Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese WarStrang, Herbert
General
Kobo: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War
Strang, Herbert
Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905 -- Juvenile fiction
After half an hour’s difficult climb the fugitives reached a height
whence they obtained a distant prospect of the late battle-ground,
spread like a map in the bright sunlight behind them. Then they turned
a bend in the path, and the scene was shut from their view. The chief
still led on among rugged hills, with no sign of habitation. At one time
they were at the bottom of a ravine; an hour later they were toilsomely
scaling the steep face of a cliff, which from the base appeared
impossible to climb. The horses were fresh when they started, and
plodded along steadily. Except for short intervals for food and rest
the march was continued uninterruptedly till dusk, and then Bob and
Sing-Cheng selected a strong position for camping—a spot sheltered from
the wind, that blew colder towards night. Sentries were placed around
the camp, but the hours of darkness passed without alarm. There was as
yet no sign of pursuit.
Next morning the march was resumed, and continued through similar
inhospitable country until about three o’clock in the afternoon. Then,
just as the riders were climbing what appeared to be the highest peak
they had yet met with, the chief came to a sudden halt, sprang from his
horse, and made signs for the rest of the party to follow his example.
He said a few words rapidly to his men; then, beckoning Bob and Ah-Sam
to accompany him, went forward cautiously on foot towards the skyline
just above.
As they gained the crest, a fine panorama opened before them. At a
distance which Bob roughly guessed at five miles, they saw a broad river
crossing the plain from east to west, at one point broadening into the
semblance of a lake dotted with islands. Hills of varying height shut
off stretches of the river at intervals. On the other side the chief
pointed out a cluster of dwellings just discernible amid a light ground
haze.
"Wiju," he said.
Bob looked at the town with interest, remembering his unpleasant
associations with the place. Below, to the left, between the spectators
and the river, which it shut from their view, was a steep eminence which
the chief called Hushan.
"He callum Tiger Hill," explained Ah-Sam.
"What is that?" asked Bob, pointing to a smaller river on their right,
winding among the hills and disappearing behind Tiger Hill in the
direction of the Yalu.
"Ai-ho," said the chief.
Beyond the Ai-ho, between that river and the Yalu, was a town which,
though it appeared larger than Wiju, Bob judged to be somewhat smaller
in reality, for it lay much nearer to his point of observation.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account