To anticipate a little, it may here be mentioned, that the vessels had wooden wheels, very like an undershot mill-wheel, which were moved by machinery inside the vessel, worked by a sort of capstan by manual labour, the crew walking it round and round, just like walking up an anchor on board a man-of-war; the horizontal revolution was turned into the upright one by strong wooden cog-wheels, upon regular mechanical principles.
When once the spirit of change and improvement has taken hold of the Chinese, it is impossible to say where it will stop among so ingenious and indefatigable a people. Even the emperor himself has ordered still greater changes to be made since the peace, and has directed that "the best materials for building ships shall be procured from all parts of the world; and that, as only ships built on European principles can contend with European ships, they must gradually learn to adopt European models themselves. But, as this can only be effected by time, and the ships are required now to suppress the pirates which infest his coast, they are at once to purchase foreign ships and learn to exercise their crews."
To return from this short digression, we may now ask what sort of a report was made by Admiral Kwan to his mighty master, upon the subject of these first actions below the Bogue—the first great collision between the power and science of the west and the self-confidence of the remote east. Keshen, clear-sighted as he certainly was, could not fail to perceive the many troubles and humiliations to which his country must become subjected if hostilities were pushed to extremes. He was fully alive to the serious defeat he had sustained, yet dreaded to break the truth too suddenly to his haughty master; wise, therefore, in his generation, he declared there had been a "drawn battle." He informed his master that the contest had been maintained from eight A.M. until two P.M., and that "then, the tide ebbing, the foreign vessels ceased firing, and anchored in the middle of the stream, each side maintaining its ground."
He then details the measures he had adopted for reinforcing the position, and apologizes for the absence of more detailed information, upon the ground of his anxiety to communicate the earliest possible intelligence.
The emperor, or rather his ministers, were not so easily to be duped. Keshen was at once declared to be "incompetent;" and it was ordered that his conduct "should be subjected to the severest consideration;" while poor old Kwan was accused of being "at all times devoid of talent to direct, and, on the approach of a crisis to be alarmed, perturbed, and without resources."
From the earliest times to the most modern, success has been vulgarly considered in all countries to be the grand criterion of merit; and the "Felix" of the ancients, the successful, the favoured of the gods, stands nearly as paramount in the estimation of the world now, as it did even in days of old. Kwan was accordingly at once deprived of his rank and insignia of office, but was ordered henceforth to labour to attain merit, bearing his punishment in the meantime.
Various plans were suggested for future proceedings against the English; it was admitted that the junks could not cope with our ships on the open sea, and it was therefore recommended "that our vessels should be enticed into the inner waters, and that there should be employed expert divers to go down at night, and bore holes in their bottoms," while other parties were to come "stealthily upon them at night and board them unawares, and massacre the whole of their crews." Above all, a grand preparation of fireships was to be made, filled with various combustibles, which, with a favourable wind, were to be let loose upon them, and, in the confusion resulting from this attack, their war-vessels were to follow and complete what the fire-vessels had commenced. Great rewards were again offered for the taking or destruction of any of our ships, and 50,000 dollars was to be the recompence for a line-of-battle ship.
We must now return to the current of events which took place immediately after the capture of Chuenpee. The evening after the engagement was spent in making preparations on both sides for renewing the contest on the morrow. Every one on board our ships was excited with the occurrences of the day, and anxiously longing for the dawn of morning, when the thunder of our artillery should make even the walls of Anunghoy and the famed Bogue forts tremble and fall. At length the sun rose, bright and full of promise, on the morning of the 8th. The boats of H.M.S. Sulphur were sent out to take soundings higher up towards the Bogue. The Nemesis was first under weigh, and was directed to proceed at once up to Anunghoy with a couple of rocket-boats.
The morning was calm: the line-of-battle ships were slowly moving up to the positions assigned to them in front of the principal forts; already had the Nemesis taken up a position within capital range of the southern battery of Anunghoy, in such a manner that only three or four guns could be brought to bear on her from it. Already had she thrown in several shells and shot, when the signal, for her recal was observed flying most provokingly from the mast-head of the Wellesley, and being enforced by more than one signal gun, the firing ceased. Just as the exciting moment had arrived, and every man was calculating in his own mind how soon the forts would be reduced, the stillness, not of breathless anxiety, but of bitter disappointment, prevailed in every man's bosom.
It soon appeared that old Admiral Kwan preferred to try his skill in cunning and diplomacy rather than in war, and had sent off a small boat to the flag-ship, under a flag of truce, with a note addressed to the plenipotentiary. The fact has excited some amusement, that a little boat, with an old woman and a man in it, was sent off to bear proposals for the cessation of hostilities at the very moment of their commencement; and that this humble paper, sent in this extraordinary way, was received, and became the groundwork of an armistice, which was concluded in the course of the day.