Britain Baited

The city of Wanhsien, some 1,200 miles up the Yangtze river from Shanghai, became suddenly last week of world importance as Chinese mercenaries battled there with two tiny British river warships.

Yang. One General Yang Sen, a little sloe-eyed commander, 45, nominally subordinate to Super-Tuchun Wu Pei-fu (see above), caused the affray by seizing the British river freight boats Wan-tung and Wanhsien. General Yang alleged that the Wanliu, another British freighter owned by the same company as those seized had previously upset two sampans filled with his soldiers. Despite the protests of the local British consul General Yang placed 300 soldiers on the captured freighters who promptly locked the white officers and passengers in their cabins, fed them but sparingly.

Deadlock. Meanwhile the British auxiliary warship Kiawo, a mere, armored river steamer, lay beside the captured vessels, covered at point blank range by the Yang artillery. To break this deadlock, intolerable to British amour propre, H. M. S. Cockchafer and H. M. S. Wigdeon, both river warships of the highest armament, steamed close to shore, drew the fire of the land batteries and shelled the city of Wanhsien.

Battle. The British auxiliary Kiawo at once opened fire on the land batteries, and all three British warships steamed close to the captured British merchantmen, in an effort to rescue their officers and passengers. The Kiawo steamed under the lea of the Wanhsien and effected a rescue of all Occidentals on board after a hand to hand fight with the Chinese. General Yang's well directed artillery fire made it impossible to board the Wantung, but the British warships stood by at a distance and picked up the Wantung's crew and passengers who leaped overboard and all swam to safety despite the pot-shotting of Chinese riflemen. The British ships then withdrew out of range of the shore artillery and bombarded Wanhsien, a city of 150,000 population, until fires broke out in every quarter and completed the destruction. Three British officers and four British seamen were killed.

Demonstration. At once Vice-Admiral Sir Edwyn Alexander-Sinclair, commander-in-chief of the British China Station, began to steam portentously up the Yangtze on his flagship, the cruiser Hawkins. Sir Edwyn well knew that the potent Hawkins could not navigate the Yangtze above Hankow, some 300 miles below Wanhsien, on account of the shallow rapids, most famed of which is the so-called "Tiger's Tooth." But Hankow could be used as a base for punitive expeditions, and a glimpse of the Hawkins might strike salutary terror into many a Chinese breast.