Page:Tseng Kuo Fan and the Taiping Rebellion.djvu/282

Rh war vessels and another Chinese force of fifteen hundred men under French training took part in this attack. Ward's remains were received with high honor at Sungkiang, where he was buried, and to this day a memorial temple marks the site of his tomb. He was an able man, and though there are many who believe that he cherished a design to carve out for himself an empire in China, no one begrudges him his laurels. Without him the work of Gordon would not have been possible, nor the organisation of the Franco-Chinese force to which we have just alluded. This force, which ultimately reached a total of about twenty-five hundred, was first placed under A. E. Le Brethon and Giquel. They helped Tso Tsung-tang in the recapture of Shangyu (November 28), Dew likewise participating, and (early in 1863) of Shaoshing, which was abandoned by the rebels because of their operations outside. When Le Brethon was killed in the capture of Shangyu, the command passed to Tardiff de Moidrey, who was likewise killed a little later and was replaced by Ensign Paul d'Aiguebelle.

The "Ever Victorious Army," having lost its first commander, was temporarily led by an American, Edward Forrester. He refused to become the permanent commander and yielded the position to Henry Burgevine, another American.

Almost at this moment the terrible forty-six-day attack on Tsêng Kuo-ch'üan began, following a pestilence in the camp which made resistance doubly hard. The