During the early part of the evening complete stillness prevailed; nothing whatever betokened an immediate attack. It was about eleven o'clock when the alarm was given. One of the sentries of the Modeste, which was a little in advance of the other vessels,[44] first discovered several large, dark-looking masses dropping down with the stream. Being hailed by the sentry, the Chinese who had charge of them immediately set fire to the combustible materials which they contained. The flames, bursting forth suddenly, spread the alarm, and pointed out the danger to the other vessels, while it was still remote. There was a general beat to quarters; steam was rapidly got up on board the Nemesis, the fires having been lighted early in the evening; the anchor was weighed, and, in the short space of NINE MINUTES from the time the alarm was given, the Nemesis was under weigh, and under command of the helm.
The premature discovery of the design, before it was actually commenced, disconcerted the plans of the Chinese, and caused them to set fire to the rafts sooner than had been intended. The derangement of a grand scheme at its outset embarrasses all the subsequent details, and is apt to discourage all those who are employed to carry them into execution. The moment they cease to act in concert, the failure of every part of the scheme is certain. Thus, on the present occasion, in consequence of some of the fire-rafts being ignited too soon, the greater part of the rest were not ignited at all; so that, out of the immense number, about a hundred, which had been prepared, not above ten or a dozen were set on fire or sent down against our vessels at Canton. Some, however, were sent adrift against the Alligator, at anchor near Howqua's Fort.
These fire-rafts were ingeniously constructed to effect their object, being composed of boats chained together in twos and threes, so that, drifting down with the stream, they might hang across the bows of a ship, so as not to be easily got clear. They were filled with all kinds of combustible materials. Numerous junks and smaller boats were barely seen in the distance higher up the river, said to have a large body of troops on board, for the purpose of trying to board our ships during the confusion which it was expected would take place. But the moment they found that they were likely to meet with a warm reception, they did their best to get away again as fast as they could.
The Nemesis ran up at full speed towards the fire-rafts, in order to assist the boats of the squadron in towing them away.[45] Many of them, however, drifted fairly on shore, and set fire to the suburbs of the town, causing much greater alarm to the Chinese than they did to those whom they were designed to annihilate. It was a grand spectacle, in the sullen darkness of the night, to see these floating masses of fire drifting about the river, and shewing, by their own reflected light, the panic-stricken parties of Chinese who had charge of them, trying to escape towards the shore, which few of them were destined to reach. Some threw themselves overboard, were carried down the stream, and their struggles were soon ended; others were shot at random by our musketry, the moment they were discovered by our men, betrayed by the light of the fires they had themselves kindled.
So far the Chinese scheme proved a total failure. Nor was the attempt more successful upon the Alligator, off Howqua's Fort. The attack was to have been simultaneously made upon all our ships in different parts of the river, both at Whampoa and at the Bogue; but, owing to some error, or more probably, the premature explosion of their plan at Canton, the attack on the Wellesley, at the Bogue, did not take place until nearly midnight of the 24th, three days afterwards. It was, however, well concerted, and very formidable, as it comprised a flotilla of little less than twenty vessels, chained in twos and threes; many of these had gunpowder as well as other combustibles on board. It was not without great exertion of Commander Fletcher and the few officers and men remaining on board (most of them being absent on service under Capt. Maitland, with the advanced squadron) that they were towed clear of the ship, by the only three boats she had left. In no instance was any damage done to our ships.
But the plan of the Chinese was not limited to their exploits with fire-rafts. The new batteries before spoken of, as having been erected by Yih-shan, just above Canton, towards the river side, opened a heavy fire upon our ships, just when it was imagined they would have been embarrassed by the fire-vessels. The artillery now began to roar on both sides, although, owing to the midnight darkness, it was solely directed by the flashing of each others guns.
The Nemesis had now run so close in shore, that she was able clearly to distinguish, by the light of the batteries and the reflection of the fire in the suburbs, the different Tartar officers rallying and encouraging their men to fight the guns. The two small vessels which lay off the Factories (the Louisa and Aurora) were at one time in imminent danger, as the Chinese had actually brought down to the river side a very large gun, and planted it within good range, to blow them out of the water. They could not be moved until the tide turned; but, by alternately veering out cable and shortening it in again, so as to alter the range and balk the Chinese gunners during the darkness, they managed to escape with trifling damage. In the morning they were moved out of danger with the turn of tide. At intervals, the firing was kept up until daylight.
At length, the sun rose brightly upon the scene of midnight encounter; and now, the wrecks of the still burning fire-vessels, the crumbling batteries on shore, the suburbs of the town in flames, the deserted river, and some trifling damages on board one or two of our own vessels, bore witness to what had happened.