otracts our separation. I see that
in the very flattering article of the _Times_ of September 7th, which
you quote, it is implied that when I signed the Treaty, I had done my
work, and that the responsibility of seeing that it was carried out
rests with others. If this be true--and you will no doubt think so--I
might have returned at once, at least after Japan. But is it true?
Could I, in fairness to my country, or, in what I trust you believe
comes second in the rank of motives with me, to my own reputation,
leave the work which I had undertaken unfinished?... Besides, I own
that I have a conscientious feeling on the subject. I am sure that in
our relations with these Chinese we have acted scandalously, and I
would not have been a party to the measures of violence which have
taken place, if I had not believed that I could work out of them some
good for them. Could I leave this, the really noblest part of my task,
to be worked out by others? Anyone could have obtained the Treaty of
Tientsin. What was really meritorious was, that it should have been
obtained at so small a cost of human suffering. But this is also what
discredits it in the eyes of _many_, of _almost all_ here. If we had
carried on war for some years; if we had carried misery and desolation
all over the Empire; it would have been thought quite natural that the
Emperor should have been reduced to accept the terms imposed upon him
at Tientsin. But to do all this by means of a demonstration at
Tientsin! The announcement was received with a yell of derision by
connoisseurs and baffled speculators in tea. And indeed there was some
ground for scepticism. It would have been very easy to manage matters
here, so as to bring into question all the privileges which we had
acquired by that Treaty. Even then we should have gained a great deal
by it; because when we came to assert those rights by force, we should
have had a good, instead of a bad _casus belli_. But I was desirous,
if possible, to avoid the necessity for further recurrence to force;
and it required some skill to do this. This has been my motive for
protracting my stay.

[Sidenote: The tariff signed.]

_H.M.S. 'Furious.'--November 8th_.--I write a line to tell you that I
got over the signature of my tariff, &c., very satisfactorily this
morning, and set off in peace with