vain hope of checking the advancing foes. When it was considered that the fire had made storming possible, orders were given for the assault. In preparation for the campaign, a native coolie corps, several thousand strong, had been enlisted at Canton, and had been carefully drilled in the duties which were expected of them. Though the men perfectly understood that they would be called upon to assist in a hostile invasion of their native land, they showed every alacrity in the service, and it was evident that patriotism with them weighed nothing in the scale against the regular pay and ample rations which they received from their country's enemies. During the artillery duel before the fort these men. had stood, with the scaling ladders, ready to advance to the walls, and at the word of command ran readily forward and planting their ladders against the fort helped the storming party up. The result was as per before," and though the Chinese garrison fought with some bravery they were speedily vanquished. So soon as the garrison of the outer northern fort (there were two large forts on the north bank of the river and three on the south) saw that the Allies had secured this first position, they hoisted white flags, and allowed the Allied troops to march in without firing a shot. A curious sight met the eyes of the victors as they entered. Two thousand men were seated on the ground who neither moved nor spoke. "They had thrown away their arms and had divested themselves of all uniform or distinctive badges that could distinguish them as being soldiers."

These men were made prisoners, but doubt was

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still felt as to the attitude of the garrisons on the southern side of the river. It is true that white flags had been hoisted on the forts on that side, but so much uncertainty existed as to the meaning of these symbols in Chinese hands that it was thought advisable to communicate with the Viceroy and to receive the submission of the fortress from him before crossing the river in force. Parkes, Loch, and Major Anson were therefore sent across to Taku to find the redoubtable Hang Fu. This astute official received them hospitably, showing at the same time a suspicious inclination to detain them as long as possible. It subsequently transpired that his intentions were really the very opposite to his professions, and that while plying them with tea and sweetmeats his emissaries were engaged in searching for Sankolinsin, with a view to making his visitors prisoners. Fortunately for them Sankolinsin, after the fall of the northern forts, had mounted his horse and ridden. to Peking. In a memorial which at this time he addressed to the throne, he admitted that the Barbarians had captured the forts, but besought the Emperor not to be the least alarmed, as his troops were still well able to protect the capital from the presence of the presumptuous foe. When Hang Fu's emissaries returned to their master and reported the flight of the defeated general, he allowed his foreign guests to depart, who on their way back discovered that a small force had already, during their absence, taken possession of the southern forts.

The road to Tientsin was now open, and the Admiral lost no time in clearing away the obstruc

tions at the mouth of the river. These were of an extremely formidable character. Huge pointed iron stakes, each several tons in weight, were securely fastened in the mud, while two huge booms, kept afloat by immense earthen water-jars, made the entrance to the river impossible. With much difficulty these were removed, and the smaller vessels of

the fleet peaceably steamed by the embrasures which had wrought such havoc in the preceding year. Meanwhile Hang Fu had started for Tientsin, where he met Hanki, the late Hoppo of Canton, and Wangts'üan, who had been hastily despatched from Peking to stay, if possible, the advance of the foreigners. One great annoyance experienced by the

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mandarins at this time was the attitude which the natives assumed towards the invaders. In 1858, when Lord Elgin first went up to Tientsin, the people in the villages through which he had passed had fallen on their knees before him, and had presented propitiatory offerings to mitigate his supposed wrath. Their experience had taught them, however, that so long as they maintained a peaceful demeanour they had nothing to fear from Englishmen, and on this occasion when he and his colleague, Baron Gros, advanced through the same hamlets the people had, without cringing or undue adulation, offered the produce of their fields and gardens readily for sale. A similar attitude adopted by the men of the Coolie corps was referred to in a memorial by Sankolinsin, which was discovered in the Archives of the Summer Palace, in which he stated that the Allied forces were for the most part composed of Cantonese, who had joined the invaders for the sake of profit; and he recommended that an offer of additional pay and perquisites should be made to bribe them to come over in a body to the Imperial side. Parkes, who was sent in advance to Tientsin, found the people there of the same mind with the villagers. They eagerly responded to his inquiries after provisions, and voluntarily formed a Committee of Supply to provide commissariat stores for the army.

At Tientsin Hang Fu was on the watch for Lord Elgin, and no sooner had the steamer carrying the Ambassador anchored off the Bund than the Viceroy appeared, and invited him to become his guest during his stay in the city. This was a piece of cool

impertinence of which only a Chinaman could have been guilty, and Lord Elgin curtly informed him that the Allied troops being now in occupation of Tientsin, he should take up his residence in the building which suited him best. The advance of the Barbarian forces had produced some consternation at Peking, and the Emperor despatched the Grand Secretary Kweiliang, who had been one of the signatories of the treaty of 1858, to join Hang Fu in arranging a peace with the foreigners. Without any loss of time the Commissioners sought to open negotiations with Lord Elgin, who met their overtures by replying that the conditions on which he was prepared to suspend hostilities were as follows: "First, an apology for the attack on the Allied forces at Peiho. Second, the ratification and execution of the Treaty of Tientsin. Third, the payment of an indemnity to the Allies for the expenses of the naval and military preparations."

With apparent readiness the Commissioners agreed to these terms, but raised, as has always been their wont, a number of objections on matters of detail. It is a recognised practice among the Chinese in similar cases to send in the first instance Commissioners who are ostensibly deputed to make peace, but who are denied the necessary plenipotentiary powers. The object of this manœuvre is plain. Should the Commissioners agree to any terms distasteful to the Emperor, it is open to him to ignore the agreement, on the plea that his envoys had no power to pledge him to any terms. During the late war with Japan two of these futile missions