29O SHOOTING IN CHINA 



incident at an end I was hastening to rejoin 

 my companion when appeared in the scene 

 Madame, the countryman's wife. She 

 proved to be "an impossible," and after 

 opening the flood-gates of her wrath and 

 vilifying me in the choicest Billingsgate 

 accentuated her words with blows laid on 

 with no light hand. Then appeared upon 

 the scene, from the most impossible places, 

 such a crowd as only China apparently can 

 summon at call. And in a moment I found 

 myself being belaboured by old women and 

 children, and by arms round my neck and 

 legs which held me a tight prisoner. A few 

 words from my dog coolie, who probably 

 told them that I was a much bigger person- 

 age than they imagined or that I really 

 was, brought about a palaver with the 

 result that I was to go with some of the 

 elders to the Mandarin who lived some dis- 

 tance off, and that my coolie with my gun 

 were to be detained as bait until my return. 

 I had not proceeded far when second 

 thought on my escort's part prevailed, and 

 I was locked up in a Joss house four hours 

 until they had arrived at some definite 

 conclusion as to what should be done 

 with me. These four hours seemed an 



