/^^-% -^^ ^^' ^ .-y y V ,^^ "^ \^ c^ -n*- '^ '^. - '^^ <^^ * « I A \\ <^ •^■^ ' 4'- ■/■ ^A c '^ "^ '' 1) ^^" % .r .^^^^ s*^' ^^. '>. A-^^ .■?f' . V "■ ^^*^ .^■^ ''<^^ i^ARRATIVE OF A VOYAGE, IN HIS MAJESTY'S LATE SHIP ALCESTE, TO THE YELLOW SEA, ALONG THE COAST OF COREA, AND THROUGH ITS XUMEROUS HITHERTO UNDISCOVERED ISLANDS, ISLAJ^B OF LEWCHEW; WITH AN ACCOUNT OF HER SHIP>VRECK IN THE STRAITS OF GASPAR-. BY JOHN M'LEOD, SURGEON OF THE ALCESTE. PHILADELPHIA : PUBLISHED BY M. CAREY AND SON, Corner ofChesnut and Fourth streets, 1818. 4 \ 1 i*" ADVERTISEMENT. The author of the following pages has attempted to narrate (in the best and shortest way he can) the occur- rences of a voyage rendered remarkable by a combination of extraordinary events, and the circumstance of a com- munication with an interesting people, with whom, for the first time, Europeans have had any intercourse ; and he has ventured a few occasional remarks, precisely as they arose m his mind on the spot, and which more mature re- flection has not induced him to alter. He is aware that his thoughts, as well as his mode of expressing them, may be liable to comment ; but he hopes that those who are mighty in criticism will be merciful in censure, and not visit with asperity that which is humble in pretension. VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE TO CHINA. The British government, on the representation of the court of directors of the East India Com- pany, respecting the trade with China, having de- cided, with the view of relieving that branch of its commerce from the increasing vexatious impo- sitions of the local authorities of Canton, on the measure of sending an embassy to the court of Pekin ; as on a former occasion of a similar kind, a distinguished nobleman had been selected to fill the situation of embassador extraordinary from the king of Great Britain to the emperor of China, who carried out with him a numerous suite com- posed of gentlemen well skilled in every branch of natural knowledge, with many curious and costly presents ; so it was now determined to leave no- thing short that could contribute to the splendour and respectability of the present embassy. The B 2 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE right hoii. lord Amherst (who had already filled the high situation of embassador to the court of Sicily) was appointed to conduct this difficult and delicate mission. Mr. Henry Ellis (formerly em- ployed in a successful negociation with the king of Persia) was named secretary of embassy, with dor- mant powers to act as minister plenipotentiary, should any accident to the embassador render diat circumstance necessary. The hon. JefFery Am- herst, as page ; Mr. Hayne, as private secretary ; Mr. Abel, as surgeon and naturalist ; the rev. John Griffiths, as chaplain ; Mr. Havell, as artist ; and Dr. Lynn, with Mr. Maurige, Mr. Poole, and some others to fill the respective departments, con- stituted the suite of his excellency*. Many valuable presents, supplied, as on the for- mer occasion, by the East India Company, for the emperor and his ministers, consisting of specimens of our improved manufactures, made by the first liands, were also prepared. The command of the naval part of the expedition was intrusted to cap- tain Murray Maxwell ; and the Alceste, a frigate of forty-six guns, was fitted up for the reception of the embassador and suite. His majesty's brig Lyra, * Lieut. Cooke, of the royal marines, was also attached to the embassy, on its landing in China, the guard being selected from that corps. Messrs. Abbot, Martin, and Somerset, were likewise added to it at this period. TO CHINA. 3 commanded by captain Basil Hall, and the General Hewitt, Indiaman, by captain Campbell, accompa- nied the Alceste, the latter carrying out the pre- sents. On the 9th of February, 1816, the ships sailed from Spithead, and soon cleared the Channel, with a favourable breeze, which continued with us to Madeira, where we arrived on the 18th. In Fun- chal road we found the Phaeton, having sir Hud- son and lady Lowe, with their suite on board, in their way to St. Helena ; and the Niger, with Mr. Bagot, on his mission to America. Our stay here was only twelve hours, and, in the evening, we pursued our course to the south-westward. The weather becoming hourly warmer, our people, who had been badly clothed, and had suffered a good deal from the severity of the cold in fitting out the ship, now began to thaw a little : things were be- ginning to find their proper places in the ship ; and those unaccustomed to the rolling motion had, by this time, acquired their sea-legs. On the 4th March, in the evening, at the moment of crossing the equinoctial line, the voice of some one, as from the sea, announced himself as Neptune's eldest son, and, after putting the usual interrogatories, added, that his father being a little indisposed, and rather squeamish about exposing himself to the night air, had deferred his visit until the morning, when he would personally call on board to inspect the stran- 4l VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE gers who were now entering his dominions. The son of Neptune seemed now to sink again into the deep. In the morning, his godship, agreeably to promise, appeared, seated in his car (a gun-carriage), with his trident and other insignia, attended by Amphitrite, and all his usual train of inferior dei- ties. He was received by a strange-looking guard of his own, the band striking up " Rule Britannia /" After paying his respects to the embassador, the captain, and the rest, the novices, of whom there were not a few, were forthwith shaved, according to a practice immemorial, with a rusty iron hoop, full of notches ; and the lather being washed off, by playing the fire-engine in their faces, they were then wiped dry with a dirty swab. Much mirth and good humour prevailed ; and a double allow- ance of grog finished the ceremony. We experi- enced none of the calms usual near the line, and nothing of moment occurred until we reached the lat. 20° 4' north, long. 31° 52' west, on the 16th March, when the Lyra and Hewitt were directed to make the best of their way to the Cape of Good Hope, whilst the Alceste proceeded to the capital of the Brazils, where we arrived on the 21st of that month. All the bold, as well as beautiful, features of na- ture, have conjoined to enrich the scenery of Rio Janeiro. The luxuriant descriptions of former travellers are by no means exaggerated, for it would TO CHINA. 5 indeed be difficult to exceed the truth in portray- ing the sublimity and grandeur of such a scene as presents itself on entering the harbour. The nu- merous islets appearing on this extensive sheet of water, — its richly- wooded banks, rising like an am- phitheatre on either hand, studded with villages and country seats, — added to the distant view of lofty and picturesque mountains, — form, altogether, a very unusual and noble landscape. Tlie death of the queen, which happened the day previous to our arrival, at the good old age of eighty-two, had rather cast a gloom over the city of St. Sebastians. The batteries and ships fired five-minute guns during the whole day and night ; the Alceste, Indefatigable, and a Spanish frigate, following this example ; displaying also the usual exterior marks of grief, by hoisting the colours half-staff high, and topping the yards. The offi- cers also wore crape ; and, from a positive order being issued to all the inhabitants to go into mourn- ing (which none dared, under the severest penal- ties, disobey), the prices of all black articles felt a sudden and enormous increase. The government of the Brazils seems perfectly despotic ; and it is painful to see even Englishmen lose the natural freedom of their character under such dominion. Some, who from long residence had imbibed the feelings of the Portuguese, would, in answering any question relative to public affiiirs, 6 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE look cautiously around, to see who was near them, and then whisper their reply. The prince (now the king), during the period her majesty lay in state, was shut up, according to their usage, not to be seen by any but his cham- berlain. Swarms of priests occupied every avenue to the palace, and hung in clusters on the staircases. St. Sebastians seems to be a soil, in which these mem- bers of the aiitos dafe still thrive well. The Bra- zils have lately been raised from the state of a mere colony to the dignity of a kingdom ; and the resi- dence of the court has conferred still more sub- stantial advantages on it, arising from the emigra- tion of the chief nobility from Portugal, and the transfer of their wealth to this country. Its commerce has of late years increased to a great degree, chiefly, however, under the direction of English houses. The return of the court to the mother country, it is thought, would be the signal of revolt ; for it is not probable the Brazils would long remain in their present fettered state, whilst colonies in all directions around them are freeing themselves from the oppression of the mother coun- try. The want of the usual public attentions of saluting the flag of a foreign power might have been accounted for under the present circumstances of the court ; but it was singular (considering, more particularly, our late relations with Portugal) that TO CHINA, 7 a house for the accommodation of the embassador and suite, during their short stay, and which had been granted to the former embassy, should have been refused in the present instance. The hospi- tahty, however, of Mr. Chamberlayne, the British minister here, amply supplied this deficiency. AU places of public amusement were of course shut ; and the only spectacle^ during our stay, was the fu- neral of the queen, which took place by torch- light ; all the military that could be collected, both horse and foot, lining the streets (which were illu- minated) from the palace to the convent of Ajuda. The herse and state- coaches were drawn up at the grand.entrance, covered with black cloth, and near them the chief mourners, who were eight of the nobles, on horseback. Their dress was the ancient Portuguese costume of mourning. Each had a large broad-brimmed hat, rather slouching down upon the shoulders ; a long black cloak, or robe, with the star of some order affixed to it ; convey- ing to the mind of an English spectator the whim- sical combination of a coal-heaver, a priest, and a knight. The king, accompanied by the two elder princes, attended the coffin to the principal porch, and saw it deposited in the hearse, when the whole cavalcade drove oif, and the body was interred in the convent, with the usual religious ceremonies. The royal family next day appeared at the balco- nies of the palace ; on which occasion it is usual for B VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE the Portuguese to stand uncovered in the square opposite ; and, if any of the royal carriages are met on the road, the passengers on horseback must dis- mount, and even kneel. Neither of their Portuguese majesties can them- selves be considered as regular beauties ; but the princesses are good figures, and certainly, upon the whole, handsome women. Don Pedro, their eldest son, promises to be a man of some spirit. Much indolence seems to exist among the inha- bitants, and they are said still to possess their cha- racteristic contempt of all reading ; so that a pub- lisher of books in the Brazils would probably earn but a lean livelihood. This country produces all the various fruits of the warmer climates ; such as pine-apples, oranges, limes, mangoes, guavas, me- lons, bananas, &c. : the tea-shrub still continues to be an article of growth, under the direction of some Chinese accustomed to manage it ; and it is to be hoped they may succeed in extending and im- proving its cultivation. The slave-trade still exists to its fullest extent ; and this class of the popu- lation, however useful they may be, are certainly not ornamental ; being the ugliest race of negroes that can be collected from the African coast — Ga- boons, Congos, and Angolas. Our West -India islands having been generally supplied with Fan- tees, from the Gold Coast, with Eyeos, and Ashan- tees, who are a much finer-looking people; this TO CHINA. 9 circumstance, added perhaps to their improved con- dition, their better f lothing, and general treatment, gives a slave of Jamaica a far less degraded appear- ance than one in this country. Yet, though the situation of the former is much ameliorated (and undoubtedly superior to his native state in Africa), it is unfortunate that the first European settlers of colonies, had not, instead of hunting down and oppressing the natives, trained them to habits of industry ; when the term slavery^ so revolting to humanity even under the most favourable circum- stances, so contrary to reason and natural right, need never have been known. Our East-India possessions, and late occupation of Java, sufficient- ly demonstrate the practicability of this system. They do Buonaparte, here, the honour of being very much afraid of him ; and keep a bright eye to windward, lest he should break adrift from St. Helena, and come down upon them before the wind. This silly appearance of fear is something like the weakness of ordering his name never to be mentioned, than which, perhaps, nothing tends more to keep up his consequence. This part of the Brazils is naturally hot during the months of December, January, and February ; but (more especially as the southern are found to be comparatively colder than corresponding north- ern latitudes) it enjoys, during our summer, a sort C iO VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE of tropical winter, and is not considered an un- healthy climate. The town of St. Sebastians, without any public edifice worthy of notice, is regularly built, and, from the late influx of inhabitants, is daily extend- ing its limits. Although this country produces plenty of beef, yet, from want of care and manage- ment, it is such as would be considered carrion in England ; and in few parts of the world is there less accommodation for travellers, there being only some casas^ or inns, of the most wretched de- scription. The Brazils display an inexhaustible field for the researches of the naturalist, for no where else can the objects of his inquiry be more varied or multiplied. The state of society here is repre- sented, by those whose long residence and close intercourse afford them the means of judging, as extremely demoralized. The men, in their ex- terior appearance, are a squalid, hysterical, grim- looking set ; but the ladies, though generally little, and dark- coloured, are not deficient in beauty or expression of countenance; they want, however, that elegance of gait and graceful walk, peculiar to the Spaniards. They are said to be more atten- tive to the external forms of decorum than to the essential practice of modesty ; but this, if true, may " depend," as was suggested by an elegant TO CHINA. 