THE REBELLION IN CHINA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 222, 5 September 1862, Page 6

THE REBELLION IN CHINA.

[From the- Times, June 17.] I The following- extract of a letter fro-n Mr. Harvey. Consul at Nir.ppo, to Mr. Brucv. our Minister at Pekin, gives a more decisive judgment than had yet been formed from e.vperieiice of! Tai;ping ride : — "Three months have elapsed since Nintrpo fell into the hands of the insurgents, and from the hour of its capture to'the moment when I a:n penning th<>e lines, not a. single stop in the direction of a nood government has bten taken b" I tie TaepiiiKs ; not any attempt made to organ i.-u---a political body or cnin.-nereia) institution; nor a vi'.-t^e, not 'a trace of anything approaching to order, or regularity of action, or c msi>t- >nc\ of purpo-e, can-he found in any one of their pu'.ic acis. Tlig worils • (Joverntnnual machinery," as applied toTucping rule, have no possible lne.-sn- ig here; and, in short, desf.hi.vm is the on'v c-nd »b- ---. tainetl, us it h:is al-.vays been, wherever "the sw.n of the marauders has hud its full scope,- an.i tluir power tlif? liberty in' uadiwk^d ('Xce-sfs. I feel I that this is bur a nnl.tiichy result to luve to re-I \yn-t; and rhii '...a aicmnt may, pvobaby, not i prove surisfiictnry t »or he concun-ed iii \,\ ihos'j who.*-:' minds iiave ')<"mleeeiv.d nnd lheir"n:.der.l imajriuations c:\rn ] .<\vn< by C'-vi'Ju'ertted '•vjiectatioii'*, HUtti) as ' >•<.->£ leration. of tho empire,' ' re- I dumpti >n 'of Chin ■' " introduction of Chri-tiauifv,' and 's; 1 ntio:i ol :'i" people/ ]im to these wo, like myv.eii, weft- r..>v.influenced by these imaginary hopes, and -vii i judjieil of Taopinudom ir s»ber sense.and (Hsnas.sionately. t?:e- last three months* prob;tijtm is by no means ■stnr'Ung, tie experiment.having produced exactly what wa< expected—niiii, .ic'solation, and th-.-'annUiilaMon of t-vjry vitil prj.icipk-in nil that surrci'uuds the pros -nee or lies under the bane of the.Taepings. ■'■Your Kxa-ilericy will doubtless have been prepared for th.j fruit, for the tree has never yielded many promises ; still, painful as the experiment has )troved so far, it wiU be a source of satisfaction at a future date to fee! thnt at, one of our treaty ports the fullest freedom of action had been allowed to the Ta'rpings in order to try the range of their mental powers and their means of organisation, and that in both those spheres their capacity tailed signally. This result will be' the best answer to those who now support the movement, and will, perhaps, then admit their error. For my part, unlike many foreigners in China, I am fur from condemning" this party because most of its chiefs are not of iii^h birth'and their education not on a level with Chinese literati generally. Tho htstory of the world's past ages shows "that politics-of durability have been founded by men not superior to the Taeping leaders iv learning and acquirements ; but 1 am forced to turn my face away from them simply because they must represent, to'well-balanced minds,-anarchy, confusion, and unproductiveness—the latter in its most comprehensive acceptation. It U palpable that a party which, after ten years full trial, i* found to produce nothing, and to destroy everything, cannot pretend to last, or be admitted, even indirectly, into the comity of nations ; and that, on the contrary, it deserves to bring, upon itself the well-merited opprobrium of all the enlightened classes of society. ■These may. appear strong expressions, but it seems to me that the time has at len/th arrived when, to speak of the Tuepings and to judge of their acts, the utmost freedom of opinion and of expression should be exercsed by public functionaries in China; on that areouut, therefore,-1 consider! am only fulfilling a duty in piling my judgment, .such as it is, and whatever may be its worth, upon this extraordinary movement. I repeat, I have no bias one way or the other; arid, indeed, I should state that personally I have received every mark of courtesy and proper regard from the Taepiu;; chiefs; and, further, I have found in official dealings with them a rough and blunt sort of honesty quite unexpected and surprising, after year* of.public'intercourse with the Imperial mandarins. Nevertheless, the Taepings, with their frank demeanour and bluff energy, have a fume of blood and a look of cirnago about them from which I, for one, recoil with honor " With these prefatory remarks I shall now reply, as well as I am able, to the several points mooted in your Excellency's despatch, and re' specting which your-Excellency ia desiroua of

