s,
nothing came as a surprise to me. I can still remember as if it had
only occurred ten seconds ago how, after witnessing those English
sappers calmly strip that drunken French marauder of his gains, I came
back into the broken Legation Street to find that a whole company of
savage-looking Indian troops--Baluchis they were--had found their way
in the dark into a compound filled with women-converts who had gone
through the siege with us, and that these black soldiery were engaged,
amidst cries and protests, in plucking from their victims' very heads
any small silver hair-pins and ornaments which the women possessed.
Trying to shield them as best she could was a lady missionary. She
wielded at intervals a thick stick, and tried to beat the marauders
away. But these rough Indian soldiers, immense fellows, with great
heads of hair which escaped beneath their turbans, merely laughed, and
carelessly warding off this rain of impotent blows, went calmly on
with their trifling plundering. Some also tried to caress the women
and drag them away.... Then the lady missionary began to weep in a
quiet and hopeless way, because she was really courageous and only
entirely over-strung. At this a curious spasm of rage suddenly seized
me, and taking out my revolver, I pushed it into one fellow's face,
and told him in plain English, which he did not understand, that if he
did not disgorge I would blow out his brains on the spot. I remember I
pushed my short barrel right into his face, and held it there grimly,
with my finger on the trigger. That at least he understood. There was
a moment of suspense, during which I had ample time to realise that I
would be bayonetted and shot to pieces by the others if I carried out
my threat. It was ugly; I did not like it. At the last moment,
fortunately, my fellow relented, and throwing sullenly what he had
taken to the ground, he shouldered his rifle and left the place. The
others followed with mutterings and grumbles, and the women being now
safe, began barricading the entrance of their house against other
marauders. They were green-white with fear. They feared these Indian
troops....

That same night, very late, a transport corps, composed of Japanese
coolies, in figured blue coats, belonging to some British regiment,
came in hauling a multitude of little carts; and within a few minutes
these men were offering for sale hundreds of rolls of splendid silks,
which they had gathered on their way through