11 writer of the last embassy, " on the example of the men ;" for it would scarcely be reasonable to expect the perfection of female morals, where every manly virtue is unknown. At least three- fourths of the world are in a state of barbarism, where women have no character at all ; being either immured in seraglios, or the mere slaves and play- things of their savage lords ; but in that portion of it, which has a claim to civilization, where they are allowed to have minds, and assume their just rank, the slightest glance will shew, that among those nations where honour, intelligence, and worth, are held in most esteem by the one sex, they are uniformly rewarded by corresponding good quali- ties in the other. The ship having recruited her supply of very excellent water*, and other matters settled, we took our leave of the American shore on the 31st of March, steering south-easterly until we got from 36° to 39° south, where we found the prevailing westerly winds. Keeping in the usual track for ships crossing the Southern Atlantic, we passed the islands of Tristan d'Acunha, about fifty miles to the northward of them. The wind conthming * Captain Cook complained of the water here being very- bad. — At that time, perhaps, the aqueduct was not so ex- tensively covered, and secured from the admission of im- puriiies, as at present. 1^ VOYAGE OF H. M. 9. ALCESTE favourable, we saw the Table Mountain on the 18th of Aprii, and anchored on the same day in the bay. We arrived at a gay time, in the middle of horse-racing and balls. An India fleet touched here, homeward bound, one of the ships having on board the countess of Loudon and family, on the passage to England. Cape Town has now become almost an English place, and is too well known to require any description here. As strangers, on first landing here, we were for- cibly struck by the remarkable difference of com- plexion in the female part of the society, compared with the brunettes we had just left at Rio Janeiro ; and an Englishman is probably the more inclined to esteem the beauty of the Cape ladies, from its great resemblance to that which he is accustomed to admire at home. It is hinted, however, that this resemblance exists chiefly during youth, and that, in their maturer years, they are apt (from se- dentary habits and want of exercise) to acquire a peculiar Hottentctish obesity. But this, perhaps, is only said by ill-natured people. The ship having gone round to Simon's Bay, and the necessary refitment being completed, his lordship embarked at this place, with the usual marks of attention, on the 6th of May, and we pro- ceeded on our voyage. From 38*^ to 40° south, we found our expected winds ; but, as winter was far advanced in this hemisphere (latter end of May, TO CHINA. 13 and beginning of June), the weather was cold, bleak, and boisterous, with a heavy sea. On the 24th May we made the islands of St. Paul and Amsterdam. Smoke was seen, as we approached, issuing from the crevices of the latter. It is here where the hot springs so nearly adjoin to the great salt water basin, as to afford the singular exhibition of catching fish in the latter, and boiling them in die former, without taking them oif the hook, and within reach of the rod. The state of the weather, which was very rough, and the time of the evenirg, did not allow us to verify this fact, but there is no doubt of its truth. An immense crater (now ap- parently converted into a sort of harbour, the sea having flowed into it) appears on the eastern side of the island. Having got sufficiently to the eastward for the purpose of fetching Java with the usual tropical winds, we began to hawl to the northward and eastward, the weather of course becoming daily warmer ; and, on the 8th June, we saw Java Head, and anchored next day in Anjeri road, where we found the Lyra at anchor, and saw the Hewitt oft" Cape Nicholas, on her way to Batavia, they having only arrived two days before us*. This passage * The superior sailing of the frigate enabled us to touch at Rio Janeiro, without in any way delaying the general pas- sage ; as, notwithstanding this, she nearly overtook her con- i4i VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE was extraordinary for its rapidity, for in ninety-two days, under sail, the ship had traversed about fourteen thousand miles, and visited every quarter of the globe. After staying a day or two at the village of An- jeri (where we were amused with the ceremony of a Javanese wedding), colonel Yule, the resident of the Bantam district, accompanied by Mr. M'Gre- gor, waited on the embassador to pay their re- spects ; and having provided the necessary accom- modation for his lordship and suite to proceed over land to Batavia, they all set out on their journey thither. During our short stay here, the king, or sultan, of Bantam, died ; and his uncle (the nearest heir to the sovereignty) refused to accept the title, preferring to live in humble retirement. The Al- ceste, having completed her water, sailed also for Batavia, as she had brought out duplicate des- patches for the evacuation of the island of Java. The Lyra, in the mean time, had been sent on to China, with a communication from lord Amherst to Sir G. Staunton. On the 21st June we sailed from Batavia, with the general Hewitt ; saw the island of Lucepara on the 23d, and entered the straits of Banca. Our sorts at the Cape. The same was the case here, though she remained ten days behind, being able to afford them, in such a run, a start of 1000, or 1500 miles. TO CHINA. 15 voyage up the China sea presented nothing unu- sual. On the 9th of July we met his majesty's ship Orlando, and received intelligence of the motions of our coadjutors at Macao. We joined them at anchor near the Grand Lemma on the following day, and found along with the Lyra, the Discovery, and Investigator, two surveying- ships belonging to the company, having on board Sir G. Staunton, and some other gentlemen* be- longing to the factory, whose knowledge of the Chinese language rendered them necessary as inter- preters. The apparent reason of choosing this rendez- vous, was to be free from the impertinence of the Canton official people, whose business it naturally was to thwart the measures, and throw every pos- sible impediment in the way of, the embassy. Cir- cumstances occasioning the delay of a day or two, the ships passed on to an anchorage among the Hong Kong islands ; where the Anjeri water, not being deemed good, was changed for that which fell from the rocks, and was certainly uncontami- nated by any vegetable matter, for few places present a more barren aspect than these islands. They are also called the Ladrones, from being the haunts of pirates ; and for such a purpose their situation is ex- * Messrs. Morrison, Manning, Toone, Davis, and Pear- son. 1§ VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE tremely well adapted. Here a message ari'ived, stating the emperor's pleasure that the embassy should be received as in the former case ; and that the necessary orders had been sent to the ports of the Eastern and Yellow Seas for that purpose. On the 13th July the squadron (four ships and the brig) sailed ; and, coasting along the provinces of Quang-tung and Fokien, passed through the straits of Formosa, and entered the Tung Hai, or Eastern Sea. The breeze altered its direction occasionally, but was always favourable ; and, passing out of sight of the Chusan islands, we saw the land to the eastward, which we then conceived to be the south-west point of Corea. On the 24th we made Staunton's island, and capes Gower and Macartney, on the south-east part of the Shan- tong promontory ; and, the next day, rounding close the north-east point, we entered the gulph of Pe-tche-lee. The country here had an extremely rugged and sterile look. On the 26th we passed through the Mee-a-tau islands, and steered for the mouth of the White (or North) River*, despatch- ing the Lyra a-head, to announce the approach of the squadron. An address was now publicly read by lord Am- herst, to all the individuals who were to be attend- * It is doubtful whether Pei means white or north j most probably the latter. TO CHINA. 17 ants on the embassy, touching the great necessity of maintaining the strictest regularity and pro- priety of conduct in their intercourse \\ith the Chinese, so as to avoid every cause of offence or disagreement ; and laying down general regulations for their conduct in all respects. We anchored, on the 28th*, not many miles distant from the mouth of the river ; but the land is here so very low, that the mast-heads of the junks in the river, and the tops of the houses only of the village of Ta-coo, were visible from the ship. It would appear that the ships had entirely outstripped the expectations of the Chinese ; for they had no idea of seeing them so soon, or that they should not have heard of them in their pas- sage up. Such rapidity of movement never enter- ed into their conceptions; for they, in fact, had scarce heard of them at one end of their empire, when they found them at the other. The viceroy of this province (Pe-tche-lee) had been for some offence dismissed from his office;, and his successor having not yet left Pekin, it was not until the 4th Aug, that two duly-autho- rized mandarins of rank (Chang and Yin) came on * During our passage up the Yellow Sea the weather was remarkably serene and fine, and we experienced none of the fogs which usually hang over the shallower parts of the ©cean. D 18 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE board to pay their respects to the embassador, and to give the necessary directions for the disembarka- tion of the presents. To those who had seen, for the first time, the Chinese costume, these manda- rins had a very strange appearance. — On a back view, their short jacket, or gown, with their crape petticoats, gave them the look of bulky old women; but, in confronting themj their clumsy boots and " beards forbade the interpretation." The fisher- men in this vicinity (almost within a hundred miles of the capital) were literally naked, — even without a fig-leaf. This sort of indecency we were little prepared to meet, amongst a people who af- fect to be so outrageously decorous as to discou- rage the art of sculpture, because it displays too distinctly the shape and lineaments of the human body. Chang was a civil, Yin a military, mandarin; and they had, as usual, the title of ta-zhin (or great man) added to their names. They were saluted on approaching the ship with seven guns each, and received with a guard. Every body was in I full dress ; and it could not be said of this, as of I the last embassy, that there was any want of splen- dour in this respect. After a conference, in some degree ceremonious, and partly for arranging future proceedings, they partook of a banquet in the cap- tain's cabin, and then returned to the shore. Quang, the chin-chae, imperial commissioner, or legate TO CHINA. 19 (as he has been variously termed), holding a supe- rior rank to either of the others*, being ready to receive the embassador on shore, his lordship and the gentlemen of the embassy took their leave of us for a while, landing in great state on the 9th of August; the squadron being dressed in colours, the standard flying, the yards manned, and a salute of 19 guns fired from each ship. They proceeded into the river attended by a number of Chinese junks, and by our boats in regular order. During the time we remained at this place, presents of bullocks, vegetables, rice, tea, and other refresh- ments were, according to usage, sent off to the ships, but by no means in great abundance. Seve- ral of the bullocks were brought along-side dead, having been drowned in the bottom of the boats, or died otherwise in their passage off. This, how- ever, was not meant as disrespect or incivility, for they make no distinction themselves between an animal that is killed by the butcher, and one which dies naturally ; and in this way they eat dogs, cats, rats, and, in fact, all manner of carrion and ver. min. * The person holding such an office as this, under the great seal, obtains a kind of temporary rank, entitling him, for the time, to take precedence even of the viceroy of a province, although he may have an inferior button or ball on his cap, and be a mandarin of lower order in the state. so VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE In this respect, therefore, they made no strangers of us, for they gave us their own family fare. It was now determined, by the senior officer, that the Lyra, attended by the Investigator, should take a southerly direction in the gulf, whilst the Alceste and Discovery were to proceed to the north, a certain rendezvous being pointed out for our meeting again, to which the General Hewitt was also directed. On the Ilth we weighed, and stood to the north- eastward; the Discovery in company: the Lvra and Investigator to the southward. On the 13th saw the Sha-loo-poo-tien islands, extending from north-west b}' north to west by south, distant about five leagues. We coasted along the western shore of the gulf of Lea-tong, hitherto unexplored by any European ship ; and found the land, as we ad- vanced, became more and more mountainous. About noon, on the 14th, in latitude 39° 29' N. longitude 120° 6' E , the great wall of China opened to the view, bearing north-west by west, its nearest and lowest point being then distant about six or seven leagues; but we approached it closer in the afternoon. Rising from the sea, this immense barrier passed over the first or lowest hill, and, mounting the second, was seen stretching to the right, in our point of view, obliquely towards its summit : then, on the third and still higher land, it inclined to the TO CHINA. 