The villagers were extremely hospitable and risked their own safety and lives to assist the missionaries. A few days after their arrival a fair was held and owing to the crowds a riot was feared. The vile lagers concealed the ladies in "a tiny cellar with the lid shut down. It almost cost them their lives." They were rescued only in time to save their lives. By the 12th their presence in the village so endangered the people that the latter had to scatter and the refugees also fled to seek refuge in a mountain cave. It turned out to be a dark, damp, hovel with "water only to be had a mile below." The supplies had by this time become exhausted, and they were dependent upon such uncertain supplies as stray villagers brought for a handsome reward. The Boxers meantime sought to harass them by every means and finally conspired to starve them out. By the 18th the party saw that a move of some kind was necessary, but the question was how or where. An extract from one of the letters will show the straits they were reduced to:—
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.