Narrative of a Recent Imprisonment in China after the Wreck of the Kite

by John Lee Scott

They made many inquiries about Captain Noble, his wife and child, and showed that they knew much concerning our vessel, from the numerous spies they had at Chusan. After a few more such questions, I was dismissed; and, being lifted into my cage, was carried back to the jail, where I had my supper, and was then locked up for the night. At dark the usual serenade commenced, which noise, with my uncomfortable position, drove all expectation of sleep, at least by night, out of my head.

Soon after we had finished our breakfast the next morning, some of the Chinese prisoners began to play on musical instruments, in different parts of the yard, and independent of each other. One of these instruments was something like a mandoline, and played in the same way; but it was a most monotonous affair, with trifling variety in the notes; and the song was as bad, a kind of sing-song noise, with very little pretensions to the name of music. Another was a kind of small violin, played with a bow; the player could only produce a wretched noise. One man had a small fife; he was not a whit superior to his fellows, though they seemed lost in rapture at their own performance, and remained strumming and blowing all day long, barely allowing themselves time for their meals.

The next morning, Wednesday, two more of our party were taken to the mandarins, and on their return reported the arrival of Mrs. Noble, Lieut. Douglas, Mr. Witts our chief mate, and the two Lascar boys, who had escaped in the jolly-boat. They told us that Mrs. Noble was in the same kind of cage that we were in. I could scarcely believe them, till the two Lascar boys were brought in, and they confirmed the statement They had not only put her in a cage, but had also put irons on her, treating her in the same manner as they did the male prisoners; and, indeed, in some instances even worse. The mandarins had not the humanity to order her to be taken out of the cage, but let her remain there.

Soon after the boys had come in, Lieut. Douglas and Mr. Witts were brought into the jail, not to our place, but to the rooms on the other side of the yard; and though we could see them, we had no opportunity of speaking. They had been drifting about in the boat for three days, in great misery, not having had any food, except a little dry rice, and some water, out of a junk which they boarded; till at last, being obliged to go on shore, they were made prisoners. I had hoped they might have reached Chusan, and given an account of the loss of the Kite, and the probability of our being prisoners.

Next day, Saturday, Lieut. Douglas and Mr. Witts, who were kept on the opposite side to us, were taken out of their cages in the daytime, and allowed to walk about the yard; and as they were not prevented coming over to us, they heard our tale, and related theirs in return. Captain Anstruther and Mrs. Noble were kept in separate rooms in another yard; they also were allowed their liberty by day, but when night came, all were locked down in their cages. Through Captain Anstruther's entreaties (who had many opportunities of seeing the mandarins, besides having the advantage of the captured interpreter's company) a doctor came to see some of the prisoners, two of whom had the dysentery very badly, besides several who had spear wounds, and others whose flesh the irons had galled and worked into sores; to the latter he applied plasters, with a pink powder, which healed them in a short time; but as for those who had the dysentery, he merely felt the pulse, looked at them, and went away, leaving orders that the lids of their cages should always be left open, and the irons taken off their hands.

On Monday morning, Lieut. Douglas came over, and told us we were all going to be removed to a more comfortable place; he and Mr. Witts very soon after were taken away. We had an early supper, and as soon as we had finished, some mandarin officers arrived, one carrying a small board, with some Chinese characters upon it. Their arrival caused a great bustle, and the jailer came in, unlocked the long chain that went through all the cages, and took five of the prisoners away with him. They walked out of the yard, and soon after he returned and took five more, and so on till it came to my turn; I was then lifted out of the cage, and walked out of our yard into a smaller one, where the ring was taken off my neck, and the irons off my hands, my legs still remaining chained. I was here motioned to sit down on a small form, and on looking round I perceived Mrs. Noble standing at a gate in one corner. I had not seen her since the wreck, so wishing to speak to her, I got up, and was going towards her, but my keepers immediately stopped me, and one, to my surprise, said, "Must not, must not." I turned to him directly, and said, "Do you speak English?" he replied, "Yes, sare;" though on my asking him some other questions, he either would not or could not answer me. On my again attempting to go to Mrs. Noble, he repeated his former expression, and put his hand on my shoulder to prevent my rising. I was obliged, therefore, to content myself with exchanging a few signs with her.

I did not remain long in this place, for I was soon walked out into the open space before the prison, where I found some sedans, into one of which I stepped. They were open in front, and the ends of the bamboos were fastened together by a crosspiece of the same material, which the bearers, by stopping, placed on their shoulders, and raising the sedan from the ground, trotted off with us at a great rate; several soldiers going before to clear the way.

Some of the streets through which I passed were rather broad, and all were paved with loose flags, not cemented together. The different trades appeared to have their particular streets; the dyers were in one part of the town, the braziers in another, and so on: some of the shops were very well set off, and all quite open to the street. The houses were mostly built of wood, and the names and occupations of the owners were painted up and down the door-posts, in yellow and other bright colours, some being gilded, giving the streets a gay appearance. Here and there was an opening where a joshouse stood; the pillars and other parts of the front gaudily painted and ornamented; and on the roof were placed several images. I passed several open doors, which led into courtyards belonging to apparently large houses; the courts were thronged with women and children, who all crowded to the entrance as I passed. Neither in this, nor in any other instance did they appear to be deprived of liberty, or to live secluded. The streets had generally a door at each end, in an archway; and this being shut at night, relieves the shopkeepers from the fear of thieves, to whom their open houses would otherwise be very easy of access. The butchers' shops were well fitted up with huge wooden slabs and blocks, and quarters of immensely fat pork hung up for sale; geese, ducks, vegetables, and fish, were all exposed in the broad open streets, as if in a market. I was carried across several bridges, which were built over black, slimy, sewer-looking places, from which, and from the streets themselves, arose even more than the two and seventy several stenches of Cologne.