21 left, making an angle with the last range ; and, ulti- mately ascending the highest and most distant mountain, it was there lost*. The opportunity of surveying this extraordinary structure, which, for more than twenty ages, has been deemed one of the greatest wonders of the world, afforded, more especially in this unexpected way, from the deck of a British man of war, the most pleasing sensa- tions. Whether it is considered (as it is by some) a mighty effort of human industry, or (as by others) a monument of laborious folly, still it is an ama- zing object, not only from its immense extent, but on account of its great antiquity ; and, from being so seldom visible to an European eye, to have be- held it, even at this distance, was a high gratifica- tion of curiosity. Beyond the wall is a remarka- ble head-land, very much resembling Cape Sicie, a notorious place, near Toulon. The wdnd head- ing us here, we stood across, about sun-set, toward the coast of Chinese Tartary ; and on the 15 th, in * It extends for about fifteen hundred miles, and is car- ried equally over mountains and rivers. — " It is said not to be more than five-and-twenty feet high, flanked with towers at short distances, but of sufficient breadth for several horse- men to travel easily abreast. Report says, that one-third of the men in China, capable of labour, were employed in its construction, and tliat it was finished in the space of five years.'' SS VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE the evening, anchored in a bay* sheltered by winds from the north-west to south, but open to the southward and westward, lat. 39° 33' N., long. 121° 19' E. We found here a cascade of water gushing from the rock, which was excellent. The natives, who most probably had never seen any ships of our class before, crowded down next morning on the beach, but shewed no inclination to come on board. Indeed the people here seem- ed to be less amphibious than those generally found on sea- coasts ; few fishing or other boats were to be seen, although a very large and fine harbour, for vessels of twelve or fifteen feet water, extended inland round a point from the head of the bay. The first officer who wandered up to the villa- ges, about two miles from the watering place, was nearly devoured by the curiosity of the inhabitants. Being seated beneath a tree, every part of his dress underwent the strictest scrutiny, from the shirt-frill to the shoes ; but the anchor- buttons seemed most to attract attention, for they would refuse a dollar, and gladly accept a button, for any thing. The women here had, universally, small feet, all who were seen (and on the first morning every woman in the village made her appearance) being crippled. This we by no means expected * Named Ross Bay. TO CHINA. 23 to have found so far on the Tartar side of the great wall. But these people are, in fact, completely Chi- nese ; the language, dress, and religion of that country evidently prevailing : and they appear to differ in no material respect from those we after- wards' saw in the province of Shan-tong, except that they were less rude and uncivil. No public officer, or man of any rank, made his appearance to inquire into the motives of our arrival. They were remarkably neat in their houses and gardens ; and there was an air of comfort about their villages, not always to be found in the more civilized parts of Europe. The face of the country is mountainous, and extremely denuded of wood ; not a tree being visible, except in the immediate vicinity of their dwellings. The hills had the appearance of sheep- feeding downs in England ; and the soil, as far as we could penetrate, was excellent, and a good deal cultivated ; the holcus sorghum appearing a promi- nent object. Many deep fissures or gulleys were observed on the sides of the mountains, occasioned by the tor- rents from the melting snow in summer ; for, al- though this part of the country is in the same par- allel as the north of Italy or south of France, and was now (in August) very warm, yet the wintery season must be extremely cold, from the general situation and appeaiwice of the country, and the 24 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE bleak winds blowing over the uncultivated wilds to the northward of it. The rocks here were com- posed of a very ponderous sort of stone, evidently- containing a great proportion of iron ; and some slate was observed. There must be some town of commercial importance situated at the head of the gulf, from the number of junks we saw passing up and down. Some matchlocks were noticed at this place, but they were merely in the hands of indi- viduals, as fowling-pieces ; for no military made their appearance. We were unable to procure a sil^ply of fresh beef ; — not from want of cattle ; but they could not comprehend the value of Spa- nish dollars, this coin of such universal circulation being melted down, the moment it gets into the hands of a Chinese of Canton. Having completed our water, we weighed on the 19th, and steered along-shore to the southward. At four in the afternoon, we saw a considerable town, lying in a hollow between two red cliffs, the neighbourhood immediately around being rather fine, and better wooded than usual. It seem- ed a place of some trade, and a number of junks were lying at anchor in the roads. The narrow promontory which here extends into the Yellow Sea, and forms the eastern boundary of the gulf of Lea-tong, was, from its resemblance to a sabre, named the Regent's Sword : the south end of it is the extreme Tartar point, and was called Cape TO CHINA. S5 Charlotte, in honour of her royal highness the prin- cess. Leopold's Isle lies a little to the north-west of this cape. The coast along this shore from our anchorage was not unlike that from Plymouth Sound to the Start. Next morning (20ih), steering southerly, we passed through a cluster of islands (nearly op- posite and not very far disftant from the Mee-a- taus), which were named the Company's Group. The space bet^veen them and Cape Charlotte, St. George's Channel ; that through which we hacf sailed, LeadenhaU-Passage ; Ried's Rock and Grant's Jslarid were names appropriated on this oc- casion. Soon after we saw the Mee-a-tau islands; and, in the afternoon, passed the city of Ten-cheu- foo, at which lord Macartney, in the last embassy, touched. It looks ver}' well from the sea, but the wall seems of much greater extent tlian is necessa- r}^ for the town. Stood on to the eastward, and en- teredj in the evening, the bay or harbour of Kin- san-seu or Zew-a-tau. The clear and accurate de- scription of it, by sir Erasmus Gower, enabled th6 Alceste to proceed in without the least hesitation of difficulty. Here we found the General Hewitt. There are two towns on the peninsula, forming the north-west side of the harbour, and one On the op- posite shore. They have no fortifications here ; at least none deserving that name. Thegpeople ap- K S6 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE peared a gross and boorish set, and we enjoyed the happiness of being crowded with them from day-hght till dark, when they always went away without the least expression of thanks for civilities shewn them. We here noticed that all the females, high and low, had small feet, which is by no means the case in the southern provinces, especially about Canton. At the latter place, among the middling and lower classes, the feet are allowed to remain in their proper state, unless the girl promises to be handsome, in which case she is crippled, in order to give the finishing touch to her beauty, and with the view of preparing her for the mandarin market, where small feet bring a higher price, and she oc- casionally, also, obtains some interest or favour for her parents through the connexion. They walk, or rather totter along, like one shuf- fling on her heels only, without putting the fore part of the foot on the ground ; and in moving quick, they not unfrequently tumble down, when they must get up again the best way they can ; for Chinese gallantry was never observed to extend so far as to afford any help on such an occurrence. Some, more cautious, were seen to move about, supporting themselves by the walls of the houses. Girls, from early infancy to eight or nine years old, were carried about in arms, their feet being too tender, during the first years of this absurd and cruel operation, to enable them to bear their weight ; TO CHINA. 27 the four smaller toes being turned down under the sole, the whole foot and ancle cramped, and the growth impeded by tight bandages, and a small shoe, which is generally again enclosed in a larger one. The pain and irritation excited by this hor- rid process, as well as the want of exercise, evident- ly injures their general health, for all the female children had a sickly pallid look. It would be as difficult to account for the origin of this barbarous practice, as that of squeezing the waists of Eng- lish women out of all natural shape by stays (an usage which has not long been laid aside) ; or of " treating men like mere musical instruments," and tuning them, as such, in Italy. On shore the people were inhospitably rude, and even the children were encouraged to be inso- lent, and to throw stones. One mandarin seized a basket of vearetables from the officers' steward, or- dering him and the interpreter (whom he also beat) into the boat, with a number of opprobrious epi- thets, such as " Foreign Devils ! Spies !" &:c. Our relation with the embassy tied our hands at this time. Finding no refreshment w^as to be obtained here, and being told, by some one in authority, that there was a greater probability, of getting cattle at ano- ther harbour, forty miles farther to the eastward, we prepared to proceed thither. S» VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE We had by this time been joined by the Lyra ; captain Hall having surveyed the western arid south- ern shores of the Gulf of Pe-che-lee, which were found to be in general low. One place, remarka- ble for its height over the adjoining land, had been named Mount Eilis. Here we parted for a time with our worthy friends of the General Hewitt, the companions of our voyage outward ; that ship pro- ceeding to Canton, to complete her ulterior ob- jects. On the 26th we weighed from Zeu-a-tau, and next morning arrived at Oie-aie-oie, a very ex- tensive and secure harbour, the Lyra sounding the passage in. On our entrance a number of manda- rins (or, as the seamen termed them, mad marines} came on board to pay their respects ; and an old turret on the face of a hill fired three popguns by way of salvite, turning out about a dozen and a half of soldiers, who looked a good deal like the stage- military m an old fashioned play. Their salute was returned by an equal number of guns from the ships. Here died Mr. Gawthrop, the master, aged forty-three years, (thirty-three of which he had been to sea,) after a severe illness contracted at the Cape of Good Hope. He had been distinguished as a good seaman and correct navigator ; his career in the navy had also been marked by his abilities as a surveyor of coasts and harbours ; and, although a man of blunt manners, his honesty was sterling. The ship's reckoning TO CHINA. 29 had been kept, during his confinement, by Mr. Taylor, the chaplain. We buried him at sea, near the mouth of the harbour, with military honours ; it not being con- sidered right to inter him among a set of men who would have disturbed the grave for the coffin or the clothes, and of whose thievish disposition we we had had the fullest example. We lost no time at this place, where nothing substantial was to be found*, but proceeded to sea on the 29th, standing to the eastward along the Shan-tong shore. On the 31st we saw the land bearing cast; but, the wind being light, anchored in forty-three fathoms. Towards morning we weighed, and the next day anchored again among a cluster of islands, lat. 37° 45' N., long. 124° 40' 30" E. on the coast of Corea. The natives here exhibited, by signs and gestures, the greatest aversion to the landing of a piirty from the ships, making cut-throat mo- tions by drawing their hands across their necks, and pushing the boats away from the beach ; but they offered no serious violence. These islands were named Sir James Hall's Group ; the main land, of considerable height, was in view, and not far distant. Weighed again, and, the wind being northerly, stood to the southward. On the 2d we * Here parted for Macao the Discovery and Investigator. They were towed up, and sailed down again. 