The two divisions of the Chung-wang's army uniting under the walls of Hang-chow, commenced the siege of that city with much vigour. The Tartar garrison being of great strength, and aided by an army in the field, for nearly a month the progress of the besiegers was not very material. Numerous actions occurred, and a severe struggle was maintained, without any decided success upon either side. At last, unable to carry the city by direct attack, after severely repulsing a sortie of the garrison, combined with an attack of the army of co-operation, the Chung-wang determined to reduce the city by cutting off its communications, and with this intent organized operations that, judging by their results, proved of the very gravest importance to Manchoo, foreigner, and Ti-ping alike.
Establishing the main body of his army in lines of circumvallation around Hang-chow, a strong division of nearly 50,000 men was detached under the command of the generals Hwang and Fang, with orders to capture all the important cities to the south-east of Hang-chow, and terminate the expedition with the full possession of the seaport Ningpo, one of the treaty ports open to foreign trade.
Dividing into two columns, respectively commanded by the above-mentioned generals, the division pushed rapidly forward, acting under the direct orders of the Shi-wang, who superintended the movement against the enemy's communications, while the Chung-wang himself conducted the siege operations. The columns of Hwang and his colleague Fang, during the month of November, successively captured all the cities to the south and south-east of Hang-chow, while other expeditionary columns detached by the Shi-wang obtained possession of all situate between the possessions of the Ti-pings in the north and north-east, round to the westward, and to the positions occupied by the two subordinate generals; thus completely cutting off every communication of the besieged city. After reducing the departmental and district cities, Shaou-shing, Fung-wha, Yü-yaou, Yen-chow, Tsze-ke, and many others, and after receiving a deputation from the European residents of Ningpo, who left them highly satisfied, the leaders of the two columns effected a junction of their forces, and, moving upon Ningpo, carried that city by a sudden assault on the 9th of December, 1861. Meanwhile, other divisions, detached from the Chung-wang's army, captured and garrisoned all the southern, western, and eastern departments of the province, so that when, upon the 29th of December, the garrison of Hang-chow succumbed to famine and the determined assault given by the besiegers on that day, the whole of Che-kiang became subject to the Ti-ping Government.
In consequence of these successful operations, the end of the year found the Ti-pings in almost entire possession of the two richest and most densely populated provinces of China, Che-kiang and Kiang-su, while the small portion of Kiang-su yet held by Manchoo authorities was comprised within a radius of thirty miles around Shanghae. Faithfully observing their part of the agreement made with Admiral Hope and his coadjutors, the Ti-pings refrained from any advance upon Shanghae, even although the non-fulfilment by the British authorities of the conditions upon which the said agreement was made fairly released them from its obligations; but directly the "present year" had expired, every other position in the province being already in their hands, troops were moved forward to drive the Manchoos from this their last stronghold in the province.
As has been already observed, the position of the Ti-pings was one which but for the interference of the British Government must undoubtedly have caused the overthrow of the Manchoo Tartar dynasty. They possessed the valuable silk districts, the tea districts of Ngan-whui and Che-kiang, the cotton districts of Kiang-su, and the potteries and porcelain manufacturing districts of Kiang-si, which together constitute the principal sources of revenue in the empire. The repulse of the Ying-wang, and consequent fall of Ngan-king upon the 5th of September, afforded the Imperialists but little compensation for their defeats everywhere else. Ngan-king, completely invested by land and water, and unrelieved by the Ying-wang, after its garrison had endured the most terrible privations, fell into the hands of the besiegers. Three regiments of the garrison, unable to endure the horrors of the famine raging within the doomed city, which had reduced them to cannibalism of the most frightful description, human flesh being eagerly sought at the price of eighty cash per catty[39] and devoured with avidity, surrendered to the Imperialists upon condition of a free pardon, but were massacred to a man, and their headless bodies cast into the Yang-tze. After this the remaining portion of the fighting men came to the usual Chinese arrangement with the besiegers, and leaving the city unmolested, reached the Ti-ping position at Loo-chow. Then came the triumph of the Manchoos, who, entering the city, ruthlessly slaughtered the non-combatant inhabitants: men, women, and children, whose mutilated bodies were borne down towards the sea by the swiftly rushing waters of the great river. I beheld them mangled with every atrocity that fiends could perpetrate, floating down the stream in hundreds, huddled together, while the river steamers, Governor-General and Carthage, surrounded by the ghastly remnants of mortality, became impeded in their movements.
The capture of Hang-chow and the entire of the Che-kiang province concluded the operations of the Ti-pings in 1861. They had now attained a magnificent position; the richest provinces and most important cities of China had become subservient to them, the most valuable sea-coast in the world was partly theirs, their base of operations against the Manchoos could not be surpassed, and it only now remained to capture the commercial city of Shanghae. The whole of the trade of the interior, valuable beyond calculation, was justly theirs,—it had been so since 1860; but yet that city was maintained by British forces as the citadel of the Manchoos, whereby the Ti-pings were defrauded of the export and import duties which belonged to them, but which, in the hands of the Manchoos, not only answered for the "indemnity," but served to obtain for them all munitions of war needed to carry on the struggle. Under these circumstances, the possession of Shanghae became imperatively necessary, and yet such was the chivalrous observance of good faith on their part that they refrained from hostilities until the expiration of the "present year," although long since released from all moral obligations, and prompted by all considerations of self-interest and aggrandisement to subjugate Shanghae without a moment's notice or delay.
FOOTNOTES:
[35] See Parliamentary "Correspondence respecting the opening of the Yang-tze-kiang river to foreign trade."
[36] See Blue Book, "Upon the Rebellion in China," presented to Parliament April, 1862.