ich is overwhelming. We have abundance of grapes,
and some other good fruit.

_September 29th._--At midnight of the 27th I was roused by Wade, who
brought me a letter from Prince Kung (the Emperor's brother), a good
deal milder than the last, but still implying that Parkes, &c., were
not to be returned until the treaty, &c., was signed. The comparative
mildness of the tone of this communication was clearly attributable to
the firmness of my last letter, and I therefore induced those with
whom I act to agree to nay adhering to it in my reply. I accordingly
wrote to say that the army would advance unless the prisoners should
return in the course of to-day; but that I do not intend to add to the
Convention which I have already furnished to the Chinese
Plenipotentiaries, and that I will sign that at once, and close the
war, if they choose. I hardly expect to see our friends to-day. The
Generals will not advance to-morrow, but they say they will on Monday.
Meanwhile it is raining; a sort of English rain, not tropical; and if
we have not too much of it, it will do good.

_October 1st._--Yesterday morning came another letter, proposing that
the army should retire to Chin-kia-wan, and that then the treaty
should be signed and the prisoners restored. This was clearly
inadmissible, as the Chinese would infer from it that whenever they
had a difficulty with us they had only to kidnap some of our people to
bring us to terms. So we have again handed the matter over to the
Generals, from whose hands indeed it would not now have been taken if
they had not urged me to make this last overture to Prince Kung. I do
not know when they will advance.

_October 3rd_.--We have moved about two miles, and are now lodged in a
mosque--a nice building, a good deal ornamented--which is for the
nonce turned to profane uses. The army was to have advanced to attack
Sang-ko-lin-sin's force to-morrow, but now I am told the French are
not ready. ... These delays give the Chinese fresh heart, and they are
beginning to send people to fire on our convoys, &c., coming up from
Tientsin. ... There was a letter sent to me yesterday by Prince Kung,
signed by Loch and Parkes. Loch managed in his signature to convey to
us in Hindostanee that the letter was written under compulsion. As it
was in Chinese the information was hard