30 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE were out of sight of any land ; but, the wind chang- ing to the eastward, made sail southerly, and, on the 3d, passed a number of islands, with which, the sea was studded as far as the eye could reach from the mast-head ; and, on the 4th, stood into a fine bay formed by the main land to the northward and eastward, and sheltered in a great degree in other points by Helen's and other islands to the westward ; and anchored in six fathoms in front of a village, a larger town being observed at some distance. In the evening six or seven large boats came off to the Lyra (being nearest the shore), having on board a chief (most probably of this district), attended by a numerous retinue. There he met the commodore ; and, after partaking of some refreshment, proceeded, although it was now dark, on board the Alceste. He was saluted, on leaving the Lyra, with three guns, which was re- peated by the frigate. As he shoved off from the brig, one of his attendants, having in some way or other misbehaved, was bv his order extended on the deck of the boat, and received, in a summary way, about a dozen and a half of blows with a flat bamboo over the seat of honour ; and, as the cul- prit squalled, a number of his companions stand- ing round him joined in the howl, either in deri- sion, or to drown his noise. This ceremony finish- ed, a flourish of trumpets and other instruments announced his approach to the frigate. He was a TO CHINA. 31 man apparently about seventy years of age, of a very venerable and majestic mien ; his hair and beard of a hoary whiteness. His dress was a light blue robe, with loose sleeves, and fastened round his middle by a buff- coloured leathern girdle. He had on his head an immense hat, not less than five or six feet round the brim, made of some substance resembling horse- hair varnished over. The cavity to receive the head being fixed under the brim, that which rose above it, as in European hats, was not larger than a common tumbler. He wore a kind of half-boots, very much peaked and turned up at the points; and in his hand he held a short black stick, twisted round with a silken cord, which seemed to be the badge of his office. Divested of his broad-brimmed hat, he would not upon the whole have made a bad representative of old king Lear. Of his attendants some were mili- tary, being distinguished by a short sword or ra- pier, the officers wearing peacocks' feathers in their hats (a distinction which also exists in China for men of merit) : and the rest were civilians. He was ushered into the cabin, where, in preference to chairs, he sat down upon one of the sofa cushions, placed upon deck. It appearing to be etiquette for the head to be covered, the whole party, con- sisting of captains Maxwell, Hall, and other offi- cers, conformed to this rule, and, squatting on the cabin-floor, with gold-laced cocked hats on, amid ^ VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE the strange costume of the Coreans, looked Hke a party of masquers. Much edifying conversation was no doubt lost on this occasion ; for much was said, but unfor- tunately not one word was understood, the Chinese interpreter we had on board not being able to write his own language ; and some of the Coreans could write, although they could not speak, at least, that dialect which he comprehended. The old gentleman, however, displayed, by signs, his satisfaction at the mode of his reception ; and, after partaking of some liqueurs and sweetmeats, took his departure late in the evening from the ship, when he was again saluted, his band striking up one of their martial airs. During the night several boats were anchored near the Lyra, apparently to watch her motions; and early in the morning the same chief, accom- panied by a still greater retinue, was seen embark- ing at the nearest village, and soon after he visited the Lyra, where he breakfasted. He had in his train some secretaries (or men of letters), who em- ployed themselves in noting down every thing re- lative to the ships which could be acquired by signs : the complement of men was described by pointing to them, and then, holding up ten fingers a certain number of times ; they counted the guns, examined the muskets, measured tlie decks, &c. Sec, A shQt was fired, by express wish, from one TO CHINA, 33 of the carronades ; and the distance it went, but particularly its recochetting along the surface of the water, seemed to strike them with astonishment. After breakfast, a small party of the officers (cap- tains Maxwell, Hall, Messrs. Clifford, Law, and M'Leod) got into the boats with the view of land- ing at the village ; and the old chief, thinking they were going to the frigate, accompanied them, his own boats attending. But no sooner did he per- ceive the course directed to the shore than his countenance fell, and he seemed altogether in a state of great perturbation, making signs that he wished to go to the Alceste, and shaking his head when they pointed to the town. Having reached the beach, the party landed, and were immediately surrounded by a concourse of people. The old chieftain hung his head, and clasped his hands in mournful silence ; at last, bursting into a fit of crying, he was supported, sobbing all the way, to a little distance, where he sat down upon a stone, looking back at the officers with the most melancholy aspect. His feelings appeared to be those of a man who imagined some great calamity had befallen his country in the arrival of strange people ; and that he was the un- happy being in whose government this misfortune had occurred. The natives, who had in the mean time been driven by their soldiers to a respectful distance, F 34 VOVAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE . Stood gazing in astonishment alternately at their afflicted chief and at our party. Captain Maxwell, seeing what distress it occa- sioned him, would permit no' advance, and, beckon- ing to him to come back, he arose, and slowly re- turned. It was explained as well as could be done that no injury was intended, and that we were friends. He pointed to the sun ; and. describing its revolv- ing course four times, he drew his hand across his throat, and, dropping his chin upon his breast, shut his eyes, as if dead ; intimating that in four days (probably the period in which an answer ^ could arrive from Kin-ki~tao, the capital, for he also pointed to the interior) he would lose his head. One of his secretaries, or legal advisers (an amazing long-winded man), squatted on the top of a large stone, now made a harangue of con- siderable length, the purport of which was evi- dently against the advance of the strangers. Signs were made for something to eat and drink (think- ing hospitality might induce them to invite us into their houses) ; but messengers were instantly despatched to the village, who brought down littie tables, with mats to sit on, and some refreshments : this, however, not being the object, they were not accepted, making them understand that it was un- becoming to offer them in that unsheltered man- ner, on the open beach ; and, by way of a hint that TO CHINA. 36 this was not our mode of treating strangers, invited them to return to the frigate, where they should dine handsomely, and meet with every respect. The old man, who had observed attentively, and seemed perfectly to comprehend the meaning of the signs, answered by going through the motions of eating and drinking with much appearance of liveliness and satisfoction, patting his stomach afterwards, to say all was very fine ; then, looking grave, he di'ew his hand across his neck, and shut his eyes ; as if to say, " What signifies your good dinners when I must lose my head ?'' Perceiving it was impossible to penetrate farther into the interior without violence, which we had neither the right nor the inclination to use, the par- ty re-embarked, affecting to be much hurt at the treatment they had received. The old gentleman followed on board the AI- ceste, seemingly much dejected, and looking as if ashamed that he could not pay more attention. Wandering about the decks, attempting to con- verse, by signs, with every one he met, he took a piece of paper from a gentleman who was sitting at his desk, and wrote some characters upon it, which he seemed to require an answer to, but of course none could be given. Tlie paper was retained ; and, being shewn some months afterwards to Mr. Bannerman, at Canton, turned out to be, " I don't know who ye are; wliat business have ye here?" 36 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE It was pretty evident, however, that he was acting from orders which he dared not trifle with, rather than from any inhospitable feeling in his own na- ture. He received a Bible, which captain Maxwell (to whom he seemed very thankful for not insisting upon going into the town) presented him with, and carried it on shore with much care, most likely supposing it to be some official communication. Basil's Bay (which this place was named) lies in lat. 36° 9' N., long. 126° 32' E., being, in sea- phrase, about 120 miles high and dry up the coun- try, according to the existing charts. This afternoon (5th) got under weigh, and stood to the southward, through innumerable islands, which were all high, rising like mountains out of the sea. None of them seemed of great extent, few appearing longer than three or four miles, and, as far as we could see, in some degree cultivated, the inhabitants generally crowding to the top of the highest eminence, where they remained hud- dled together, and gazing until the ships were passed. On the 8th, anchored in lat. 34° 26' N., and here we found that the land seen on coming up the Whang Hai or Yellow Sea, and which had been called Cape Amherst, was not the continent. It was now named Alceste Island ; and another range, about twenty in number, running north and south, TO CHINA. 37 rather within it, but outside the Corean Archipela- go, was called the Amherst Isles. This morning, after sounding our way in, came to an anchor in a most excellent harbour, named Murray's Sound; the two islands, which principally form it, Sham- rock and Thistle. Here a number of observations were taken, and surveys made, to ascertain the exact geographical position of the land, and tlie qualities of the an- chorage ; and distinguishing names were of course given to remarkable spots, which might serve on future occasions as leading marks. From the top of Montreal, one of the highest, 135 other islands were dislincdy counted ; the main land, which seemed very lofty, was seen ranging from north- east to east-south-east, distant about forty miles. From Murray's Sound, Craig Harriet, a very pecu- liar rock, rising in sugar-loaf form from the sea, bears south 39°, west five miles. Another rock (Huntly Lodge), situate on an island, south 40° east, resembles a church with a square tower. Windsor Castle, north 40° 50' east. The direc- tion of the sound itself north north-east half east, and south south-west half west ; it is a very secure anchorage, with excellent holding ground. The intervening spaces between the multitude of isles, generally from one to two, or three, and even four miles across, are all (at least as far as the boats ex- amined) close harbours, and capable of containing. 38 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE in security, all the navies of the world. They form, in fact, an almost endless chain of harbours, communicating with each other. The rise and fall of tide is here considerable, but the setting of the currents among such a multitude of isles must, of course, be extremely various. They appear to be all inhabited, and therefore must possess fresh water. On first landing on Thistle Island, the women fled, with their infant children, over the hill, to a place which we named Eagle Point (from a large eagle being perched on the precipice as we came in), and hid themselves in recesses among the rocks ; whilst the men, in a body, but unarmed, waved and hallooed to us not to advance, making the usual signal with their hands across the throat. When they found, however, by repeated visits, that no hostility was intended, and that we were rather inclined to give than to take from them, they be- came a little more tame, would crowd round the officers to see them fire at a mark, bring them water to drink, and offer them part of their humble fare to eat ; but all this they seemed to do in a perfect spirit of independence, and not from fear. Then suddenly, as if recollecting they were acting contrary to orders in holding any correspondence whatever with strangers, they would lay hold of some of the gentlemen by the shoulders, and push theih away, pointing to the ship ; and this conduct was uniform wherever we touched. We observed ^ TO CHINA, 39 no fire-arms among them, but some who came on board the Alceste discovered considerable acquaint- ance with the sword exercise. They cuhivate as much grain as they want for their own consump- tion ; they feed cattle (at least for domestic pur- poses); and, as may naturally be supposed, from their peculiar and insular situation, they subsist a good deal by fishing. Of their government, gene- ral manners, and customs, it would be impossible to speak with any accuracy from so limited an in- tercourse as we had with them. China has very little communication with the barbarians of the westy and that is chiefly con- fined to a particular spot, the port of Canton ; Japan still less, and Corea none at all. A con- nexion, however, is kept up with China by two or three annual junks from the eastern coast. What little knowledge we possess of Corea is mostly derived from the Jesuits of China, who certainly were not infallible guides in all matters ; but in the geography, general literature, and de- lineation of manners and customs, when uncon- nected with their own superstitions, their labours are entitled to a distinguished place in the republic of letters, especially when the difficulties they had to struggle with are taken into consideration ; but here they were freed from every motive to deceive, and had only to tell the simple truth. 