The captain came out of his cabin soon after, with cocked hat and gold lace glistening, and away we went for the shore soon after; the last things I saw on the _Teaser_ being the two disconsolate faces of my messmates at the cabin window, and Ching perched up on the hammock-rail watching our departure. I anticipated plenty of excitement that day, but was doomed to disappointment. I thought I should go with the escort to the mandarin's palace, but Mr Brooke was considered to be more attractive, I suppose, and I had the mortification of seeing the captain and his escort of marines and Jacks land, while I had to stay with the boat-keepers to broil in the sunshine and make the best of it, watching the busy traffic on the great river. Distance lends enchantment to the view of a Chinese city undoubtedly, and before long we were quite satiated with the narrow limits of our close-in view, as well as with the near presence of the crowd of rough-looking fellows who hung about and stared, as I thought, rather contemptuously at the junior officer in Her Majesty's service, who was feeling the thwarts of the boat and the hilt of his dirk most uncomfortably hot. "Like me to go ashore, sir, to that Chinesy sweetstuff shop, to get you one o' their sweet cool drinks, sir?" said one of the men, after we had sat there roasting for some time. "No, thank you, Tom Jecks," I said, in as sarcastic a tone as I could assume. "Mr Barkins says you are such a forgetful fellow, and you mightn't come back before the captain." There was a low chuckling laugh at this, and then came a loud rap. "What's that?" I said sharply. "This here, sir," said another of the men. "Some 'un's been kind enough to send it. Shall I give it him back?" "No, no!" I cried, looking uneasily shoreward; and at that moment a stone, as large as the one previously sent, struck me a sharp blow on the leg. "They're a-making cockshies of us, sir," said Tom Jecks; "better let two of us go ashore and chivvy 'em off." "Sit still, man, and--" _Whop_! "Oh, scissors!" cried a sailor; "who's to sit still, sir, when he gets a squad on the back like that? Why, I shall have a bruise as big as a hen's egg." "Oars! push off!" I said shortly, as half-a-dozen stones came rattling into the boat; and as we began to move away from the wharf quite a burst of triumphant yells accompanied a shower of stones and refuse. "That's their way o' showing how werry much obliged they are to us for sinking the pirates," growled Tom Jecks. "Oh, don't I wish we had orders to bombard this blessed town! Go it! That didn't hit you, did it, sir?" "No, it only brushed my cap," I said, as the stones began to come more thickly, and the shouting told of the keen delight the mob enjoyed in making the English retreat. "Pull away, my lads, and throw the grapnel over as soon as we are out of reach."