“From the Yellow River to the railway terminus at Cheng-ting fu—a distance of about two hundred and fifty miles—the ever-growing Imperial procession had travelled almost continuously in chairs, litters, carts, and on horse-back, affording a spectacle which recalled in many of its chief characteristics those of Europe’s mediæval pageantry as described by Scott. Every Manchu Prince had a retinue of horsemen varying from thirty to a hundred in number; along the frost-bound, uneven tracks which serve for roads in Northern China, an unending stream of laden waggons creaked and groaned through the short winter’s day, and on, guided by soldier torch-bearers, through bitter nights to the appointed stopping places. But for the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, with the Chief Eunuch and the ladies of the Court, there was easy journeying and a way literally made smooth. Throughout its entire distance the road over which the Imperial palanquins were borne had been converted into a smooth, even surface of shining clay, soft and noiseless under foot; not only had every stone been removed, but as the procession approached gangs of men were employed in brushing the surface with feather brooms. At intervals of about ten miles well-appointed rest-houses had been built, where all manner of food was prepared. The cost of this King’s highway, quite useless, of course, for the ordinary traffic of the country, was stated by a native contractor to amount roughly to fifty Mexican dollars for every eight yards—say £1,000 a mile—the clay having to be carried in some places from a great distance. As an example of the lavish expenditure of the Court and its officials, in a land where squalor is a pervading feature, this is typical.
“The hour for leaving Cheng-ting fu was fixed by the Empress Dowager at 9.30 A.M. on January 3rd. It is significant of the character of this remarkable woman, now in her sixty-seventh year, that even in matters of detail she leaves nothing to chance, nothing to others; the long arm of her unquestioned authority reaches from the Throne literally to the servants’ quarters. Without creating any impression of fussiness, she makes a distinctly feminine personality felt, and the master-mind which has guided the destinies of China for the last forty years by no means disdains to concern itself in minor questions of household commissariat and transport. It is impossible not to reflect what such a woman might have been, what she might have done for her people, had there come into her life some accident or influence to show her, in their true light, the corruption, dishonesty, and cold-blooded cruelty of her reign.
“The departure of the Court by a special train, long since prepared for its reception by the Belgian railway authorities and Sheng Hsüan-huai, was fixed for 9.30 A.M. in accordance with Her Majesty’s orders; that Imperial and imperious lady, however, made her appearance at the station at seven o’clock, accompanied by the young Empress, the Imperial concubine, and the ladies-in-waiting. The Emperor had preceded her, and upon her arrival knelt on the platform to perform respectful obeisance, in the presence of an interested crowd. The next two hours were spent by the Empress, who showed no signs of fatigue, in supervision of the arrangements for despatching the vast accumulation of her personal baggage, and in holding informal audiences with various high dignitaries, military and civil, on the platform. Amongst others she sent for M. Jadot, and spent some time in friendly conversation with him, expressing great satisfaction at the excellent arrangements made for her comfort, and pleasure at exchanging the sedan chair for her luxuriously-appointed drawing-room car. She took pains to impress upon the engineer-in-chief the importance which she attached to keeping the Court’s baggage and effects within reach, evincing on this subject much determination of a good-humoured kind.
“Eventually, after the despatch of four freight trains, her mind was relieved of this anxiety, but it was to be clearly understood that the same personal supervision would be exercised at Pao-ting fu, for in no circumstances could the impedimenta be sent on in advance to Peking. There is a touch of feminine nature in this incident which can hardly fail to bring the Empress Dowager into some degree of kinship with her fellow-women in other lands; there is also an implied reflection on the honesty of persons in attendance on the Court which is not without significance.
“The scene upon the platform was one of remarkable interest. In utter subversion of all accepted ideas in regard to the seclusion and privacy in which the Chinese Court is supposed to live, move, and have its being, there was on this occasion—and indeed throughout the journey—no sign of either attempt or wish to guard Their Majesties from observation and intrusion. The crowd, quietly inquisitive, but showing no inclination to demonstration of any sort, came and went at its pleasure; Yüan Shih-kai’s braves, who to the number of about a thousand travelled to Peking as the Empress Dowager’s bodyguard, crowded around the Imperial party, invading even their railway carriages. While the ruler of the Empire held audience with some of its highest officials, none of their retainers were employed, as might have been expected, in keeping the people at a respectful distance; the scene, in fact, bore striking testimony to that democratic side of the Chinese character which cannot but impress itself on every foreign visitor to a Viceroy’s or magistrate’s yamên; in the present instance, however, it must have been, for all concerned, a new and remarkable experience.
