The next f ron tierplaces feil bêfore them, as if they were feiling banïboo. They pushed on 

 till they came to Tung hwan ( l ) , where they haltecl and pitched their camp. 



The population fled from all places, for the soldiers of Lung-thian were strong, and his officers 

 brave, so that nobody could resist them in battle. 



T/ing-hvan was now in a very precarious position. The military commanders of the town, 

 Lhi-khig ( 2 ) and Hwang-sze-tsiuen , ( 3 ) conscious that they would lose it against them in a pitched 

 battle, barricaded the gates of the fortress, and mounted the walls in order to defend the place. 



The two commanders held council throughout the whole night and wrote urgent despatches 

 to the court. 



When the empcror Khang-hi had read these despatches, he started back and, turning extre- 

 mely pale, asked all his ei vil and military officers, who would go and fight the robbers. 

 Nobody however dared to go and, forced by necessity, it was agreed to propose His Majesty 

 to issue a ukase to convoke an army and make an appeal upon all the valiant and brave 

 of the empire. 



This ukase having been proclaimed, it was sent to all the provinces, and copies of it were 

 pos Led up eveiy where. 



On a certain day such a ukase also reached the provinces of Canton and Fuh-kien, and copies 

 of it were posted up in every place. A monk of the convent Shao-lin, ( 4 ) situated on one of 

 the mountains of the Kiu-lian chain in the prefecture Fuh-chau, ( 5 ) in the province of Fuh- 

 kien, having perused attentively the imperial proclamation, related it to the abbot Tah-tsung, ( 6 ) 

 after his return to the convent. //Are there in whole China not even one or two able officers, 

 who can command an army to fight them?", exclaimed the abbot. „Il is said so in the pro- 

 clamation," replied the monk, //which is sent round in all the provinces of the whole empire; 

 so I suppose, that at that time, there had not yet been sent an expedition to chastise them." 



z/Our convent numbers 128 brethern," said the abbot, //and each of us is sufficiently versed 

 in the military art and magics, to destroy the Eleuthian soldiers. To morrow I will call upon 

 all the brethern to go with me to the capital, to take down the proclamation and take the 

 field, in order to repulse these Western barbarians. In this way the heroes of our convent will 

 become renowned. Besides, by driving back the Eleuths, we shall have averted a calamity 

 from the people, and saved thousands of lives and, in the second place, the empire of our Em- 

 peror shall be preserved. The fame of our convent will also spread itself beyond the seas 

 and will be propagated for thousands of ages. Our merits will be very great, and our fame 

 will be established for ever. Does that please you?" 



All the monks answered with one voice: //We shall obey your commands!" 



I 1 ) V lif ffH a fortress at a branch of the yellow-river in the province of Shen-si, 106°25' Loiigitude» 

 35°8' latitude. 



f) m H ( 3 ) » S M i 4 ) & # # 



i 5 ) m f\i w v a ® 



