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19 Mar 58 Peter Hong Kong Mother 1, Hyde Park Place ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Hong Kong 19 March/58

My dear Mother

I have now so little time for writing that I must just scribble a few lines whenever I have an opportunity.

Two days ago a private yacht belonging to us (J.M. & Co) was attacked by Pirates in the river. The Captain & five men were killed defending her & the rest were made prisoners – except one man, a Chinaman, who escaped in the boat to tell the tale.

It appears that 4 boats with about 50 men in each dropped along side of her when becalmed. Immediately on receipt of the news we applied for a gunboat & despatched one of our head men with about half a dozen others to join in the pursuit. Arrived at the place of the attack. The Jacks went ashore, collared the first men they could lay hands on & took them on board the gunboat.

Altho’ a reward was offered them, of course they knew nothing about it until the yard-arm was pointed out to them & they were told they would be strung up there. They then offered to conduct the gunboat to the place where the yacht had been taken to & as the day was fearfully thick, they were able to get quite close without being seen.

They had taken her up a bay 7 miles inland & when it suddenly cleared up, they discovered 5 boats alongside and an immense concourse of people on the shore looking on.

A shot was immediately fired in among the boats & men & off they all started, helter-skelter. But the Jacks were already in the boats & before they could get clear, killed about 50 men, captured all the boats & took prisoners. They had not however force enough to attack them on shore as it was a regular nest of men, some thousands they say.

Luckily they were so taken by surprise as not to have time to murder all the yacht’s crew which they undoubtedly would have done under other circumstances and so all except the Captain & five men who were killed in the attack, & two or three Chinamen who are missing, were saved. They say it was their intention after they had stripped her of every thing to make the sailors navigate her to some out of the way spot; there to murder them & burn the yacht.

The gunboat only came back last night. Probably today a fresh force will be sent to exterminate them. The poor Captain who was cut down fighting his guns has left a wife & large family whom the firm will have to provide for. They cut his head off after he was dead & his shirt collar was found all covered with blood on the deck. Of course the affair has caused a great excitement but not so much perhaps as might be expected for pirates are so common here.

Last year a boat was sent in chase & captured several junks in which plans of attack on us poor unfortunates at East Point, viz: J.M. & Co. were discovered. It stated how we were fortified & guarded & everything & if they had succeeded they would have got a nice little ‘haul’ for the immense sums of money & goods we have on the premises is beyond belief – but we are quite prepared for them.

A large quantity of them live out to the Eastward of us, a very favourite walk but a most dangerous one. No less than three of our people at present in the house have been attacked on different occasions by men fully armed & equipped.

Goddard whom perhaps you have seen ere this was attacked by three men, but he bolted like a shot & altho’ he has got very short legs, used them very well & managed to get clear, but only after being pursued for about a mile by a man with a huge drawn sword. Certainly not a most agreeable proceeding. However in these days revolvers put down all that sort of thing – at least as long as it is open fighting.

The Country about here is very pretty, particularly that near the race course, the only level part in the island & that artificial, being reclaimed from the sea. All the hills are covered with tombs which are very peculiar & very pretty designs, but only to be found in Hong Kong, not in China where, as I have before told you, they merely lay them on the ground; sometimes build over them but very often leave them open & exposed to view. However here the graves add to the picturesqueness of the scene. I cannot exactly describe them so as to give you an idea of their appearance, but such as I can I will.

They are most of them ascended by steps cut into the rock of which the island is entirely composed & being built on the side of a hill, of course this is easily accomplished. You then enter a sort of little yard at the back of which is a stone, recording in Chinese characters the Memento Mori* & decorated in Chinese fashion with dried flowers or coloured paper.

By my description you will imagine this is rather an extensive affair, but such is not the case. Now that you have got the idea, reduce the dimensions & you have it correctly impressed upon your mind. 3 or 4 square yards is about the usual space covered.

