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242 into the presence of the Imperialist commander, gave vent to what proved to be a dying prayer—"I have nothing to ask but this: spare the people." He had previously taken the precaution of swallowing poison, from which he shortly afterwards expired. The Chinese authorities had no idea of being deterred from such an opportunity of setting an example by any dying supplication, even if it was, as Baber points out, "the most impressive and pathetic ever uttered by a dying patriot," and they proceeded to ensure the example being a thorough one. The chief officials of the city were invited to a banquet, and were assassinated one by one as they passed into the banqueting hall. For the rest, the district was given over to three days massacre, during which thousands are said to have perished. "The streets ran ankle-deep in blood," says Dr Morrison; "of 50,000 inhabitants, 30,000 were butchered. After the massacre twenty-four panniers of human ears were sent to Yün-nan city to convince the people of the capital that they had nothing more to fear from the rebellion."