The king had now collected an army in P’yŭng-yang and he gave each soldier a present of cotton cloth. The whole number of the army is not given, but we are told that there were 10,234 skillful archers and 700 musketeers. It seems that the review did not satisfy all, for one of the leading officials said, “If we take this final step and go to war we shall all perish, so it might be well to send an envoy and try to patch up matters with them.” To this another replied hotly, “All the people are bent on war and are determined to rid themselves of these savages. You are a traitor to your country to talk of sending an envoy. You are insulting the king. You are over-riding the will of the great majority.” But the other answered calmly, “We have no army that can stand before them an hour and some fine morning we shall all he found dead in bed. There is no place to take the ancestral tablets, so my advice is to send generals to P’yŭng-yang and have soldiers well drilled, and at the same time send an envoy to the Manchus to see how they talk. It may be that things may be so arranged that we can go along quietly as before. At any rate it will give us time to prepare. If worse comes to worst and we have to defend the Yalu we will do our best, but it is evident that if they once cross we will necessarily become supplicants.” This was too good logic to be withstood and yet it was worse than nothing, for it was either just too strong or just too weak, and it threw the whole court into a fatal uncertainty. In the tenth moon the Manchu general Mabudă, appeared on the west bank of the Yalu and sent word to the prefect of Eui-ju saying. “On the twenty-sixth of the next moon our armies are to move on Korea, but if within that time you send an envoy we will desist, even though it be at the last moment.” Gen. Kim Nyu told the king this and urged that the envoy be sent, but only an interpreter was sent with a letter to the Manchu chief. When the Manchus saw this man they said “Go back and tell the king that if he does not send his son and the Prime Minister and another high official to perform the treaty ceremony before the twenty fifth of the next moon, our armies will instantly be put in motion.” Yonggoldă brought out the copy of the proclamation he had brought with him from Korea and said, “Look at this. It cannot be said that it was we who broke the treaty first.” A letter was given the messenger for the king in which was written, “They say you are building many forts. Is it to block my way to your capital? They say you are building a palace on Kang-wha to find refuge in. When I have taken your eight provinces will Kang-wha be of any use to you? Can your councillors overcome me with a writing-brush?”