40 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE Corea (or Kaoli) is tributary to the emperor of China, and sends him triennial embassadors ex- pressive of its homage. We saw enough, how- ever, to convince us that the sovereign of this country governs with most absolute sway ; and that, occasionally, he makes very free with the heads of his subjects. The allusion to this dan- ger could not have been so constant and uniform, in places so remote from each other, without some strong reason. The law against intercourse with foreigners ap- pears to be enforced with the utmost rigour*. At one of the islands, to the north, where we first landed, a Corean, in an unguarded moment, ac- cepted a button, which had attracted his attention ; but soon after, as the boats were shoving off, he ran down into the water, and insisted on restoring it, at the same time (by way of reparation) pushing the boat with all his might away from the beach. On almost all occasions they positively refused every thing offered to them. .His Corean majesty may well be styled " king of ten thousand isles," but his supposed continental dominions have been very much circumscribed" by our visit to his shores. Except in the late and present embassy, * It is said that the crew of a Dutch vessel, a conside- rable time since, wrecked on the eastern coast, were detain- ed in slavery for nineteen years, without being heard of, when some of them managed to get away. TO CHINA. 4i no ships had ever penetrated into the Yellow Sea ; the Lion had kept the coast of China abroad only, and had neither touched at the Tartar nor Corean side. Cook, Perouse, Bougainville, Broughton, and others, had well defined the bounds on the eastern coast of this countrv, but the western had hitherto been laid down on the charts from imagina- tion only, the main land being from a hundred to a hundred and thirty miles farther to the eastward than these charts had led us to believe. The Jesuits, therefore, must have taken the coast of Corea from report, and not from obser- vation, for their chart is most incorrect, and by no means corresponds with their usual accuracy. The Chinese written characters have found their way here, but they would appear to be confined to the literati, for the common language has no resem- blance in sound to the colloquial language of China. On the tenth we got under weigh and proceed- ed on our voyage, standing through the south passage, and made sail to the southward, giving the name of Lyra to an island which bore about east of Alceste's ten or twelve leagues, and dis- tance nearly the same north-westerly from Quel- part. On the 11th, sounded in forty-ninc fathoms muddy bottom, in lat. 31° 42' N., long. 126° 30' E. On the mornhig of the 13th we made Sul- G 43 VOYAGE OF H. M. S, ALCESTE phur Island, a volcano, situated in lat. 27° 56' N.> long. 128° ir E. Whilst yet at a great distance, we could observe a volume of smoke at short in- tervals bursting from its crater. We hove-to for some time under its lee, in front of a horrid chasm, from whence the smoke issued, but found it im- possible to land, as there was much wind and swell, and the surf broke with tremendous vio- lence around its base. The island, which does not appear above four or five miles in circum- ference, rises precipitously from the sea, except in one or two spots ; its height must be considerable, judging from the distance we saw it, perhaps 1200 feet. The sulphurous smell emitted, even when two or three miles off, was very strong. One end of the island displayed strata of a brilliant red-co- loured earth, which had been noticed before on some part of the Corean main. One would almost be induced to believe that the mercury and sul- phur, so abundant in these regions, had combined to give this vermilion hue to the ground. From hence we stood on to the southward with a strong wind at north by east, which soon increased to a gale. Not having sufficient run for the night, and being totally unacquainted with the coast we were approaching, the ship was put under snug canvas, and hauled to the wind on the starboard tack. On the morning of the 14th we again made sail, and TO CHINA. 43 soon observed an island rising like a cone to a con- siderable height, with that of the grand Lewchew* immediately behind it. The state of the weather would not warrant our standing closer in with the land than about eight miles, as it now blew fresh fi*om the west-north-west, which made it a lee shore. We hauled to the south-westward, and in the afternoon saw breakers under our lee, the Lyra being closer in, and rather a-head. To have put about with the wind as it then was, would have embayed us for the night ; for the main body of the island seemed to form, with the peak we had left astern, and the position we were now in, a sort of bight. The Lyra, indeed, could not have tack- ed in such a swell, and was almost too near to at- tempt wearing. Both ships, therefore, stood on with every sail they could carry, on the starboard tack, endeavouring to weather the reef. Much anxiety existed, at this moment, on board the Al- ceste, for the fate of the brig ; the breakers rear- ing their white tops close to leeward of her, and rolling, with terrific force, upon the rocks. By steady steerage, however, and a press of sail, she at last passed the danger, and bore up through a channel formed by the reef and some high islets to the southward, very much to the satisfaction of all concerned ; and she was followed by the frigate. * Generally termed Lekeyo in charts. 44* VOYAGE OF H. M, S. ALCESTE We hove-to, for the night, under the lee of the larger island, and the next morning's dawn, the weather being now extremely fine, displayed to our view a rich extent of cultivated scenery, such as we had not been lately accustomed to, on the naked coasts of Tartary and China. Rising in gentle ascent from the sea, the grounds were dis- posed more like the finest country-seats in England than those of an island so remote from the civilized world, — the tranquil, placid, and refreshing look of every thing around, forming a very pleasing con- trast with the boisterous sea and dangerous con- dition of the previous day. We were in front of a town, having a sort of line wall along the water's edge, from whence some fishing-boats approached the Lyra, which by this time had anchored ; and on the people being interrogated, by signs, as to the proper anchorage, they pointed round the south- west end of the island, kindly offering, at the same time, some vegetables and fresh water, which they had in their canoes. We made sail in the direction indicated, care- fully sounding and looking out as we advanced along shore, and at night anchored in eighty-two fathoms. On the 16th, at day light, we continued our course, and about noon descried a considerable town, with a number of vessels at anchor under it, in a harbour, the mouth of which was formed by two pier-heads. In the afternoon, having explored TO CHINA. 45 our passage through the adjacent reefs (the Lyra leading), wc anchored in front of this town. The astonished natives, who most probably had never been visited by an European ship before*, were perched in thousands on the surrounding rocks and heights, gazing on the vessels as they entered. Soon after, several canoes came alongside, con- taining some people in office, who wished to know to what country" we belonged, and the nature of our visit. By the assistance of the Chinese inter- preter, whose language some of them understood, they were informed that we were ships of war be- longing to the king of England, which had carried an embassador from that monarch to the emperor of China ; and, after having landed him and his retinue near Pekin, we had, on our return to Can- ton, where the embassador was to re-embark, met with violent weather at sea, in which the ship had sprung a leak, obliging us to put in there, in order to repair our damages. To make this story feasi- ble, the well was filled by turning the cock in the hold ; and the chain-pumps being set to work, threw out volumes of water on the main deck, to the great amazement of these people, who seenied to sympathize very much with our misfortunes. * Captain Broughton, after the loss of the Providence in 1797, anchored at this place in a schooner, and remained forty-eight hours. 46 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE This ruse was necessary to free their minds from, that state of alarm, which must naturally arise on the arrival of ships of such unusual appearance and force, with whose motives they were unacquainted, and who would justly be considered as the objects of suspicion, had no reason but mere curiosity been assigned « They returned on shore, and put in re- quisition a number of carpenters, or people ac-' quainted with the construction of their own vessels, who, at daylight in the morning, hurried on board, bringing with them the rude implements of their art, in order to render what assistance they could in stopping the leak. This offer of kindness was, of course, civilly declined by the senior officer, on the ground that we had plenty of good carpenters on board, who were perfectly equal to the task ; that an asylum was all we required during the time of repair, with permission to take on board some fresh provisions and water, of which we stood much in need ; and all this we would most cheer- fully pay for. An immediate supply of bullocks, pigs, goats, fowls, eggs, and other articles, with abundance of excellent sweet potatoes, vegetables, fruit then in season, and even candles* and fire-wood, followed this intimation j supplies of the same descriptioii * Their candles are made of unrefined wax, with paper wicks, and give an excellent light. TO CHINA. 47 being sent on board as often as was necessary, for about six weeks, the period of our stay on the is- land ; those who brought them, taking a receipt to shew they had been delivered safely ; but the chief authorities, who sent them, obstinately refusing any payment or remuneration whatever. Meantime, it being found impracticable for the frigate to swing in the inner harbour at low water, the road in which we lay was accurately examined, and found to be so protected with coral reefs to seaward, and covered by the land to the eastward, as to be completely sheltered, except in a very slight degree at its entrance, and of sufficient extent and depth to contain even ships of the line. On the 20th, we moved up to the head of this road, to a place which we called Baron-pool, where we afterwards rode out the equinoctial gales (or change of the monsoons). On inquiring of them where the king was, they said, after some hesitation, 10,000 miles off; and when it was hinted that it was necessary to have a party on shore, such as ropemakers and smiths, where they could have more room to work, and thereby expedite our refit ; they requested this might not be done until they heard from the king, it be- ing an unprecedented case, in which they were in- competent to act without orders. Unwilling to give cause of alarm or uneasiness to a people who seemed so well disposed, and for 48 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE whose fears and suspicions it was but reasonable to make every allowance, we remained quietly on board until the 22d, when intimation was received that a great personage intended paying a visit to the commodore. At the mouth of a little river, in front of which we were anchored, we observed this chief embark- ing amidst a great concourse of people. He was saluted on his approach with three guns from each ship, and received on board with every mark of re- spect. He was a man about sixty years of age, with a venerable beard : his dress a purple robe, wiih very loose sleeves, and fastened round his middle with a sash of red silk : he had sandals on his feet, with white gaiters, not unlike short stock- ings. His cap (the badge of his dignity) was made of some slight material, twisted neatly into folds, and covered with a light purple-coloured silk. He had a numerous suite with him ; some were offi- cial people of different ranks, and the rest his per- sonal attendants. Here the occasion of our visit was again discussed ; the pumps were set to work to shew the eifect of the leak ; and promises, on their part, renewed, of every assistance. Although they had not heard from the king on the subject of our coming on shore, and notwith- standing it was contrary to a general rule for any stranger to land upon their coast, yet a few of the officers were always welcome to walk about within TO CHINA. 49 certain bounds. After partaking of a very hand- some entertainment, he took his leave, the captain promising to return his visit. At one o'clock on the following day the boats were manned, and cap- tains Maxwell and Hall, with several of the offi- cers, in full uniform, proceeded into Napa-kiang*. This harbour is the mouth of a river, at the en- trance of which, on each side, are strong-built walls or piers, for a considerable way up, and inside were anchored several rather large junks. Vessels under the size of frigates could be received very well in this river ; — the bottom is soft mud. The river widens somewhat immediately above the an- chorage, and in it is situated a very pretty little island. At the landing-place the party were met by some of the chiefs, who had been most in the habit of visiting the ships, each of whom, taking one of the officers by the hand, led him through an immense collection of spectators to the gate of a public building, where the old gentleman already mentioned attended to welcome them into the house. Here an entertainment was served up ii^ * Napa appears to have been the original name of the town ; but, since their connexion with China, the term Foo, (or city of the first class) has been added ; making Napa- foo. Kiang, another Chinese word, signifies river, and, when coupled with Napa, means merely the river, port, or anchorage of the place. H 50 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE a style, which a pastry-cook, or connoisseur in eat- ing, might describe ; but which to another might be a difficult task. The utmost good humour, however, prevailed, and a liqueur (chazzi) some7 thing like rosolio was passed round in abundance, so that it was quite a man's own fault if he was not cheerful. Many loyal and friendly toasts, applicable to both countries, were given and drank with enthu- siasm. As they had hitherto generously supplied the ships with fresh provisions, vegetables, and fruit, and constantly refused any kind of payment, either in money or by way of barter, the captains thought this a proper opportunity to offer, as a mark of their personal regard, some presents to the chiefs, consisting of various wines, cherry brandy, English broad cloths, a telescope, and other things ; and on this ground only they were accepted ; re- serving it to themselves, at the same time, to make what personal return they might think proper to this interchange of friendship. ■ At the end of this conference, when it was pro- posed to take a walk over the city, a consultation was held among them ; when the request was mild- ly declined (supposed to be through the influence of Buonaparte^ a man of dark and peculiar aspect, so named because he was suspected of being the most inclined to keep us at arm's length), stating, they were afraid some bad people might be indu- TO CHINA. 