Black Sheep

Toward midnight on the 30th day of the Communist siege, the weary defenders of walled and moated Yinghsien prepared to repel another assault. Outposts had spotted a Red force moving on the Shansi Province town from the southwest.

At that same moment, sentries on an opposite corner of the wall rubbed their eyes. A flock of black sheep was emerging from the night like a moving blot. When the animals reached the wide moat in front of the wall they plunged in, began swimming across; yet there were no visible herdsmen. A sentry fired into the flock. One of the dark objects in the moat erupted in a geyser of flame and water. Then men on the wall witnessed an amazing thing: some of the sheep seemed to be flipping off their black wool skins and running away on their hind legs.

Defenders opened fire with machine guns. Several more sheep exploded. When it was all over, 70 sheep and 26 Communists in sheep's clothing lay dead or wounded. Some still carried bundles of explosives for breaching the wall.

The 70 head of mutton, reported Yinghsien's commander, would be a welcome addition to the garrison's diet.

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