of further victories, one of which was the rout of an army sent to
retake Mukden, and the chief of which was the capture of Liao-yang, now
remembered in connection with the Russo-Japanese war. In many of these
engagements the Manchus, whose chief weapon was the long bow, which they
used with deadly effect, found themselves opposed by artillery, the
use of which had been taught to the Chinese by Adam Schaal, the Jesuit
father. The supply of powder, however, had a way of running short, and
at once the pronounced superiority of the Manchu archers prevailed.

Other cities now began to tender a voluntary submission, and
many Chinese took to shaving the head and wearing the queue, in
acknowledgment of their allegiance to the Manchus. All, however, was not
yet over, for the growing Manchu power was still subjected to frequent
attacks from Chinese arms in directions as far as possible removed
from points where Manchu troops were concentrated. Meanwhile Nurhachu
gradually extended his borders eastward, until in 1625, the year in
which he placed his capital at Mukden, his frontiers reached to the sea
on the east and to the river Amur on the north, the important city of
Ning-yüan being almost the only possession remaining to the Chinese
beyond the Great Wall. The explanation of this is as follows.

An incompetent general, as above mentioned, had been sent at the
instance of the eunuchs to supersede an officer who had been holding
his own with considerable success, but who was not a _persona grata_
at court. The new general at once decided that no territory outside the
Great Wall was to be held against the Manchus, and gave orders for the
immediate retirement of all troops and Chinese residents generally.
To this command the civil governor of Ning-yüan, and the military
commandant, sent an indignant protest, writing out an oath with their
blood that they would never surrender the city. Nurhachu seized the