hiving my'opinion. *In doing so, I would re-ipr-iftiHy remind *y°ur Excellency that the information required has been obtained with difficulty from the natnraliy suspicious Tacpings, who, among other peculiarities, possess a power of concealment and general secrecy quite wonderful to meet in China. I think, however, I may well r»ly on the correctness of the following statement :— '■ The first point has reference to the payment ; of the Taeping troops. The insurgent soldiery do not, as an established rule, receive pay; they live, like pirates, on whatever they can obtain in the shape of booty, either in kind or specie. If the capture of a city has produced a rich harvest of plunder, the men benefit generally in the prize; if, on th* contrary, the town has yielded little profit, the Tuepings wait for better days with exemplary patience. The neigbouring districts arc then ("and indeed in almost all instances) made to contribute to the support of the army. Tie country about Nin^po, for example, was compelled to reir.it its quota of tribute in the shape of rice, pi-^s, fowls, vegetables, nnd the like farm proJu ;e, to feed the troops. The peasants forced to s«|.| in these supplies were seen by me bringing provisions, Sec, into the city with chains ami ropes round their necks in token of servitude. That the Tapping soldiers live upon what they j can get may be inferred clearly from the invariable answer made to mo a dozen times, and which I remember was likewise given to Mr. Consul L'nrkcs in my presence. On questioning de-cently-ilrejscd Tueping soldiers as to how they liked their profession, the rejlv has ever | been tha following :—" Why should I not like it? I help myself to everything I choose to lay hauls up in, and if interfered with I just cut the man's head oiT who ft) interfere-*,' att-iic&im: j time making a motion with his hand a* if he «e:e i s twins oft' a held. Tni< b-.-iupr an answer off« i hear I and the motio i ly-in^ a notorious one wit.'i the chiefs it the city, I submit both su apt illu.jtta'ions of Taking LisitHmbu,. and of their reckica* contempt fjfhui:i:V!i life. "The Taenin^ possess a regular embodied force, a drau-ht from \rlu<:h fbrins tiie nucleus of the Wly of moii w-sit upon any sjieei-tl s»ervic3 or expedition, .such iiui:lriiis f.'.-i;ig co-tipostjd of old and we!! tri-d rebels of s<:v ral years' standi ig, and tie r«;«iiuu'ler uf the armed iorce in each case Uiu^ younger n-crult-f, or pexsanti prosed into their hervi.io.' The coi>s which attacked and captured Nin^p-j ini^ht have had one old r*-i.el in ten in us formation, tJie veterans s.-rvin;; {riiieipaly to ke^p in a proper stite ofsubmission the younger volunteers o;* preyed meu. "Their great aim—l should say their chief condition of suLve.^-H to strike terror ; fir*t, by r;uni bcr.4 and, secondly, by th.; tawdry harlequin garfj \v..ru by them, and winch (however ins vuiblc it may s fin) has .such a strange dK-et on the win-is of all • o!a«*.-s of people in tlmenintry. Your fixcclleucy will p-.i-oiw. ju tiis uri-icuouiitabY' ei!l-ct, another instance* of tlif p:ty ; mou of thought, and of the op- , 1 pr> it-- m j !t; i.f analyzing- and aceaintiii^ for eaus«.* • and tfk-cts riiiisjn with the Chinese raw,'in <• iritnt-dktiti-.-tion to 12-.irv)|»n:»s. With us tha burl-apie , costume and other ridiculous -Icvites of the T.iepinpi would u:ily Mid to lai-x- h smile ; tiut I firmly be!kv-j I thit this -ire-w. />< r *~ has an tihet th* v< ry r.-vtrs* ■j on t!iv i r 'uoaut.-!ndM>;itev.li:it p-imitive in!.:i'itautsof ■ t'ti.s country, -ir. :i< h-iif tut battle with th<- re.VN. m th-y wvil knov,-. Th-ir imig, shns-jy, black hair • ni'ain a-Ids to the vviUnf-ns of their IwjU ; and when this f <tntaj.ti--.il appearance is accmjpinie 1 In- a cert iin Mi'»w of fury and mo.iii*>>. it i- reaUy lit !e to be svond-'ii'd at if tin.