Corporal King, United States Marine Corps, was killed by a Chinese sniper in the Russo-Chinese bank. The United States barracks were set on fire, but fortunately the fire did not spread to the legation. Captain Halliday, Royal Navy Marine Corps, was severely wounded by a stray bullet. Thirteen men are in the hospital.
June 25. During the night one of the captured Boxers tried to escape, so in the morning they were both shot. There was about twenty minutes of hot firing about the same time as last night.
At 5 p.m. the Chinese put up a poster on the north bridge ordering the firing to stop, and to protect the ministers, stating also that they would send us a message. This message was never sent, however, and though the firing was stopped for a few hours, it soon started up again, and the whole thing was believed to be a fraud by which the Chinese wished to get some of the foreigners outside the legation to be killed.
ENTRANCE THROUGH GREAT WALL INTO MONGOLIA—ROTATING GATE
This great wall extends in massive proportions over more than a thousand miles of plain and mountain. It was built ages ago as a bar against the incursions of the barbaric and warlike tribes, who were destined in time, despite this tremendous obstacle, to overrun and acquire the kingdom and place their own rulers upon its throne.
The Americans and Germans again took their positions on the wall, and began building barricades in the face of the Chinese gun. As the mutton began to get scarce, the first horse was killed. It was very good eating, and I doubt not that we have had some of that kind of beef before, in substitution for the genuine article. Three rockets, probably Chinese, were seen during the night.
June 26. The night entertainment—“fireworks”—came at 3 a.m., instead of midnight, as usual. Chinese troops were seen marching northwest, supposedly to convey the Empress to the summer palace. By this time the shells from the various guns close by us began to come nearer, several exploding in the compound. “Bomb-proof” cellars were therefore started in different parts of the compound, in which we might take refuge if the shells actually began to do damage. These “bomb-proofs” were trenches about six feet deep, covered with a roof of timbers, boards, and from two to four feet of earth or sand-bags. These it was thought would furnish efficient protection against fragments of shell. Sergeant Fanning, United States Marine Corps, was killed by a sniper on the city wall.
June 27. Very heavy firing, mostly from the imperial city wall. A crowd of greenhorn Boxers started to attack the Americans on the wall from below. The Americans turned the Colt on them, killing about fifty, and the rest got away.