Held by Chinese Brigands

ould reach the river in five days, though to do so he would have to travel by night as well as day. The prisoners had little d

in a few days, and thence the last stage of the journey could be complet

ho knew his business, had taken steps to convince the Governor that the plight of the judge was genuine. He had included

at, ripped up the lining with a sharp knife, and sewed the letters inside. That done, he tied a sash around his waist, threw a straw raincoat across his shoulders, and put on a large straw hat such as the coolies wear when at work in the southern ricefi

t was alive with savage, discordant sounds: the wind howling amongst the rocks, the roar of cataracts, turbulent streams plunging, as if demented, down the mountain-side. But in spite of the darkness and the rain, Men-Ching and his compani

pon the ground, in order that it might dry in the sun. Placing both his hands upon his faded scarlet coat, he expressed the greatest satisfaction to find that it was absolutely dry. The letters were safe; he coul

The rich, fertile valley lay before him, extending as far as the eye could reach. He had left behind him China, the desolate, t

er's errand. We will leave him to his fate, to the mercy of the heathen gods he may or may not ha

he same fears and half-foolish hopes. They could take no exercise, and they had no books to read. Ther

hey could rely upon his word. The man proved himself a reprobate. He was an opium drun

Indeed, the opium pipe in China is the equivalent to the British workman's glas

even in China, is very expensive, and the ordinary man cannot afford to buy much of it. Neither does opium happen to be a drug that does a great deal of harm

o get the desired result. And so on, until he finds himself taking doses that would kill one who was not inured to the drug. By that time he has lost everything a man should value most: his sense of honour, his will power, much of his

any hours had been fast asleep--by the blasphemy and violence of his language. His gait was unsteady; the pupils o

th to all foreign devils who dare set

his sword as if he would strike down

your oath--that if the money is paid y

rl or a Buddhist priest that I should not shed blood when the fancy takes me? Know

life of Mr Hennessy K. Waldron was in the greatest danger. However, Mr Waldron never moved an inch; he neithe

N NEVER MO

well known that no animal can for any length of time look a strong man in the eyes. The eyes of Mr Waldron were those of one who had carved a way for himself in the world,

lowly his sword descended; his eyes dropped to the ground. Mr Waldron, with admirable calmness, deliberately p

o good, you know. Guess you want a good six weeks at some quiet seaside resort, where there

in the tragic vein, suitable to the occasion; for neither in the expression upon the American's face nor in the se

hich is inseparable from the truly criminal character. At such times--which invariably followed a debauch of opium smoking--Cheong-Chau was certainly not responsible for his actions; and discussing the question among themselves, they came to the conclusion that at any moment the

even did succeed in getting away from the cave and crossing the mountains--a very unlikely contingency--the murderous Cheong-Chau would be so furious that he would probab

f not captured, certainly driven from the province. The robber could not be unaware that in the British colony were both English and Indian troops, whilst a large fleet lay at anchor in the harbour, and he must have known enough of the British Government to remember t

as day succeeded day, they became more and more convinced that Cheong-Chau intended to kill them. He did but bide his time, waiting to hear news of

old to attempt to cross the mountains alone upon so long and hazardous a

ysical and moral--was naturally anxious to take the risk himself. However, he could

ll his life in China; on many a former occasion he had proved himself quite capable of conversing even with the most untutored and obstinate peasants. Moreover, the boy was the most active member of the party: he was a good runne

to confess that he could not swim except for a short distance in salt water. If he endeavoured to cros

ll have stayed here to have my throat cut in my

ring whether he was one of the few really brave men in the world, or whether he was entirely devoid of imagination.

e--by putting off Frank's departure. The sooner he was away the better, though they did not then realise the supreme importance

ntrance, that the bulk of his danger would lie. Once the boy succeeded in getting away from the cave, his absence would probably not be discovered

ced that the sentries were not particularly vigilant and that they were armed with old-fashioned, out-of-date fire-arms which they possibly knew not how to use. One of these was a Martini-He

e. Indeed, as often as not, they looked the other way, interesting themselves in the wide panorama extended before them. None the less, since the two passages on either side of the boulder were very narrow, one

ss round this obstacle he would have to go over it. On the other side, as he knew, was the steep mountain slope descending hundreds of feet to the bed of the valley. Whether he could climb down the slope at all, much less do so silently, so as not to be overheard