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Wade mony to the fortitude with which he bore the failure of his tragedy. As a poet he is interesting but disappointing. His poetical feeling is most genuine; but, devoid as he is of the most elementary notion of form, and, what is more remarkable, of any gift of spontaneous melody, it is in general but warmth without light. His efforts to say fine things too frequently result in extravagance. Occasionally, however, as in the ‘Contention of Death and Love,’ marred as even this is by vicious diction, he kindles for a while into true lyrical ardour, and shows that he has more in him than he can bring out. His plays are not highly effective, yet in them he is always the poet, never the mere playwright. His place in literary history is not unimportant as perhaps the purest example of the new influences which began to operate in English literature after the death of Shelley.

[ H. Buxton Forman in Miles's Poets of the Century, and in Nicoll and Wise's Lit. Anecd. of the Nineteenth Century, vol. i.]  WADE, THOMAS FRANCIS (1818–1895), diplomatist, born in London on 25 Aug. 1818, was the elder son of Major (afterwards Colonel) Thomas Wade (d. 1846) of the 42nd highlanders, by Anne, daughter of William Smythe of Barbavilla, West Meath. From his father he inherited a remarkably tenacious memory and a great love of languages. In 1823, his father having been appointed military secretary at Mauritius, Thomas accompanied him thither, and at once began a regular course of study, including Latin. In 1827 he returned to England with his mother and sisters, and was sent to a private school at Richmond. Two years later he joined his father at the Cape, and there continued his education with a private tutor until 1832. In the summer of that year he was sent home, and at the beginning of the Michaelmas term was placed at Mr. Drury's house at Harrow, where he spent five years. In 1837 he matriculated from Trinity College, Cambridge, but at the end of a year his father, thinking him best fitted for a military career, bought him a commission in the 81st regiment of foot, then stationed at Chester. A year later (1839) he exchanged into his father's old regiment, the 42nd highlanders, and served with that distinguished corps in Ireland, and later in the Ionian Islands. During the year he spent at Corfu he studied Italian and modern Greek. On 16 Nov. 1841 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, and on the following day exchanged into the 98th regiment of foot, which was then under orders for active service in China. On 20 Dec. he sailed with his new regiment, and arrived at Hongkong in June 1842.

During the enforced leisure of this somewhat lengthy voyage Wade began the study of Chinese, and, being the only officer who had any acquaintance with that little-known tongue, he was appointed interpreter to the regiment by the colonel, Colin Campbell (afterwards Lord Clyde). Only three months after he had joined the regiment he was appointed adjutant. He took part with his regiment in the attack on Chinkiang Fu and in the operations round Nanking. After the conclusion of peace the regiment returned to Hongkong (1843), where Wade's knowledge of Chinese gained him the post of interpreter to the garrison, and at the close of 1845, after a visit to England on sick leave, he was appointed interpreter in Cantonese to the supreme court of Hongkong. A year later he was nominated to the post of assistant Chinese secretary to Sir John Davis, who was then superintendent of trade. In 1852 he was appointed vice-consul at Shanghai, and while holding that office took part in establishing the foreign maritime customs. For the administration of this new service an international committee was formed, consisting of Wade representing Great Britain, Carr representing the United States, and Arthur Smith representing France. The largest share of the work fell to Wade, who, after having seen the machinery satisfactorily started, resigned his office. In 1855 he was recalled to Hongkong as Chinese secretary, and was almost immediately sent on a mission to Cochin China by Sir John Bowring [q. v.], then governor of his colony.

On the outbreak of the war of 1857 Wade was attached to Lord Elgin's special mission, and to him fell the duty of negotiating with the Chinese authorities the treaty of Tientsin. In 1859 he accompanied (Sir) Frederick William Adolphus Bruce [q. v.] to the Peiho, and in the following year was attached as Chinese secretary to Lord Elgin's second mission, after the defeat of the gunboats at Taku. In all the difficult negotiations which followed he bore a leading part, and he accompanied (Sir) Harry Smith Parkes [q. v.] on his first visit to Tungchow, where on the following day Parkes, Henry (afterwards Lord) Loch, and their escort were taken prisoners. With skill Wade eventually arranged the release of Parkes and the other survivors of the captivity, and in 1861 he formed part of the staff of the first legation in Peking. In the following year he was made a C.B., and was acting chargé d'affaires at Peking from 1864 to 1865, and from 1869 to 1871, when he was appointed plenipotentiary. It was during his