51 €cd to treat us with disrespect. It was evident they had not the power, without higher authority, to ad- mit us to freer access; for the people themselves, almost without exception, appeared by this time to have no apprehension about our motives. After much hilarity the party took their leave, attended in the same way as on landing. It was worthy of notice how much regularity and decorum existed among so many thousands as were here collected. A lane was formed, on the inner side of which the smallest boys (generally kneeling) were placed ; another row squatted be- hind these ; then the men (those nearest stoooping a little) ; and outside the still taller people, or those mounted on stones, &c. ; so that all, Avithout bus- tle or confusion, might have a complete view of the strangers. The utmost silence reigned, and not a whisper was heard. Perhaps they had piu"- posely sent their women out of the way, — but the ladies managed (as usual) to outwit them, and to gratify curiosity in defiance of every precaution to the contrary. A number of them had either been placed intentionally on the other side of tlie river, or left there in consequence of all the men having come over to the show ; but the boats, in going out, had to pass within a few yards of their pier- head ; when, finding themselves in almost exclu- sive possession of that bank, they left their station on a hill, ran down to the point, and had their peep. ^2 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTii whilst their friends on the opposite shore were un* able (had it been their intention) to keep them in the back ground. About this period a mutual friendship began to exist between us ; confidence took place of timi- dity ; and now, instead of permitting only a few to visit the shorc at a time, they fitted up the garden of a temple as a general arsenal for us : the habi- tations of the priests were allotted as an hospital for the sick, whilst other temporary buildings of bamboo were erected for the reception of our pow- der, which required airing, and for various stores wanting inspection and repair. The rope-makers, smiths, and other artificers, were established at a convenient spot, about a mile farther along the beach. They continued their usual supplies, bringing us even fresh water on board in their boats ; and, understanding we required some wood for spars, they felled fir-trees, floated them down the river, and towed them alongside, singing their usual boat- song, which had a very plaintive and pleasing effect. The island of Lewchew* is about sixty miles * It is called by an infinity of names in books and charts, such as Lekeyo, Lieoo-Kieoo, Lequeyo, and Lieu-Kieu j but the word Lewchew will better express the sound, ac^ cording to the native pronunciation, than any other. It i^ ipften by the lower classes corrupted into Doq-Choo> TO CHINA. 53 long and twenty broad ; Napa Kiang, our position (and within five miles of Kint-ching, the capital), lying in lat. 26° 14' N., long. 127° 52' 1" E. This is its south-west point, the main body of the island extending from hence north, a little eastwardly. It IS the principal island of a group of thirty-six, subject to the same monarch, and the seat of the government. The natives trace their history back to a period long anterior to the Christian era ; but their first communication with the rest of the world, when their accounts became fully corroborated and undisputed, was about the year 605, when they were invaded by China, who found them at that time — a time when England and the greater part of Europe were immersed in barbarism — the same kind of people they are at the present day, with the exception of a few Chinese innovations ; or, at least, they appear to have altered but in a very slight de- gree. Indeed, it is very obvious that a revolution in manners, and alteration of habits, are by no means so likely to occur with a people thus living in an obscure and secluded state, as among those who have a wider intercourse with other nations. The only connexion which the Lewchews have had with their neighbours, and that but very limit- ed, has been with Japan and China, from neither of whom they were likely to receive any example of Dhange. 54? VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE The clearest and perhaps the only account given of their history is by Su-poa-Koang, a Chinese doctor or philosopher, who was, in 1719, sent as embassador to them*. The following is the sub- stance of his report as to their origin : — " The Lewchew tradition states, that, in the beginning, one man and one woman were produced in the great void or chaos. They had the joint name of Omo-mey-kieou. From their union sprang three sons and two daughters ; the eldest of the sons had the title of Tien- sun, or Grand- son of Heaven, and was the first king of Lewchew ; the second was the father of the tributary princes ; the rest of the people acknowledged the third as their progenitorf. The eldest daughter had the title of Celestial Spi- rit ; the second, the Spirit of the Sea. After the death of Tien-sun, twenty-five dynasties reigned successively in this country, occupying (according to their story) a period of 17,802 years previous to the time of Chuntein, who commenced his reign in 1187. This is their fabulous history, of which they are very jealous ; but nothing certain was known until 605, before which the inhabitants of Formosa and the adjacient islands were denomina- * Vide Lettres Edifiantes, tome xxiv. t It seems rather unaccountable, in this marvelous tra- dition, that the third son, to whom no wife is assigned, should have had the most numerous progeny. TO CHINA. 55 ted by the Chinese the Oriental Barbarlajis. In this year the emperor sent to examine them ; but, from want of interpreters, no clear account was ob- tained. They brought back, however, some of the islanders to Sin-gan-foo, the capital of the province of Chensi, and the seat of the court under the Souy dynasty. Some Japanese, who happened to be there, knew the people, and described them as a race of barbarians. The emperor Yang-ti sent forthwith some who understood their language to Lewchew, to command their homage, aud ac- knowledgment of him as their sovereign. The prince of Lewchew haughtily replied, that he would own none as his superior. A fleet with 10,000 men was now fitted out from Amoi and the ports of Fokien, which force, overcoming the efforts of the islanders, landed at .Lewchew; and the king, who put himself at the head of his people to repel the enemy, being killed, the Chinese burned the capital; and, carrying off 5000 of the natives, as ^y]a.v, slaves, returned to China. From this, until 1291, the Lewchews were left vii?-?inlested, when Chit- soo, an emperor of the Yuen family, revivnig his pretensions, fitted out a fleet against them from the ports of Fokien ; but, from various causes, it never proceeded farther than the western coast of Fomno- sa, and from thence returned unsuccessful to Chi- na. In the year 1372, Hong-ou, emperor of Chi- na, and founder of the Ming dynasty, sent a great Y/y jtf'O "Tc -V*- 'f^^.^J T. m 06 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE mandarin to Tsay-tou, who governed in Tchon- chan, the country being at this period divided, in consequence of civil disturbances, into the three kingdoms, who, in a private audience, acquitted himself with such address as to persuade the king to declare himself tributary to China, and to re* quest of the emperor the investiture of his estate. " Having thus managed by finesse what arms had been unable to effect, the emperor took care to receive, with great distinction, the envoys sent by their master. They were accompanied by offer- ings of line horses, scented woods, sulphur, copper, and tin, and sent back again with rich presents for the king and queen ; among which was a gold seal. " The two kings of the other districts, Chan-pe and Channan, followed the example of Chonchan, and their submission was most graciously received. Thirty-six Chinese families were sent to live in Cheouli*i where grants of land were conceded to them ; here they taught the Chinese written cha- racters, introduced Chinese books, and the cere- monies in honour of Confucius. The sons of the Lewchewan grandees were also sent to Nankin to study Chinese, and were educated with distinction, at the expense of the emperor. * That district of Tchon-chan in which the capital is si- tuated, and where we resided. TO CHINA. 67 " The reigns of Ou-ning and Tse-chao, the son and grandson of Tsay-tou, presented nothing ex- traordinary ; but that of Chang-pa-chi'was marked by the reunion of Chan-pe and Channan with Tchon-chan into one kingdom, and the government has since continued in the hands of a single chief. Levvchevv is said henceforth to have had consider- able intercourse with China and Japan in the way of commerce, much to her advantage^ and to have even mediated between those two powers when misunderstandings had occurred. " The famous Tay-cosama, however, emperor of Japan, whom the Chinese call ambitious, pirati- cal,' irreligious, cruel, and debauched, because he had pillaged their coasts, sent a haughty letter to Chang-ning, commanding him to transfer his ho- mage from China to Japan, which Chang-ning as firmly refused. Notwithstanding the death of Tay- cosama, the Japanese fitted out a fleet at Satsuma, made a descent on Lewchew, took the king pri- soner, and carried him off, having plundered the palace, and killed one of his near relations, who also resisted the acknowledgment of the Japanese. During a captivity of two years, Chang-ning ac- quired the admiration of the captors by his unyield- ing firmness and constancy in refusing to swerve from his first allegiance, and tliey generously sent him back to his states. I 98 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE " The Tartar dynasty, soon after this, was placed by conquest on the throne of China, and made some alteration in the nature of the tribute to be paid, stipulating that envoys, in future, should be sent to Pekin only once in two years. Chang-hi paid: much attention to the welfare of Lewchew ; and his memory to this day is much respected by the people. It is said to be nearly a thousand years since the bonzes of the sect of Fo introduc- ed their mode of worship into these islands, which has continued to the present time. " When they take an oath, it is not before the statues or images of their idols ; but they burn in- cense, and placing themselves in a respectful atti- tude before certain consecrated stones wnich are to be seen in various public situations, they repeat some mysterious words, said to have been diutated by the divine daughters of Omo-mey-kieou. They have also among them a set of holy women, who worship certain spirits deemed powerful among them, and who visit the sick, give medicines, and recite prayers. This seems to have given rise to the accusation of an old missionary at Japan, who said they practised sorcery and witch raft. Chang- hi likewise introduced among them the adoration of a new deity, under the name of Tien-fey, or Celestial Queen. Polygamy is allowed here as in China, but seldom practised* Men and women of TO CHINA. 59 the same surname cannot intermarry. The king can only take a wife from one of three great families, who always hold the most distinguish- ed posts : tliere is also a fourth, of the highest consideration, but with which the princes can- not form an alliance, because it is doubtful whether that family is not itself of the royal line. Their chiefs are generally hereditary, but not always ; for men of merit are promoted, and all are liable to be degraded for improper con- duct.