Through Unknown Tibet

by M. S. Wellby

At last the event which had been feared so long occurred; the rebels in the east suburb of Sining broke out on the 1st September, and the inhabitants had to make up their minds to withstand a prolonged siege with all its attendant horrors. Several times the general had applied to Lancheo for reinforcements, but had been met with the reply that these Mohammedans were good people, and that there was no fear of their not remaining loyal. The Tao T'ai had also been of the same opinion, or said he was, with the result that they now had to pay dearly for their undue confidence. On the news of this fresh outbreak the city was thrown into a state of wild confusion. Common people and soldiers rushed promiscuously on to the walls, while those on guard hastened to the city gate. In the suburb the Mohammedans set fire to all the Chinese houses, and piled up furniture in the streets to act as a protection against an attack from the city, while above all the noise and confusion was the firing of guns and cannon from the city walls.

The 3rd September was a day of heavy fighting; a number of rebels came down from the north valley, and the men of the garrison went out to meet them. Fighting went on all day, decidedly in favour of the Chinese; but late in the day an attack on the suburb, made through a mistaken order, ended most disastrously, so that what should have been a very successful day ended as the reverse. Han-Uen-Sheo himself arrived in the suburb a few days later. Prices began to rise in Sining, oil being sold at three times its usual cost. Distrust of the officials was again excited by a statement being made that the Tao T'ai had received Ts.5,000 from the Mohammedans to promise that their submission would be accepted, should they wish it. This report was undoubtedly believed by many of the people, though on what grounds is hard to say.

The 21st September was another day of hard fighting, ending in favour of the Chinese, although the enemy managed to fire some temples and grain outside the city. The Chinese had a great advantage in arms, the horse soldiers being armed with European rifles, while the infantry and Tibetans all had guns of native manufacture; the rebels, on the other hand, having very few of any kind. Seventy of them were killed or wounded in this day's fighting.

Towards the end of this month the garrison was increased by 130 soldiers and 300 faithful Salars and Tibetans, a welcome addition, as they are both far bolder men than the average Chinaman. About the middle of October news reached the besieged city that eleven battalions had reached Ping-Chong-i, about sixty li only from Sining, but that the rebels were holding the narrow gorges of Siao Hsia in force, and blocking their further progress.

In one engagement, some rebels, disguised as Chinese soldiers, met these relieving battalions on the march. The latter took the rebels for troops from Sining, and were preparing to greet them, when suddenly the disguise was thrown off, and the Chinese, being caught at a disadvantage, suffered severely, over a hundred of them being killed, and a number of rifles with a large amount of ammunition being lost. Every day the Mohammedans gave proofs of their individual courage, showing that had they been anything like as well armed as the Chinese, they would in all probability have got into Sining.

In the same way another month passed, the wretched inhabitants of Sining anxiously awaiting news and relief from the east, while every few days fighting took place outside the walls. Diphtheria added to the trials of the defenders, and the missionaries were all more or less worn out with their labours. One can scarcely picture to oneself the horror of Mrs. Ridley's position at this time. She, the only white lady in the city, had to face the daily uncertainty as to whether the enemy would succeed in getting in or not, and the possibility (always present in China) of the populace turning against her as well, actuated by the wild idea that their troubles were all caused by the "foreign devils" in their midst.

On the 16th of November, a fresh rumour arrived to the effect that reinforcements had not yet reached Lancheo, but the resulting disappointment was somewhat alleviated by the arrival of two men who had been sent down to Niempe, a walled town, 120 li from Sining, to try and find out the truth about a supply of guns and ammunition reported to have arrived there. These men each brought back a specimen of the rifles, which proved to be Remingtons, and which so delighted the General that he sent off eighty men through the hills to bring back as many rifles and as much ammunition as they could manage. These men got safely through, and returned a week later with a number of Remingtons and some French repeating rifles and ammunition.

On the 30th November, the news arrived of another fight at Ping-Chong-i, resulting in a decisive victory for the rebels, who captured all the arms from the Chinese troops. A few days later 200 people were killed in the south valley, and rumours of relief were very conflicting. At one time the reliefs were expected in a few days, at another they had not yet left Lancheo; but at last what seemed to be reliable information was received that thirteen battalions of veteran soldiers had arrived at Ping Fang, 120 miles from Sining.

A day or two afterwards the besieged were further encouraged by the safe arrival of a large convoy with oil, grain, and other useful articles, including a large quantity of pipe-lighters.

Every one was greatly delighted, especially at the news of the reinforcement, coming, as it did, so close on the news of the defeat at Ping-Chong-i, and when all hope of relief for some time had apparently vanished. The escort with the convoy got into the city unmolested, but about a thousand men belonging to it made two unsuccessful attempts to leave, being driven back on both occasions. But the end was soon to come now, and the rebels seemed to have heard the news of the large bodies of men coming up to the relief of the beleaguered city, for numbers of them began to offer their submission, which, needless to say, was not accepted, partly through mistrust, and partly from a desire on the part of the Chinese to avenge the deaths of those who had fallen, and the destruction of their property.