the details of the subsequent events are not well-recorded, but according to reports in "the times", one private john moyse, of the 3rd (east kent) regiment (commonly known as "the buffs") refused to kowtow to his captors. apparently he had "declared he would not prostrate himself before any chinaman alive," and as a result, he was summarily executed. the poem refers to moyse as a young kentish farmboy; it is quite possible that he was, in fact, a middle-aged irishman. however, the poem was written on the strength of newspaper reports, and it is likely that doyle was unaware of the discrepancies.