the face, Nicholas was too brave to forswear his Saviour, and he replied, "If to be a Christian, O mandarin, is to merit death, then am I ready to die."
Then the good-natured, but disappointed magistrate said sorrowfully, "The youth is as brave as he is honest, and deserves a better fate; yet must the commands of the great tsong-tou be observed, therefore let the youth be conveyed to the great prison to await his sentence." Without a word or the movement of a muscle, the boy permitted the attendants to bind his arms.
This was too much for Chow, who, with a leap like that of a wounded hare, cried, "The priest, O great lord, is a midnight thief." But such a demonstration being against the rules of decency, the officers seized and silenced the boy by clapping a gag in his mouth. Then the mandarin ordered twenty taels to be given to the bonze, and the latter having made the customary bow was about to depart, when the magistrate said, "Now priest, relate by what means that letter came into thy possession, for it is a maxim that justice should be equally balanced."
Then the bonze related how he met the boys, and took them to the monastery, adding that as they were passing through a passage the letter having fallen from the youth's girdle, he picked it up, and divining that its contents were treasonous, retained the document for examination.
"These are dog's words," exclaimed Chow, from whose mouth the gag had been taken by the mandarin's order; "the priest is a rogue and a rat, for he stole the paper at night while my noble master slept, and although for hours thy servant believed it was a dream, and mistook the bonze for an enemy, he now remembers that after filching the letter from the girdle, the rogue opened the envelope, stole the contents, and then by some mysterious means of his own closed it again."
The bonze being about to reply, the mandarin interrupted him, saying, "Truly has it been said that although eggs are close things, the chicks will out, for the rogue forgot to explain how the letter could leave the pocket of its owner without the envelope. The theft is clear, and it is but justice to the state that the thief should receive fifty blows, and pay twenty taels of silver." This sentence was speedily executed upon the roaring coward, whose back was still sore with the first beating, and so he left the tribunal considerably worse off than he had come before it.