A Terrible Night. 173 



instruction ; but being incapable of learning any art except 

 by answers to my constant ' why ? ' I did not make much 

 progress. The explanations of the professors of the high 

 school are so loaded with arbitrary and obscure terms, that 

 I am inclined to think that the large majority of them 

 are empirics — clever, I admit, but still followers of routine 

 and not of reasoned-out principles. Mr Butler, who was an 

 American 'gentleman of colour,' was a man of rare talent 

 and as discreet as William the Silent. He had need to be ; 

 for he had plunged deeply into Chinese politics. During the 

 Franco-Chinese War, having negotiated for his masters a loan 

 of several million dollars, he had, on duty connected with this 

 matter, to proceed one night in a steam-launch down the Min 

 River, which was full of torpedoes that had been placed in 

 carefully-concealed positions to obstruct the navigation. As 

 the most rapid possible dispatch was the order, he gave the 

 word, ' Steam ahead full speed ' ; trusting solely to luck to 

 carry him safely through the terrible dangers that lay in 

 his path. Thinking that the bow would be the first part 

 of the boat which would strike any torpedo, he took his seat 

 on the extreme end of the stern, in the hope that if an 

 explosion did occur, he might contrive to tumble alive into 

 the water, where he would have had to trust to the clemency 

 of the sharks and crocodiles to let him swim to land. The 

 mental agony which he endured through that night of anxiety, 

 was trebled by the fact that he was suffering at the time from 

 a severe attack of fever. Morning, however, broke without 

 an accident having occurred, and the traveller arrived in due 

 course, safe at his destination. After the conclusion of the 

 war, he happened by chance to be again on the Min River, 

 at a time when the Chinese were taking up the torpedoes. 

 When these machines were all landed, they were opened to 

 see the condition of their contents, which were found to be 

 powdered coal, instead of gunpowder. The official who had 

 them filled, evidently understood the advantage which his 

 position gave him to make money. 



