Page:Tseng Kuo Fan and the Taiping Rebellion.djvu/218

196 Kiangsi. If Tsêng is condemned by censors, the emperor, or those who read of his present plight, one must remember that he had with him only about eleven thousand unpaid soldiers, and that against such resourceful commanders as Shi Ta-k'ai and Hu I-kwang, who lived largely on plunder, — a source denied him by his official status, — he was helpless without men and money. Yet his efforts in raising funds brought little response from other officials. The question of the customs raised the issue of foreign relations. The likin also was still a doubtful asset, and there were other claimants for the revenues of Hunan, Hupeh, Anhui, and Kiangsi. The emperor referred the requests for funds to the Board of Revenue, but with about as much actual effect as though the request had been denied. The wonder is that Tsêng did not give up the whole thing and retire.

Reinforcements, however, began to come. At the request of Tsêng's father, Hu Lin-yi sent forward four thousand Hunan troops under Tsêng Kuo-fah. News of their dispatch was brought by a messenger who carried the letter concealed in a lump of wax. This force was held up for some time at Shuichow, but succeeded in capturing it after additional men had been sent from Hupeh, early in September. The Taipings were supposed to be led there by the Assistant king, Shi Ta-k'ai, and Tsêng hoped to capture him in the siege, but he was too elusive.

While these operations at Shuichow were taking place Tsêng's forces recaptured Nank'ang and Jaochow, reopening communications with Hunan and Hupeh. Yang Tsai-fu also had arrived before Kiukiang with the new Hunan flotilla June 6. But they were rendered