Simon Fonthill, Alice and Jenkins leave the Chinese port of Tientsin bound for Durban after another urgent summons connected with the war in South Africa. Their vessel inspires little confidence even before trouble develops at sea, and the three travellers soon have to rely on their own judgement rather than the competence of the ship’s officers. What begins as a passage between campaigns becomes a compact maritime adventure involving danger, divided command and survival far from any friendly garrison.
The short story links the series’ Boxer Rebellion episode with the later stages of the Second Boer War, when Herbert Kitchener was directing British operations in South Africa. Its historical emphasis is lighter than the full-length Fonthill novels, but the voyage reflects the global geography of the British Empire at the turn of the century: military personnel, journalists and orders could move from northern China to southern Africa along sea routes that connected apparently separate imperial crises.