- mild Chinee, fifistitut.il as we know them to be, cither take to flight or submit : tamely. •■ Able-bodied men, as stated above, are compelled to fail ia their ranks, whatever may have been their previous calling in life ; for, alter the loss of their property, some of them lave no option kit but to lijiht or to starve. Soinftitnps, «l»o, rfS|K.'i'tnb!e dt-ni7.cn>* are under the -absolute necessity of joining the Taepinsj flag, -olely because tliev Htifl that in eon^uered distri l< such a Cittnpromise is uiMvoiduble in order to save remnant-, of property, and very frequei.ti,' lo place their necks out of jeopardy." It U simply, in all i-'stances, a fan-id subjection. I do ii-.a niv^'lf b-i'ieve that t!jf> iimur-ents have had the vohin|ta v alk'giuiice of hulf-a-duzen respectable Clsim-se i sin ••:» they first appeared at Nankin i:i 1853. I s will evt-u fuithc-r, and c-xprc.ss my conviction t lat not one single ri;.«!>e<-tah]e Chinaman iias ever over ta the Tnepin^s uf hi* own freewill and aeco.d. How could this be p--.s<H»le ? The resptciablo Chinese are an orderly, shrewd race of men, nnd they must feel, and are convinced, that prosperity, coufidoni'i', and a pood name can never follow in t!ie footsteps of Lri^and-ij;*', however eKten-ive tiie scale up >n which it ninv be carried 0.1. " The military tactics of the Taepinirs arc of j the hi-nplest and most primitive in tln-ir action ; indeed, I doubt whether the word 'tactics* can in any wav be applied t(» tht-ir uniform mode of w.-ir-fue. Xumbers.as I have already remarked, are the l\i it c uisidcration with tluin"; and these they pour i itoany given place, or upon any spot selected a a prize. Before tha main belies appear, j howe> ,r, spies and emissaries are sent fccrctlv to fed th,-w.tv and to hprcad false rcp<Tts; and in the 'iiidst of the panic and alarm caused by these report» and intrisrucs the spies set fire, if they jire able, to detached buildings, and oi'ie-i io entire streets, in and out of the i-iiv. Should these ymissarics be seized and hthi-ailed by the Mandnrins. others arc deputed In the reljcls to take their place without dilav, when simitar mai:(K:tvre« are a^ain commenced,' unt.l cither the Muidurin* or the city po.mLuion I tske to flifjhr, or, as in the case of Xin^p-i, such I th.iMuiuh Ueuiondizauon is created that the place fills an easy prey to t!u- irsurjjt-n-s. .Meanwuile runaway viUjs^rK have not failed to msii in, breathless, with exaggerated reports of the num-b'.-r* and doiii^s of tiie Tae;>ing forces i-een by them. In the v, mfitsion a few rebels appear in the d'srance. their gjvtdy mttUicoliuel dress having its usual stmnjie elfe-f, and their melnnrlnlv slmurs and yeNs striking terror in the hearts of the t.mid Chinese. : If. then, the game ha> been so fur successful^ j played out, and the coast appears pretty clear, very little remains to be done ; hundreds and' ' tbousinds of insurgents rush wildly on to the troal I armed Avith knives, spears, and foivlin^-pieces, i carrying, of course, everything before tlTem. It is then, and then only, thnt the chiefs or leaders or princes appear for the first time ; for these are s-eldom or never heard of, nor is their immediate action seen, until the hi-,'!« ro:id has been opened by the skirmishers, called in Shanghai marauders. The late events at that port show, I think, the correctness of the above account In the repeated attacks upon Shanghai, the supposed marauders were, in accordance with the universal usage of the Taepin«s, thrown in detachments in advance, hurnitiy villages and creating panic the chiefs of course remaining behind. wafclun«' the result of the game ; which there, lam happy to say, turned out, as we know, to have b-en a losing one, thanks to Sir James Hope and our \ olimtccrs. I think the Shanghai lesson will have a salutary effect on the Tacpin«»s. for they are in painful dread of'turd blows, nntv. ithstandlnK t'«"»r spiritual origin and pretensions. '•This despatch has already assume i such a ! enßth that I will not add to it accounts from Hang-chow, which I propose sending ii. a separate communication. Your Excellency*- belief in the sufferings of the people in that city art fully j borne out by facts. All the details wlV.oJi have i reached me represent the misery experienced as I truly heart-rending. I " I would now, with due deference, close this despatch with a few observations on Ta*pin"domand in so doing I feel that lam perhap; travelling b-.