One day in the month of February, 1865, Mr. Hammond came into the French Department of the Foreign Office evidently rather uneasy. He told us that he was very much put out by not being able to get a man to go out to Peking, to take the place of St. John who was coming home at once across Siberia. He had tried in vain to find someone and was in great difficulties. A sudden thought struck me. “Will you send me out?” I asked. He hesitated for a moment and said, “Well, if you are really willing to go, we might arrange a transfer. How soon could you be ready?” “As soon as you please,” I answered. “Can you be ready in a fortnight?” I jumped at the offer and went out then and there to start on getting together my outfit. It was rather a sudden surprise to my people when I reached home that afternoon laden with a sun-helmet and various small purchases of which the purpose did not at first sight seem quite clear to them. The last few days before my departure were spent a great deal with Sir Frederic Bruce, our minister at Peking, who was at home on leave, and who gave me all the advice that would be of value to a novice going out to the Far East. He was one of those men whom it is good to have known, singularly handsome, with a smile and laughing brown eyes which seemed to carry sunshine into every room that he went into; he was a diplomatist of rare ability. Lord Elgin, indeed, with whom he first went out to China, used to say of him that he was by far the ablest of the four brothers, all of whom were certainly men of mark.