Out  in  China  I  was  in  conversation  with  one  of
the  chaplains,  a  Presbyterian,  when  he  remarked,
"  How  is  it  that  nearly  all  the  warmest -hearted
Christian  men  in  a  regiment  are  Wesleyans  ?  "  My
reply  was  that  it  is  probably  because  the  Wesleyan
Church  has  more  Soldiers'  and  Sailors'  Homes  both
at  home  and  abroad  than  any  other  Church,  and  in
them  it  is  easier  to  get  into  close  touch  with  the
men."

This  was  our  first  night  march,  and  a  new  ex-
perience. Our  line  of  march  led  us  through  the
market  town  of  An-p'ing,  where  we  rested  for  about
half  an  hour.  At  nine  o'clock  some  of  us  half  wished
we  might  camp  here,  but  it  was  not  to  be.  So  many
of  the  men  lagged  behind  that  a  few  stray  Chinese
scouts  could  have  picked  off  many  of  them.  The
cavalry  kept  a  good  look-out,  yet  we  knew  not  where
an  ambush  might  be  laid  for  us.  The  kao-liang,  or
"  tall  millet,"  was  on  both  sides,  between  ten  and
twelve  feet  in  height,  and  a  whole  army  might
easily  have  been  concealed  within  it.
An  edict  had  been  issued  by  the  Empress  Dowager
ordering  the  Boxers  to  concentrate  in  large  force
at  Tung-an-hsien,  a  city  but  a  few  miles  on  our
left.  If  they  obeyed  the  edict,  they  kept  quiet,  for
we  had  little  trouble  and  hindrance  to  our  progress.