-yond my legitimate functions of . i.asul, as your Excellency is alone, from your j.i 1, pos ittoii and experience, competent to den! with so grave and important a question. But t c subject ot t.ic Jaeptng rebellion is now so much discussed, and lies under such serious consideration in London, Paris, and Pekin, that I have, like other people, ventured to give my evidence in this case. I therefore rely on your Excellency's iu(lul/encc in excusing this intrusion, on the grounds of the peculiarly favourable position in w.ucli I have been placed during the last three months lor arriving at not incorrect conclusions and also because I was one of the first Europeans' at Nankin in 1853, on boar.l her Majesty's ship Hermes, to come in contact with the Taepinus and to become acquainted with this extraordinary rebellion, i hc-se circumstances may. perhaps, be deemed by your Excellency to be sufficient title* to my free speaking. • " I now, therefore, take the liberty of declaring, once fur all (and for ten years I have firmly adhered to and been consistent in this opinion)", that the Taeping rebellion is the greatest delusion as a political or popular morement, and Taepia-

doctriacs the mo?t gigantic and biaspliemoos iniposition as a creed, or ethics, that the world ever witnessed. I can find no parrallels in past history to match the spiritual doctrines, and certainly no standard of comparison by which to measure the political aspect of the rebellion. 1 look iii vain in the darkest ages for a similar faction and upheaving of men; but there is nothing iv past records so dark or. so bad—such abominations committed under the name of religion, such aiockhcroic builoouery, such horrors accompanied by pantalwnery, and so much flimsy web worked in ■the midst of blood and highly tragical events. The ravings of John of Leyden and his impious i Munster adventurers, in 1834-36, are left far behind in the race of folly by the Tacpin" uiadineni. " Tiie first impression of a sensible and reasoning Englishman on coming in contact with Taepittgdom is one of horror, then of amazement, with contempt and disgust following each other in succef..-S'OH. Taepingdom is a hu^e mass of • nothingness' (I can find no other word to express my meaning); there was nothing to lav hold j of in it. It is a gigantic bubble that collapse* on j licing touched, but leaves a mark of b'ood on the finger. In its ten years rampant carousing, what has it ever accomplished? Nothing. lias it ob- j iaiued the least respect or popular sympathy, or { even the apathetic toleration of the people? Who will pie.umc to reply in the affirmative? Is it a■■ popu'ar movement for the purpose of shaking oil a heavy yoke, or is it a sanguinary raid and an extended brigandage over the country, burning, destroying, and killing every thing that has life in it? The answer, alas! ia but too obvious. Does it foster or even encourage com.nerec, or are its declared principles inimical to trading in any shape *? Lit the published 'experiences of the Itev, Mr. Roberts and of others upon this point serve as a guide to merchants in England. And, further, it must not be supposed that there is any peculiar gallantry in the Taepiiig* ; they are decidedly cowards, and I would not have them eulUt unjustly the sympathies of the people at home on lhe ialse assumption of bravery ; for it is no proof of courage to strike an enemy when he is down, to torture women and children to death (.such torture's) and to burn aLve j»oor cream res who relusetosubmit.andwhicn I have inysfcli wi'ncsse.l. TheTnepingfi, I venture ti) affirm, have never been kuown to face a welldeterniiued resistance either native or foreign ; aod I say so in spite of the objection which might be nude, as evidenced by the horde.3 that the rebel chiefs near Shanghai lately threw upon us, those hordes being compelled, on pain of death, so to advance. |" To conclude, Taepingdom is a scourge; and i it has travelled unchecked through provinces aud districts both plague and pestilence have ofteu done as much. Nut unlike those dire "visitations!, the Taepiugs traverse the country.' They cj.ne, and the hclp'ess inhabitants crouch down and submit. They go, and the people breathe again ami rejoice, making good the havoc and losses cause-1 by the visit of this terrible enemy. " Your Excellency may feel assured that we shall only arrive at a correct appreciation of this movement, and doing it th jruu^h justice, when it is treated by m :m land piracy on an extensive scale—piracy odious in the eyes of all men -an.l, as such to be swept oil the face of the yarth by every means within the power of the Christian and civilised nations trading with this vast empire.

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