Brown of Moukden: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War

by Herbert Strang

"Now!" he cried to Wang Shih at his elbow.

The word was given to the men; in a few seconds the horses were blindfolded; and by the time the rags were steeped a vast blaze illuminated the sky; the four fires, spreading with amazing rapidity, were sweeping towards the farm at the rate of a trotting horse. Shouts broke the stillness; amid the crackling of the flames the clatter of metal, the shrill whinnies of terrified horses, then the thunder of hoofs. From the fields men ran helter-skelter, some attempting to catch their horses, others in their confusion rushing towards the open space before the farm, careless whether the rifles of the Chunchuses marked them down. Onward came the dense volume of smoke bellying towards the farm. Jack already felt the heat; above his head red wisps of grass were streaking the sky; one fell upon the thatch, extinct; another followed, dying before it could kindle the straw; the next was larger, burned more brightly; it held; the thatch was alight.

The men were prone upon the ground, pressing wet rags to their mouths. Their horses were snorting, whinnying, straining on their halters; one had broken loose, and was madly dashing round the courtyard when Jack seized it by the broken halter and endeavoured to soothe it. The mud wall beat off the flames; but the smoke enveloped the whole farm in a dense cloud, pungent, spark-laden, becoming every moment more stifling. Jack was forced to earth; he could not breathe; still clutching the halter he crept under the lee of the wall, and there lay fighting for breath. The thatched roof was now ablaze; the fields were a mass of fire; would the smoke never pass and leave a passage for the almost suffocated men?

A red glare lit up the farmyard. The flames had devoured the thatch, and were licking the joists. Jack glanced round the scene, his eyes smarting so keenly that he could scarcely see. The horses were shivering with terror; two or three of the men, braving the smoke, were endeavouring to calm them; the rest of the Chunchuses were still flat on the ground. But to the north-east the smoke was thinning. Jack rose to his feet and looked over the wall. The fields between the farm and the river were black, with here and there a smouldering stalk. On the other side the flames were still raging; there was nothing to check their fury. The passage from the gateway was now open; the ground indeed was very hot; but it would be folly to wait for it to cool. Jack called for Wang Shih.

"Now is the time," he said.

Wang Shih gave the word; the men sprang to their feet and vaulted into the saddle; the bar across the gate was let down; and then, tearing the bandages from their horses' eyes, the men dashed out at a furious gallop across the still scorching soil. Jack, mounted on a spare horse, led the way towards the river, making for the bridle path which must have been followed by the Cossack just before the match was struck. For the first half-mile it was a terrible race; sparks and smoke flew up as the horses stirred the smouldering embers; the poor beasts screamed with pain as their unshod hoofs felt the heat; the men breathed stertorously, half-choked by the acrid fumes. Then, in an instant as it seemed, they passed from an inferno into the elysian fields. They had reached the limit of the burnt grass, the keen cold wind struck their faces; men and animals took deep breaths; they were free, and in the pure air again. Floundering through the fresh-ploughed field where the Russians had left their cooking-pots, they came to the river. For one moment they halted to allow men and horses to slake their thirst; then they pushed on, up the northern slope, in the direction of the place where Jack hoped to find Hi Lo and the guide.

On the crest of the slope he reined up for a moment and looked to the left. The sheet of fire was still sweeping on towards a plantation on the south-west side. It seemed that the whole country in that direction must be devastated; nothing could stop the flames but the bare rocky ridge a mile or more away. Faint shouts came from the distance; then a fitful succession of shots scarcely audible through the crackle and roar. Who could be firing? Jack was puzzled to account for the sounds until he guessed that the Cossacks in their headlong flight had flung away their loaded carbines, and that, as the fire swept over them, these were exploded by the heat.

With a glow of content at the success of his scheme, Jack hastened on after the brigands, now walking their horses towards the uplands. There was no fear of pursuit; the Russians were far too much demoralized, and their horses were gone, none knew whither. When Jack overtook the band, Wang Shih suggested that they should follow up their advantage and destroy the enemy. But from this Jack dissuaded him; there were probably other detachments of Cossacks in the neighbourhood; it was best to let well alone, and rejoin his chief as soon as possible. Ah Lum might himself be hard pressed by the encircling movement which the Russians had apparently begun. The Chunchuses therefore rode on, still at a walking pace.

The moon was rising, throwing her silvery mantle over the quiet country. Skirting a black clump of trees the riders were startled to hear the distant clatter of a large body of horses galloping towards them. Moment by moment the sound grew louder. Had another troop of the enemy learnt of what had happened and started on their tracks? Wang Shih looked anxiously around; nothing could be seen, but the sound appeared to come from beyond a stretch of rolling country to the left of their line of march. Giving a brief word of command, Wang Shih wheeled his horse towards the copse; and his band following him at a quick trot, they were soon in the cover of the leafless trees, waiting in anxious silence for the appearance of the enemy.

Nearer and nearer came the thud of hundreds of hoofs. Wang Shih ordered his men to maintain absolute silence; he hoped that the enemy, unaware of his proximity, would pass by and give him the opportunity to slip away undetected. A few minutes passed; Jack was wondering why he could not hear the rattle of sword-cases on the horses' flanks, when on the crest of the low ridge opposite appeared the head of the column, and the earth seemed to shake as score after score of dark forms swept forward towards the path the Chunchuses had so lately left. The brigands had much ado to quiet their ponies, which were pricking their ears and snuffing with distended nostrils in restless excitement. Then, as the moonlight fell upon the advancing mass, every man in the copse heaved a sigh of relief—and something more. Their pursuers were not horsemen, but horses, every one of them riderless—clearly the stampeded horses of the enemy, rushing blindly into the night, the fire panic at their heels.