On November 3rd a significant lull took place.
These lulls are dangerous forerunners of evil in China.
The Imperialists had captured Hankow, and were known to be ready to forge ahead towards Hanyang, the great stronghold of the Revolutionists—a city almost impregnable in itself, with a high hill sheltering the town behind, and reached only after fording a rapid river some hundred yards wide at the narrowest. To the north-west a range of hills literally bristled with Revolutionary big guns; the Hanyang Hill itself was practically one shell-proof cover, and noses of guns of all sizes pointed in every direction. At Wuchang all the hills were fortified, and along the river-front big guns were lined for many miles above and below the town. But in the actual fighting, as has been said, there came a lull. That it was a dangerous lull and that it came before the storm was firmly believed. No one better than the Chinese can wait—they are all past-masters in the art of dilly-dallying—and it was believed that a few days would see either the end of the war and the establishment of a new rule under Yuan's dictatorship or the re-establishment of Imperial rule with some modifications, or there would come about a state of affairs infinitely worse than anything yet seen.
With the Revolutionists repeatedly beaten back, although at considerable loss to the Imperialists, with two-thirds of Hankow city nothing but a heap of black, charred ruins, with thousands and tens of thousands of people wandering with no home and no food, with women maltreated and ravished, with looting and massacring proceeding at a devilish pace, the casual onlooker would have concluded that the Revolutionists had had enough. They had seen that the Imperial hand in dealing with them was inclined to come down with extreme force, and if need be, to crush and totally annihilate them—if it could. But, strangely, the Revolutionists, despite their sad plight, with most of their best men killed or wounded, and a haphazard army only at the command of the new leader, were still more enthusiastic.
Probably the most remarkable feature of the whole Revolution in the immediate centre of the three cities around which the active operations were concentrated was the behaviour of the Revolutionary troops. This to the Westerner who has never been to China may not be deemed as important. But the student of Chinese affairs and the readers of Chinese history will be aware that in past revolts in this country the soldiery, such as it had been, had not startled the world with their clean conduct at any period. The reverse had been the case. Previous rebellions had been made famous for the amount of looting, stealing, ravishing, and general lawlessness that had prevailed. But in the Revolution which was led by General Li there was none of this. Throughout, the magnificent manner in which the troops, both trained and untrained, had behaved was a credit to every one concerned in the revolt.
The following edict, one of several published during the first days, will go to show the spirit of the leaders:—
"Li, commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Army, by authority of the military Government, a special proclamation:
"By the command of the army administration, I desire you the people of my country to know that wherever our patriotic troops come you need have no occasion for the least suspicion or anxiety. I come to save you and with no idea of acquiring merit or personal profit, but to pull you out of fire and water, and to cure you of your cankering maladies. Hitherto you have been bitterly oppressed and drowned in a sea of misery through being under the government of an alien race who treat you as bastards and not as children. You must know that the present day Manchu slaves do not belong to the family of Han, and we, being animated by heaven-high patriotism, will not spare them their well-deserved retribution. On this account I could not but raise our patriotic flag in order to give you deliverance by causing all the people to unite their strength and drive them out, together with the traitorous Chinese robbers whom I will not permit to continue long. These robbers have hitherto eaten our flesh and now we will sleep in their skins. Whoever is animated by patriotic sentiments let him quickly come and join our ranks, and together gain the glory of delivering the country. The day of the revival of the Han people is arrived with the establishment of the Chinese republic with which you my brethren will have no cause to be ashamed. Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, let all unite their efforts with ours to drive out the Manchu barbarians. Wherever our army goes it will be under perfect control and troops and people will be treated alike without the least partiality to either. I desire you my beloved uterine brothers every one to respectfully listen to my exhortation.
"Dated the 18th day of the first year of Hwang Ti, being the 4609th year of China."
The other side of the question was eloquently put in an Imperial edict, published about the same time, and which reads:—