Suddenly the sky darkened: it was ascertained that “Kweiliang” and his brother Commissioners were not armed with the powers they asserted, and ultimately, instead of parading on the 8th in holiday pageant, a portion of our forces began that day the march towards Pekin. The Ambassadors left next day, in company with the Commanders-in-Chief; the forces were advanced as far as carriage could be procured; but the means of the commissariat were insufficient to move the whole army to such a distance, and to carry the necessary supplies. The draught cattle furnished by the mandarins at Tientsin were spirited away at the first halting place, and the 2nd division of the British army, which was to have brought up the rear, had to devote its carriage to the assistance of the 1st division, and remain behind. In this emergency the commissariat would have had the greatest difficulty in feeding the troops in the front, but for the measures taken by Sir Robert Napier, who remained in command at Tientsin. By inducing persistent efforts to push boats up the river Peiho, which runs parallel to the road nearly up to Pekin, but which had been pronounced unnavigable by even the smallest craft, and by laying embargo on the traffic of Tientsin, General Napier procured, and with the aid of the navy organised, large means of water transport, which afforded invaluable assistance. As the Ambassadors advanced they were met by letters announcing the appointment of “Tsai Prince of Ee” as Chief Commissioner to conclude negotiations in lieu of Kweiliang, who was pronounced to have proved himself incompetent; and on the 14th September, Messrs. Parkes and Wade held a conference with the Commissioners at Tung-chow, whereat, all preliminaries being settled, a letter was written to Lord Elgin acceding in terms to all his demands. It was arranged that Lord Elgin was to meet the Commissioners in the walled city of Tung-chow, eight miles short of Pekin, where he would sign the convention, under escort of 1000 men; and that he should immediately afterwards proceed to Pekin, there to exchange ratifications of the Treaty of Tientsin (1858), under similar protection. Our armies meanwhile were to encamp four miles below Tung-chow. Nothing remained but to settle details, and take up suitable quarters for Lord Elgin at Tung-chow. For this purpose Mr. Parkes, accompanied by Messrs. Loch (private secretary), De Norman (attached to Shanghai mission), and Bowlby (_Times’_ correspondent), with an escort of Fane’s Horse, under Lieut. Anderson, went out on the 17th. Lieut.-Colonel Beauchamp Walker accompanied the party, for the purpose of inspecting the ground designated by the Chinese for our encampment, and Mr. Thompson (Commissariat) was sent to guage the capabilities of supply of the city of Tung-chow.