The Peking Express by James M Zimmerman

Author:James M Zimmerman [M., James Zimmerman]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Published: 2023-04-04T00:00:00+00:00

At the request of family and the Italian consulate, Musso’s personal physician, Dr. Paul Mertens, arrived at Tsaochuang the morning of May 17. Father Lenfers volunteered to escort Dr. Mertens to the Temple of the Clouds. As they approached the camp on horseback just south of the temple grounds, Lenfers and Mertens heard a signal shot and saw bandit guards stationed along the mountain ridges closely watching them as they made their way toward the temple. They continued cautiously until they were halted at the outer camp of the outlaws. The bandit chiefs had strong words for Lenfers, feeling cheated and deceived because the troops had still not withdrawn as promised. The army troops were now only four miles away and continued to engage in firefights.18 After much persuasion, however, the bandit chiefs allowed Lenfers and Mertens to walk up to the temple grounds to visit Musso.

Mertens had arrived none too soon, for he brought to the camps much-needed surgical instruments and medicine. Prior to his arrival, Major Allen had provided medical treatment to several of the hostages, including the interpreter Hung, who was unable to sleep on account of the pain in his foot, which was badly swollen because of an abscess. Lacking surgical equipment, the only thing that Allen could do was to take an old safety-razor blade and affix it to a piece of wood, creating a makeshift scalpel. A young Chinese prisoner who worked for a Shanghai doctor assisted him. Allen boiled up a razor blade and a pair of hemostats and drained the abscess.19

Mertens directed his attention to Musso, who was the worst of the lot, having an injured back and frail heart. He tended to other captives who needed medical attention, including Saphiere, who, like Hung, had a severely infected foot.20

With the hostages’ basic needs covered, life at the Temple of the Clouds began to normalize, and the captives settled in for the long haul. Pinger and Allen received from Major Philoon four of the latest editions of the Army & Navy Journal—a luxury read for bored US military officers interested in catching up with the latest army gossip. The rescue mission also sent in some much-needed carbolic soap—for removing the lice that had infested their clothing.21 Morale improved as supplies increased. Solomon and Major Pinger received cameras from their wives—something that they thought would come in handy. Initially, they kept the instruments hidden from the bandits to avoid the risk of confiscation. In time, the bandits became more comfortable with posing and invited Solomon and Pinger to take their photos.

Meanwhile, Allen, Friedman, Solomon, and Pinger played bridge together in the temple courtyard to pass the time in the fine spring weather. The jollity and merriment of the Shanghai cousins, nicknamed the FEET Club—Freddie, Eddie, Emile, and Theo—brought levity to the camp with their endless impromptu performances throughout the day. They also exchanged news clippings received in the mail, and the cousins were especially delighted that Bobby and Roland had their story printed in worldwide newspapers, photo and all.

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