“To the native spectators, the ladies of the Court with their eunuch attendants were as much objects of interest as the foreign railway officials; the Imperial concubine, ‘Chin’ (or ‘Lustrous’) Kuei fei, a lively young person of pleasing appearance, attracting much attention. This lady, gaily clad and with lavishly painted face, bestowed upon everything connected with the train an amount of attention which augurs well for the future of railway enterprise in China, running from car to car and chatting volubly with the ladies-in-waiting. All the ladies of the Court wore pearls in profusion—those of the Empress being particularly fine—and all smoked cigarettes in place of the time-honoured water-pipe. Herein again, for the optimistically inclined, may be found a harbinger of progress. During the Empress Dowager’s audiences, lasting sometimes over a quarter of an hour at a time, the Emperor stood close at her side; invariably silent, generally listless, though his expression when animated is described as conveying an impression of remarkable intelligence. The young Empress has good features, marred, in European eyes, by excessive use of paint; she, too, appeared to be melancholy, and showed but little interest in her surroundings. The Emperor and both Empresses were simply dressed in quiet coloured silks.
“The special train in which, punctually at 9.30 A.M., the rulers of China left for their capital consisted of a locomotive and twenty-one carriages, arranged in the following order:—Nine freight cars laden with servants, sedan chairs, carts, mules, &c.; a guard’s van, for employés of the railway; two first-class carriages (Imperial Princes); Emperor’s special carriage; first-class carriage for high officials in attendance (Jung Lu, Yüan Shih-k’ai, General Sung Ch’ing, Lu Ch’uan-lin, Governor Ts’en of Shansi, Ministers of the Household, and others); Empress Dowager’s special carriage; special carriages of the young Empress and the Imperial concubine; two second-class carriages, for eunuchs in attendance; first-class carriage for the Chief Eunuch, and the ‘Service’ carriage of M. Jadot.
“The special carriages had been prepared at great expense under instructions issued by the Director-General of Railways, Sheng. Those of the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, and his consort, were luxuriously furnished with costly curios and upholstered in Imperial yellow silk; each had its throne, divan, and reception room. Heavy window curtains had been thoughtfully provided in the carriages intended for the ladies’ use; they were not required, however, as none of the party showed any desire for privacy during the entire journey. While travelling, the carriage of the Empress Dowager was the general rendezvous of all the ladies, attended by their eunuchs, the Empress Dowager spending much of the time in conversation with the Chief Eunuch—of somewhat notorious character—and the Emperor.
“The Empress Dowager possesses in a marked degree a characteristic frequently observed in masterful natures: she is extremely superstitious. The soothsayers and astrologers of the Court at Peking enjoy no sinecure; on the other hand, more attention is paid to their advice than that which the average memorialist obtains, and the position of necromancer to the Throne is not unprofitable. On the present occasion the sages-in-ordinary had fixed the auspicious hour for the Sovereign’s return to Peking at 2 P.M. on January 7th; M. Jadot was accordingly requested to make the necessary arrangements to this end, and the Empress Dowager repeatedly impressed upon him the importance which she attached to reaching the Yung-ting gate of the city at that particular hour. To do this, as the engineer-in-chief pointed out, would entail starting from Pao-ting-fu at 7 A.M., but the determined ruler of China was not to be put off by any such considerations. At 6 A.M. this wonderful woman arrived at the station; it was freezing hard, and the sand storm was raging violently; soldiers bearing lanterns and torches led the way for the chair-bearers, since the day had not yet dawned. The scene in all its details appeals powerfully to the imagination. Once more the baggage question monopolised the Empress Dowager’s attention; her last freight train, laden with spoils of the southern provinces, preceded the Imperial train by only twenty minutes. It will be realised that the august lady’s requirements in the matter of personal supervision of her property added responsibility of a most serious kind to the cares—at no time light—of the railway staff.
“An incident occurred at Pao-ting fu which throws a strong side-light upon the Empress Dowager’s character. The high Chinese officials above mentioned, who travelled in the first-class carriage between the Emperor’s special car and that of the Empress, finding themselves somewhat pressed for space, consulted the railway officials and obtained another first-class compartment, which was accordingly added to the train. Her Majesty immediately noticing this, called for explanations, which failed to meet with her approval. The extra carriage was removed forthwith, Yüan Shih-k’ai and his colleagues being reluctantly compelled to resume their uncomfortably crowded quarters; to these Her Majesty paid a visit of inspection before leaving the station, making enquiries as to the travellers’ comfort, and expressing complete satisfaction at the arrangements generally.