ng forts were easily taken, and with small loss to the allies.
The Chinese garrison was estimated at 3000, of whom one-third was
killed.

THE CAPTURE OF TIENTSIN CITY.

During the absence of the admiral and his force, the Chinese had kept
our force defending the foreign settlement at Tientsin sufficiently
busy, and did everything in their power to prevent trains with
reinforcements going forward even before the 14th June, when the rails
were torn up. Captain Bayly, RN, of HMS _Aurora_, had been left in
charge of the British forces, and was joined on the 11th June by
Commander Beattie, of HMS _Barfleur_, with 150 bluejackets and marines,
and later by between 1600 and 1800 Russians, with cavalry and artillery.
The Boxers made their first attack upon the settlement upon 16th June,
and from that time, until the capture of the Chinese city, there was
almost continual fighting, in the course of which the Naval Brigade lost
several officers and men.

The native city began to bombard the settlement on the 17th, and on the
25th a 12-pounder gun from the _Terrible_, one of those mounted on
Captain Percy Scott's system, which had done such service in South
Africa, arrived and shelled the forts.

The _Terrible_ had also brought to Tongku a military force consisting of
Royal Welsh Fusiliers, 7 officers and 328 men, some engineers, and other
details, under Major Morris; these with a naval force of about 150,
under Captain Craddock, RN, of the _Alacrity_, together with 1500
Russians with 4 guns and 100 American marines, made on the 23rd June an
attack upon the military school, a strong position commanding the
settlements. A great deal of bayonet-fighting took place in clearing
the villages on the way, but the position itself was easily taken and
the settlement relieved. The approximate total of the forces of all
nations at Tientsin after this reinforcement was 4500, of whom about
1400 were British.

On 27th June a force of British seamen under Commander Craddock, and
marines under Major Johnstone, the whole about 600 strong, under the
command of Captain Burke, joined with the Russians in an attack upon the
Chinese arsenal. The Russians took the centre and right face, our men
being ordered to advance parallel to the left face. At 200 yards they
were met with a heavy fire, and had to advance for some space over a
flat piece of ground until they could turn and face the arsenal, and
when they advanced received the fire of a fie