TONQUIN. 



769 



Gen. Bouet set out from Hanoi on the even- 

 ing of August 14th, with a force of 2,000 men 

 and six guns, advancing in three columns, one of 

 which, commanded by Col. Revillon, followed 

 the river, with the intention of storming or 

 flanking the works along the bank. Five gun- 

 boats ascended the river to support the troops. 

 The first intrenchments, not four miles from 

 Hanoi, were vacated after a few shells had been 

 sent into them from the gunboats. A second 

 fortified position was speedily deserted by the 

 Anamites. The third was the town of Phou- 

 hai, palisaded with stout bamboo stakes. After 

 pouring in a hot fire of shells from the vessels, 

 Revillon's infantry advanced to the assault, but 

 met with such vigorous resistance that they 

 were obliged to retreat. The gunboats shelled 

 the place again for more than an hour, but a 

 second attack was repelled. A third was not 

 more successful, and Revillon prepared for a 

 final eflbrt at the break of day. - 



The middle column, under Col. Coronat, had 

 by this time advanced without meeting with 

 any resistance, to the village of Yenoi, where 

 it awaited the issue of the detour undertaken 

 by the column on the left, commanded by Col. 

 Thier. The latter sent out a detachment to 

 reconnoitre, which found the road a little dis- 

 tance ahead closed by intrenchments and stock- 

 ades. The road, leading through bogs and 

 overflowed fields, was so narrow that the guns 

 could not deploy properly, and the horses and 

 wheels stuck fast in the mire. The column 

 advanced to the point where the road was 

 blocked by fortifications, which was at the 

 village of Vong, beyond the spot where, on the 

 same narrow road. Riviere had lost his life. 

 The cannon opened fire at a distance of a thou- 

 sand paces from the village. The artillery 

 fire was not answered ; but when the troops 

 approached the fortifications they were met 

 with a sharp fire of musketry, which drove 

 them back. When the Anamites saw the 

 French in retreat, they sallied in force and 

 strove to flank the retiring column on the left, 

 where were the Cochin-China auxiliaries and 

 Yellow Flags, who had now joined the French. 

 The situation in the afternoon of the 16th was 

 at times exceedingly critical. The Anamites 

 and Black Flags followed the French a long 

 distance, though the latter several times turned 

 front and poured volleys into their pursuers, 

 supported as well as was possible by the artil- 

 lery. Thier reached Hanoi by evening, and 

 the middle column, after waiting in vain for 

 him to join it, returned the following day. 



The assault of Revillon on the morning of 

 the 16th was successful, and the village and its 

 pagoda were finally captured after fourteen 

 hours of fighting, with a total loss to the 

 French of 3 officers and 14 men killed and 

 about 50 wounded, not counting the 30 dead 

 and the wounded among the native auxiliaries. 



The entire French force, with the exception 

 of a small garrison in the pagoda of the capt- 

 ured village, was back in Hanoi by the 17th. 

 VOL. xxin. 49 A 



The continued rising of the waters necessitated 

 the abandonment of the captured town and a 

 cessation of operations for some weeks. 



On the Hu6 River, in the center of Anain, 

 the invaders met with better success. The 

 forts at the mouth of the river were bombard- 

 ed on the 18th, 19th, and 20th of August. A 

 landing could not be made on the north bank 

 on the 19th, but on the following day it was 

 successfully accomplished, in spite of an ener- 

 getic defense by the Anamites from behind 

 the dunes. The fortifications on the southern 

 bank were occupied without fighting on August 

 21st. Steamers took part in the bombardment, 

 and delivered their fire to good effect. The 

 landing force consisted of sailors from the first 

 three vessels, two companies of marines, one 

 of native riflemen, two batteries of native ar- 

 tillery-men, and 100 coolies in all 1,050 men, 

 with 15 guns. The French lost but a few 

 wounded, but their shells caused severe losses 

 on the other side, the Anamite dead number- 

 ing over 600. 



The fortress of Haiziuong was captured Au 

 gust 19th, by a sudden assault which was 

 so well conducted that the Anamites had no 

 time to spike their guns, and fled in disorder 

 into the interior. This town is the capital of 

 a province, and has a population of 30,000. It 

 was strongly fortified with palisades, after the 

 Anamite manner, and occupies a command- 

 ing site on the Taibigne arm of Red river. 



After the capture of the fortifications at the 

 mouth of the Hue a-truee was made, and Dr. 

 Harmand, the civil commissioner, with M. de 

 Champeaux, the deputy of the Governor of 

 Cochin-China, went to Hue" in the Bayard, 

 escorted by two small steamers, with a guard 

 of 90 marines, to negotiate for peace. Re-en- 

 forcements were sent from France to hold the 

 positions, and a blockade was declared. 



The Treaty of Hne. King Tuduc, the deter- 

 mined enemy of the French, had died in July, 

 and was succeeded by Vian Lau, also an ad- 

 herent of the war policy. But on the capture 

 of the Hue forts the new King and his court 

 fled in consternation into the interior, leaving 

 the throne vacant. His rival, Hiep Hoa, or 

 Hiephma, the leader of the peace party, who 

 was amenable to French influences, now as- 

 sumed the supreme power, and at once sent a 

 request that Dr. Harmand come to Hue" to 

 negotiate terms of peace. A treaty was drawn 

 up and signed August 25th. The articles pro- 

 vided for the payment of a war indemnity; 

 the cession of the province of Bin Thuan to 

 France; the recall of Anamite troops from 

 Tonquin, and the transfer of the command- of 

 the Anamite army to Gen.. Bouet, who would 

 employ the troops, lately in the field against 

 the French, to expel the Black Flags from 

 Tonquin; the confirmation of the French pro- 

 tectorate, established by the treaty of 1874; 

 the opening of the ports of Quinhon, Turon, 

 and Quangai to commerce. The treaty, stipu- 

 lated furthermore that the French should have 



