September 11th.-Six A.M.—­Parkes and Wade have just been in my tent with a letter from two new Plenipotentiaries—­really some of the highest personages in the empire—­stating that they are under orders to come to Tientsin to settle everything, and deprecating a forward movement.[2] I shall of course stick by my programme, and decline to have anything to say to them till I reach Tung-chow.  Of course this proceeding on their part augurs well for peace.  It poured all last evening, and the General determined not to march this morning; but as it is fine now, I think we may start at noon, and make out our allotted march.  It is cooler this morning, and I think it not improbable that the thunder of yesterday may close the hot season.  However, the sun is coming out in his strength, so one cannot say what the day may bring forth. Ten A.M.—­All our cart-drivers, with their animals, disappeared during last night, leaving the carts behind them.  Probably they got a hint from the Chinese authorities.  I am sorry for it, for if we begin to resort to measures of violence to supply ourselves, we may entirely alter the footing on which we have hitherto stood with the people.  We are putting all our surplus goods into junks, in order to reduce our baggage.

[Sidenote:  Chinese gentleman-farmer.]

Nan-tsai-tsun.—­September 12th.—­Where will this letter be sent from?  It is begun at a small town on the close of our march of to-day, which ought to have been our march of yesterday.  It was a very mild one—­about eight miles—­through a nice country, more wooded than former marches, and with bright sunshine, and a fresh, almost frosty air.  The sunshine we had not at first, for we started before the sun had appeared on the horizon.  Instead of trusting to our tents, we have this day taken up our abode in the house of a Chinese gentleman- farmer, the owner of about 1,000 acres.  It is nearly as large as the house I occupied at Tientsin; at least it has nearly as many courts.  The gentleman has a good library, in which I have established myself; and he seems, poor man, very anxious to accommodate us, though his appearance is not that of a man entirely at his ease.  As I was starting this morning I got a second letter from the new Plenipotentiaries, rather more defiant in its tone, and saying that there are troops at our next station, with whom we shall come into collision, if we advance with an army.  Parkes is gone on with an escort, and we shall soon know from him what the state of the case really is.

[Sidenote:  Ho-see-woo.] [Sidenote:  Monastery.]