March 28

The mail closes tomorrow & as this is Sunday I take advantage of the day to add some few lines to my letter.

Not that Sunday is held sacred here for at the moment there are many of our people at work & I, if on the spot, am liable to be wanted at any moment. The Sunday before last I was in the office all the morning.

We had great saluting here last Sunday, in honour of the French Emperor’s escape* & the French complimenting us on the Princess Royal’s marriage.*

In honour of the former there was a grand procession of all the Army & Navy who were ordered to be in full uniform at the Roman Catholic!! Church to chant the Te Deum. This gave us a little bit of excitement – something to talk about – that was pleasant but as the saluting gave us all violent headaches – that was unpleasant. Not that we are not accustomed to salutes, for they are just as common with us here – as Chinamen letting off their crackers with them.

There was a terrific fire here the day before yesterday in which about a hundred houses were burnt down. All attempts to extinguish the flames being fruitless, a very original plan was adopted on the occasion. A large number of houses surrounding the conflagration were pulled down & a large open space being thus cleared all around, the fire was left to burn itself out.

The Behaviour of some of the police upon the occasion was most amusing. They are mostly black fellows from India & thereabouts. Instead of quietly marching off certain bad characters, they would commence laying into the unfortunate man right & left with the flat part of their swords – for I have before told you that the police here wear both swords & loaded muskets, many even carrying revolvers.

On occasions of this sort, Chinamen are dreadful characters for looting. When we took Canton, none of our troops were allowed to plunder, but the order which was right in principle was misapplied, for vagrant Chinamen had only to walk into a house, declare it as theirs & they could loot every single thing in it.

The origin of the fire has never appeared but certain facts would tend to prove it intentional. The day before a large number of houses inhabited by bad characters were strangely set fire to by Government. Whether they had no right to the ground or whatever might be the reason, it has been universally agreed that at least the people might have been turned out & the houses pulled down – but no, they set fire to them with the people in them & literally burnt them out. The origin of the fire on the following day may therefore easily be accounted for.

I had an offer of a very nice little boat the other day, belonging to an American Captain. It was a complementary offer which I was of course obliged to hesitate about but if repeated, I shall certainly avail myself of. He has his wife & two daughters on board. I think I must make love to one of the latter & win – not her affections but her father’s boat.

I can’t really fall in love with her – she does not come up to my ideas of romance – being particularly plain, disagreeable manner’d & ‘guessing’ & talking tho’ her nose as all Yankees are supposed to do.

I had a letter from John the other day. How I can have got that & not have received any of yours I cannot make out as his was simply directed to the ship at Shanghai. I was very glad to receive it & it was quite unexpected. He gives me all the news as I asked him but it is not of a later date that yours of Nov 3 the last letter I have had (with the Feb'y mails just in). I am very anxious to hear from you after the receipt of my last letter but it will be 3 months before I possibly can – that is a long time to look forward to.

My furniture is gradually making its appearance but I have great trouble – Chinamen will execute anything you tell them, but they have not an idea of their own.

I hope you have got that case of things under way for me. If it has not gone please put in any useful things you may find in my room. Anything I left behind me – a loose evening cape in particular & any little useful things you may think of – lots of shirt buttons for instance & things of that description.

I should also like to have portraits of every one at home. They need not be expensive, it is the likeness I want, not the art. Ask Charlotte & Anne to take a sitting & if the other things have gone have these put up in a small box & please send them to your affect Son

Peter G. Laurie

Give my love to Helen & ask her if she will take a sitting

* Memento Mori – Remember you must die

* French Emperor’s escape – On 14th January, 1858, there had been an attempt to assassinate Napoleon III in the streets of Paris, the plot having been hatched in London by political refugees. The incident led to serious bad feeling between the two countries, as well as the resignation of the Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston

* the Princess Royal’s marriage – Victoria, the eldest daughter of the Queen, had married Prince Frederick William of Prussia in the Chapel Royal, St. James, 25th January, 1858