^ The king's revenue arises from his own domains ; from imposts on salt, sulphur, copper, tin, and several other articles; and from this in- come he defrays the expenses of the state, and the salaries of the great officers. " These salaries consist nominally in a certain number of bags of rice ; but they are paid gene- rally in silks, and various other necessary articles of clothing and food, in proportions equal to the value of so many bags of that grain. All their interior commerce or marketing is performed by the women and girls at regulated times. They carry their little loads upon their heads with sin- gular dexterity, consisting of the usuA necessaries of life and wearing apparel, which they exchange for what they more immediately ^vr.iit, or for the copper coin ot China and Japan*. The men are said to be neat workmen in gold, silver, copper, * We saw no money among them. 60 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE and other metals; and there are manufactories of silk, cotton, flax, and paper. They also build very good vessels, quite large enough to under- take voyages to China and Japan, where their barks are much esteemed. They have adopted the Chi- nese calendar with resp>-"ct to the division of the month and year. This island produces rice, wheat, and all sorts of vegetables, in abundance. The people of the coast are expert fishermen, and the sea and rivers are well furnished with fish. They are famous divers, and obtain shells and mother-of- pearl, very much esteemed in China and Japan. " They possess many woods proper for dyeing ; and one tree in particular yields an oil which is held in great repute. They have likewise a great variety of most delicate fruits, oranges, citrons, lemons, long-y-ven^ lee -tehees^ grapes, &c. Wolves, tigers, and bears, are unknown ; but they have many useful animals, such as horses, water-dogs, black cattle, stags, poultry, geese, peacocks, pige- ons, doves. Sec. " The camphor, cedar, and ebony, are among the number of their trees ; and they have also wood well fitted for ship-building, and for public edifices. They are represented as disdaining sla- very, lyin^, and cheating. They are fond of games and amusements, and celebrate, with much pomp, the worship of their idols, at the end and commencement of the year ; and there exists much TO CHINA, 61 union among the branches of famiUes, who give frequent and cheerful entertainments to each other. The ceremony of installation of the king of Lewchew is thus described : " When the king- dies, his heir sends an ambassador to the emperor, to make known that circumstance, and to demand his investiture. — Meantime the Lewchews treat as king and queen the prince and the princess his wife, though it is not, according to the Pekin re- gulations, until after the installation that they as- sume the titles. The emperor either sends from himself a qualified person to perform this ceremony, or grants full powers to the Lewchew embassador to do so on his return. " If the former is determined upon, the emperor orders the tribunal of ceremonies to find a fit per- son to sustain with dignity the majesty of the Chinese empire ; and the choice falls on whom they know the emperor wishes, a second being named in the event of death or sickness. The emperor, after approving the choice, admits the embassador to an audience, and gives them the necessary instructions, and the presents intended for the king and queen. The mandarins of Fokien are ordered to equip a vessel, and to choose a cap- tain, officers, sailors, soldiers, and pilots, some- times amounting to three hundred and fifty persons. The embassador is conducted from court with great pomp to the capital of Fokien, where he is 62 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE lodged in a commodious palace, and treated with much distinction. " He is embarked with great state, when, after the usual ceremonies to heaven, and the goddess Tienfey, they make sail. On their anchoring". near Napa Kiang, the king gives the necessary orders for receiving the embassador, with all the honours due to the title of Celestial Envoy y that is, to the envoy of the son of heaven, or the emperor of China. The princes and graiidees repair to the port in their court dresses. A number of vessels richly ornamented conduct the stranger into har- bour, where the embassador and suite lands, and is atleaded to his palace with great pomp by the princes and grandees, who take care to make such an appearance as to do honour to the nation. Every thing is regulated with respect to the main- tenance of the embassador and retinue, who are all permitted, even to the lowest domestic, the privi- lege of carrying a certain quantity of money, and of Chinese merchandise, to make a little trade. In the time of the Ming dynasty, the profits of the Chinese were considerable at Lewchcw; at present only moderate. The embassador ordinarily piques himself on having no personal connexion with commerce*, * This is quite in. the inflated style of these celestials, whilst in the practice of every thing that is sordid. TO CHINA. 63 " After having taken some repose, he repairs to the grand hall, where he finds a magnificent estrade, on which he seats himself. On a signal given, at the same instant, the princes, ministers, and gran- dees of the first order, placed according to rank, make the nine prostrations to salute the emperor. The embassador stands ; and, after the ceremony, makes a profound reverence. When the chiefs of the second and third class prostrate themselves, he also stands, and afterwards presents his hand to them. On the performance of the inferior chiefs, the embassador is seated, but afterwards presents his hand to them. This ceremonial finished, some grandees on the part of the king come to congratu- late the embassador on his safe arrival. The rest of the day is spent in repasts, public rejoicings, and concerts, in all the cities and neighbouring vil- lages, and on board the vessels. On a certain day the embassador goes to the temple of the goddess Tienfey, to return thanks for her protection, and from thence to the imperial palace, where he per- forms the Chinese ceremonies, in honour of Con- fucius. On another day the embassador with all his retinue repairs to the royal hall, where are the tablets of the deceased kings, the heir to the throne also appearing, but as a prince simply. " The embassador then performs, in the name of the emperor, the Chinese marks of respect in honour of the deceased king, the predecessor of 64 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE- the reigning prince, and also for his forefathers; and presents the odours, the silks, manufactures, and silver, sent by the emperor for that purpose. The prince then makes the nine prostrations to thank the emperor, and inquires after the state of his health. He next salutes the embassador, and dines, familiarly, and without ceremony, with him. When all is regulated for the instalment, the em- bassador with all his suite, and a great number of people, proceed to the palace. The court is filled with lords and chieftains, richly attired, and ranged in proper order. On his entrance, the embassador is received by the princes, and conducted, with music sounding, to the royal hall, where there is an elevated estrade for the prince and princess, and and a distinguished place for the embassador. All the princes, grandees, and ministers, standing, the embassador reads, with a loud voice, the imperial diploma ; in which the emperor, after some eulogy on the defunct sovereign, acknowledges for king and queen the hereditary prince and princess his wife. This declaration is accompanied by exhor- tations of the emperor to the new monarch, to go- vern according to law ; and to the people of the thirty-six isles to be faithful in their allegiance. After it is read, the imperial patent is presented to the king, who transfers it to the minister, to be re- tained among the archives of the court. Then the king, queen, princes, &c., make the nine pros- TO CHINA, 65 trations, to salute and thank the emperor. The embassador next displays the rich presents from his master to the king and queen, when the usual thanks are returned. Whilst the embassador re- poses himself for a short time in an adjoining apart- ment, the king and queen, seated on their thrones, receive the homage of the princes, ministers, gran- dees, and deputies, of the thirty-six isles. The queen then retires, and the king entertains the em- bassador Avith much splendour. " Some days afterwards, seated in the royal chair, borne by many porters, the king, followed by the princes and ministers, and a brilliant suite, goes to the hotel of the embassador. " The road is ornamented by triumphal arches ; - — and at certain distances are found tents, in which are placed fruits, flowers, and perfumes. Around the chair of the king are seven young girls, on foot, carrying his flags and umbrellas. The princes, ministers, and grandees, are on horseback, and are emulous to distinguish themselees, on this occasion, by their superb dresses and numerous suite. " The embassador, at the gate of the hotel, re- ceives his majesty with great respect, and leads him to the grand Kail. The king now again salutes the emperor ; after which he honours the embassador, by offering with his own hand wine and tea. This the embassador declines ; and, re- K 66 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE turning the cup, he takes one for himself, which he does not drink until after the king has first drank his. This ceremony finished, his majesty and suite return to the palace. He names, some days afterwards, an embassador to proceed to the court of the emperor, to thank his majesty, and to send him presents, a list of which is communicated to the Chinese embassador, and he orders a vessel to be equipped, which accompanies that of the Chi- nese on its return. At last, the imperial envoy, having determined the day of his departure, takes leave of the king ; and some time afterwards the latter proceeds to the hotel of the embassador, to wish him a happy voyage, and to make the usual prostrations in honour of the emperor, and to return him thanks. " During the sojourn of the embassador, the king gives him frequent entertainments ; some- times in the grand palace ; at others in his pleasure- houses ; and, occasionally, in water-parties. The queen, princesses, and ladies, assist at these cere- monies. They have music, dancing, and come- dies, with songs, in praise of the imperial and royal families, and of the embassador, &c.'* Such is the account of Supoa-Koang ; and, having observed a great part of what he relates to be true, it is but fair and reasonable to give him credit for what we had not the opportunity of actu- ally seeing. One thing appears very evident, — TO CHINA. ^7 that these poor islanders have been much cajoled and humiliated, as well as encumbered with a load of ceremonies, very foreign to their nature, by the usurpation of the Chinese, The dress of these people is as remarkable for its simplicity as it is for its, elegance. Tiie hair, which is of a gl :)Say olack (being anointed with an oleaginous substance, obtained from the leaf of a tree), is turned up from befure, from behind, and on both sides, to the crown of the head, and there tied close down ; great care being taken that all should be perfectly smooth ; and the part of the hair beyond the fastening, or string, being now twisted into a neat litde top- knot, is there retained by two fasteners, called camesashee and usisashee^ made either of gold, silver, or brass, according to the circumstances of the wearer ; the former of these having a little star on the end of it, which points forward. This mode of hair-dressing is practised with the greatest uniformity, from the highest to the lowest of the males, and has a very pleasing effect, whether viewed singly, or when they are gathered together. At the age of ten years the boys are entided to the usisashee^ and at fifteen they wear both. Except those in office, who wear only a cap on duty, they appear to have no covering for the head, at least in fine weather. Interiorly, they wear a kind of shirt, and a pair of drawers, but over all a loose robe, with wide 68 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE sleeves, and a broad sash round their middle. They have sandals on their feet, neatly formed of straw ; and the higher orders have also white gai- ters, coming above the ancle. The quality of their robes depends on that of the individual. — The superior classes wear silk of various hues, with a sash of contrasting colour, sometimes inter- woven with gold. — The lower orders make use of a sort of cotton stuff, generally of a chesnut colour, and sometimes striped, or spotted, blue and white. There are nine ranks of grandees, or public offi- cers, distinguished by their caps; of which we ob- served four. — The highest noticed was worn by a member of the royal family, which was of a pink colour, with bright yellow flowers. — The next in dignity was the purple ; then plain yellow ; and the red seemed to be the lowest. On the female attire we could make but little observation. — The higher ranks are said to w^ar (and some indeed were seen with) simply a loose flowing robe, without any sash ; the hair either hanging loose over the shoulders, or tied up over the left side of the head, the ends falling down again. The lower orders seemed to have petti- coats scarcely deeper than a highlander's kilt, with a short, but loose, habit above. The island of Lewchew itself is situate in the happiest climate of the globe. — Refreshed by the sea-breezes, which, from its geographical position, TO CHINA. 69 blo^v over it at every period of the year, it is free from the extremes of heat and cold, which oppress many other countries ; whilst from the general con- figuration of the land, being more adapted to the production of rivers and streams than of bogs and marshes, one great source of disease in the warmer latitudes has no existence : and the people seemed to enjoy robust health ; for we observed no dis- eased objects, nor beggars of any description, among them. ^ The verdant lawns and romantic scenery of Tinian and Juan Femandes, so well described in Anson's Voyage, are here displayed in higher per- fection, and on a much more magnificent scale ; for cultivation is added to the most enchanting beauties of nature, irom a commanding height above the ships, the view is, in all directions, pic- turesque and delightful. — On one hand are seen the distant islands, rising from a wide expanse of ocean, whilst the clearness of the water enables the eye to trace all the coral reefs, which protect the anchorage immediately below. To the south is the city of Nafoo, the vessels at anchor in the har- bour, with their streamers flying ; and in the inter- mediate space appear numerous hamlets scattered about on the banks of the rivers, which meander in the valley beneath; the eye being, in every direction, charmed by the varied hues of the luxu- riant foliage around their habitations. Turning to 70 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE the east, the houses of Kint-ching, the capital city, built in their peculiar style, are observed hei\ ahd there, opening from among the lofty trees which surround and shade them, rising one above another in gentle ascent to the submit of a hill, Avhich is crowned by the king's palace : the intervening grounds between Napafoo and Kint-ching, a dis- tance of some miles, being ornamented by a con- tinuation of villas and country-houses. To the north, as far as the eye can reach, the higher land is covered with extensive forests. At a short distance from this eminence, the tra- veller is led by a foot-path to what seems only a little wood ; on entering which, under an archway formed by the intermingling branches of the op- posite trees, he passes along a serpentine labyrmth, every here and there intersected by others. Not far from each other, on either side of these walks, small wicker doors are observed, on opening any of which, he is surprised by the appearance of a court-yard and house, with the children, and all the usual cottage train, generally gamboling about ; so that, whilst a man fancies himself in some lonely and sequestered retreat, he is, in fact, in the middle of a populous, but invisible, village. Nature has been bountiful in all her gifts to Lewchew : for such is the felicity of its soil and climate, that productions of the vegetable kingdom, very distinct in their nature, and generally found TO CHINA. 