They pressed forward on foot, and, catching hold of Mr. White’s bridle, importuned him to dismount and repair to their tents. At the same time their servants pressed round the horses of the British officers, and, seizing their reins, endeavoured to lead them away. After speaking very civilly to the two Lhasa officials, Mr. White was obliged to call two or three sepoys to clear the way, and the British officers then rode on, while the two Lhasa officers mounted and rode back to camp. The Jongpen afterwards followed the British officers, and made repeated efforts to induce them to halt for a day at the next camp in order to confer with the two Lhasa officials. He was in a very excited state, and hinted more than once at possible hostilities, and said: “You may flick a dog once or twice without his biting, but if you tread on his tail, even if he has no teeth, he will turn and try and bite you.”
I suppose it is always difficult for one party to see the other party’s point of view; but, of course, his contention regarding us precisely applied to what we thought of the Tibetans. It was simply because the Tibetans had encroached on us, and were even now addressing us _inside_ the frontier fixed by treaty, that we were at last turning and insisting on our treaty rights.
That evening Mr. Ho, the Chinese delegate, sent word that he had arrived at Giri, just on the other side of the frontier, and asking that Mr. White would remain at Giagong.
The next day Mr. White and his escort rode quietly across the frontier, without meeting anyone except the Chinese Commandant of the small post of Giri, who passed by without speaking. Mr. White encamped near Giri, and received a visit from Mr. Ho, who communicated to him the contents of the Resident’s reply to the Viceroy, and made a request, which was politely declined, that the British Commissioner should remain at Giri in preference to proceeding to Khamba Jong. In this despatch the Chinese Resident informed the Viceroy that he had again deputed Mr. Ho, in conjunction with Captain Parr, the Customs Commissioner at Yatung, who, he said, were truly of equal rank to the Commissioner deputed by the Viceroy, to discuss all matters in a friendly manner. He further said that the Dalai Lama had deputed his Chief Secretary and a Depon (General) of Lhasa to negotiate in conjunction with the Chinese Commissioners. But the Resident understood, he said, that Khamba Jong was in Tibetan territory, and therefore the meeting could only be at the boundary near the grazing-grounds fixed by the Convention of 1890. The Resident contended, that is to say, that though the Tibetans had for thirteen years with armed men occupied territory on our side of the frontier laid down by the Convention, we were not even to meet temporarily for discussion on the Tibetan side of the same frontier.