71 in regions far distant from each other, grow here side by side. It is not merely, as might be ex- pected, the country of the orange and the Hme ; but the banyan of India and the Norwegian fir, the tea plant and sugar-cane, all flourish together. In addition to many good qualities, not often found combined, this island can also boast its rivers and secure harbours ; and last, though not least, a wor- thy, a friendly, and a happy race of people. Many of these islanders displayed a spirit of in- telligence and genius, which seemed the more ex- traordinary, considering the confined circle in which they live ; such confinement being almost universally found to be productive of narrowness of mind. Our friends here were an exception to the general rule- —Madera Cost/ong, one of our most constant and intimate friends, acquired such pro- ficiency in the English language, in the course of a few weeks, as to make himself tolerably understood. He evidently came on board, in the first instance, as a spy upon our conduct, before they were satis- fied that we meant no harm ; and no man was ever better adapted for this duty ; for, as his concilia- tory and pleasing manner won upon all hearts, he had therefore a natural access every where, and, had " stratagems or schemes" existed, he of all others was the most likely to have discovered them. 73 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE His not assuming his proper character, which was that of a man of some distinction, until his mind was satisfied about us, and his then doing it with frankness, is a proof that such were his origi- nal motives. To acquire our tongue, he marked the sound of any English word for the most fami- liar articles of the table, or terms of conversation, and noted them in symbols of his own language, with their signification, which enabled him, with slight reference to his vocabulary, to manage with- out having recourse to the interpreter. If he hap- pened to be walking on shore with any of the offi- cers, he would not lose the sound or meaning of a word because he had not his book with him, but scratched it on the leaf of a tree, and transcribed it at his leisure. His first attempt to connect a sen- tence was rather sudden and unexpected. Rising to go away one evening after his usual lesson, he slowly articulated, " You give me good wine, -—I tank you, — I go shore." — He delighted in receiving information, and his remarks were al- ways pertinent.— The map of the world, with the track of the ship from England to Lew- chew, was pointed out and explained to him, which he, as well as others, seemed to trace with peculiar care, and at last, in a great degree, to com- prehend, although the subject was, in the first in- stance, entirely new to them, for they certainly had no idea of the vast extent or figure of the globe. TO CHINA. 73 He was gay or serious, as occasion required, but was always respectable ; and of Madera it might be truly said, that he was a gentleman, not formed upon this model, or according to that rule, but ** stamped as such by the sovereign hand of Nature." They all seemed to be gifted with a sort of po- liteness which had the fairest claim to be termed natural ; for there was nothing constrained, nothing stiff or studied in it. Captain Maxwell having one day invited a party to dine \i ith him, the health of the king of Lew- chew was drank in a bumper : — one of them, im- mediately addressing himself with much warmth and feeling to the interpreter, desired him to state how much they felt gratified by, such a compli- ment ; that they would take care to tell it to every body when they w^ent on shore ; and proposed, at the same time, a binnper to the king of the Engelees. A Chinese mandarin, under the like circuqistances, would, most probably, have chin-chinned (that is, clenched his fists) as usual ; he would have snivelled and grinned the established number of times, and bow'ed his head in slavish submission to the bare mention of his tyrant's name ; but it would never have occurred to him to have given, in his turn, the health of the sovereign of England. This superiority of manner brought to recollection the boorishncss of the Chinese near the Pei-ho. L 74 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE Some mandarins, who were not of a rank sufficient- ly high to be entertained in the cabin, were invited to dine with the officers ; and some of them, after gnawing the leg of a fowl, would without any ce- remony thrust the remains of it into any other dish near them ; and instead of following bur example (as the Lewchews uniformly did) in pouring out the wine into glasses, or, indeed, in ariy way ac- commodating themselves to our style, they would take up, with both hands, the decanter, and apply- ing it to their greasy mouths, thereby secure the exclusive possession of that bottle. These islanders are represented as being remarka- ble for their honesty and adherence to truth, and to this character they appear to be fully entitled. The chiefs informed us that there was little probability of their stealing any thing ; but, as iron imple- ments were a great temptation, they begged that none might be left carelessly about. — Although, however, the rope machinery and other articles re- mained, for many nights, unguarded on the beach, and their opportunities on board were numberless, yet not one theft occurred during the whole of our sojourn among them. That proud and haughty feeling of national superiority, so strongly existing among the common class of British seamen, which induces them to hold all foreigners cheap, and to treat them with contempt, often calling them out- landish lubbers in their own country/, was, at this TO CHINA. 75 island, completely subdued and tamed by the gen- tle manners and kind behaviour of the most paci- fic people upon earth. Although completely inter- mixed, and often working together, both on shore and on board, not a single quarrel or complaint took place on either side during the whole of our stay ; on the contrary, eac ' succeeding day added to friendship and cordiality. Although it was, no doubt, infringing on their established rules for strangers to land upon their coasts, yet they granted every possible indulgence, and conceded the point as far as they could ; for their dispositions seemed evidently at war with the unsocial law. When any of the officers wandered into the country beyond the bounds prescribed, they were never rudely repulsed, as in China or Morocco, but mildly entreated to return, as a favour to those in attendance, lest they should incur blame ; and, as their appeal was powerful, it was never disregarded. They erected little temporary bamboo watch- houses or sheds, where those engaged in this duty resided ; and, as we wandered about, handed us over from one post to another. In these houses they always pressed the officers to partake of their fare, which was often very good, especially a kind of hung beef, which they have the art of curing extremely well. 76 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE They appear to be much accustomed to these pic-nic sort of parties, having a small japanned box, containing sliding drawers for the various vi- ands, M^hich a boy generally carried, on the end of a bamboo, to any part of the fields where they ' thought proper to dine. One man, very often accompanied by Geroo, or (as he was sometimes termed, from having a con- stant smile upon his countenance) the laughing mandarin^ seemed to carry about with him a con- stant supply of these refreshments, and chazzi, a liqueur, which led us to believe that he had been deputed for the express purpose of paying atten- tion to our officers. The sudden vicissitudes of Aveather to which we had been exposed, by leaving England during ex- treme cold, and passing suddenly into the torrid zone ; then immediately afterwards into the cold raw climate of the southern Atlantic ; meeting with heat again at the Cape of Good Hope ; then cross- ing in rather a high latitude the chilly Southern Ocean ; and, quickly following that, appearing on the burning coast of Java ; might, in fact, be said to have exposed us, in the short period of four months, to the effects of three summers and three winters ; and proved, as might naturally be sup- posed, extremely trying to the health of the men. On our arrival at Lewchew, our cases of sickness, though not numerous, were severe ; and to the TO CHINA. 77 kindness of the natives may, in a great measure, be attributed their recovery. They were not only comfortably lodged, but the higher class of peo- ple* daily attended, inquiring into their wants, giv- ing additional coogas or eggs, and other delicacies, to those whose cases more particularly required them, and paying a cheering attention to the whole ; for theirs ^^'as a substantial, not a cold or ostenta- tious charity, A young man, whose case had long been hope- less, died here. On that night a coffin \vas made by our own carpenters, whilst the nati\es dug a grave, in the English manner, in a small burial- ground under some trees near the landing-place. Next morning we were astonished to find a number of the principal inhabitants clad in deep mourning (white robes with black or blue sashes), waiting to attend the funeral. The captain came on shore with the division of the ship's company to which the man belonged, and proceeded to the * One elderly man, whom Mr. Fisher (the assistant sur- geon), who was always at the hospital, thought to be a physician, wrote something at the desk, which Mr. Fisher concluded was a prescription. On translating it afterwards at Canton it turned out to be a moral maxim : " Let not the present day be passed in idleness. — The days of our youth will not return. — By being diligent and studious we arrive at olhccs of rank." — (Literally) " We ride on horseback, and wear embroidered clothes." 78 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE garden where the body lay. His messmates bore the coffin, covered with the colours ; the seamen ranged themselves two and two, in the rear of it ; next were the midshipmen ; then the superior of- ficers ; and last of all the captain, as is usual in mi- litary ceremonies of this kind. The natives, who had been watching attentively this arrangement, and observing the order of precedence to be invert- ed, without the least hint being given, but with that unassuming modesty and delicacy which cha- racterize them, when the procession began to move, placed themselves in front of the coffin, and in this order marched slowly to the grave. The utmost decency and silence prevailed whilst the fu- neral service was performing by the chaplain, al- though there was a considerable concourse of peo- ple ; and afterwards they marched back, but in different order, to the garden. Here they took the directions for the shape of a stone to be placed at the head of a tomb, which, as a mark of respect, they had already begun to erect over the grave. This was soon finished; and the shape of the English letters being drawn with Indian ink, they, notwith- standing the simplicity of their tools, cut out with much neatness the following epitaph, which, when explained to them, seemed to be highly gratify- ing :— TO CHINA. 79 Here lies buried Aged Twenty-One Years, William Hares, Seaman, Of His Britannic Majesty's ship Alceste. Died Oct. 15, 1816. This Monument was erected By the King And Inhabitants Of this most hospitable Island. The day after the interment they went to the tomb, with their priests, and performed the funeral service according to the rites of their own rehgion. There is not an act of these excellent and interest- ing people which the mind has not pleasure in con- templating and recollecting. Not satisfied with having smoothed the path of death, they carried their kind regards even beyond the grave ! Of our religion they could form no idea, nor was it possible to explain it to them. They seemed at first to consider us as worshippers of the sun or moon, and, of course, our astronomers as high priests, from seeing them busied about an observa- tory which had been erected in our garden, with a large telescope for the examination of the heavenly bodies. One Sunday a number of them were observed, during divine service, peeping through the quarter- deck ports, but were not noticed in sufficient time to invite them in. 80 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE Captain Maxwell's horse, in riding one morning to inspect the progress of the artificers, stumbled, and fell among some rocks ; and by this accident the fore finger of his left hand was not only frac- tured, but badly dislocated. Some of his Lew- chewan friends, who were near him, ran to the next village for one of their surgical professors. He soon arrived, and, after much salutation, proceed- ed to examine the injury (the dislocation had in the interim been reduced hy the coxswain pulling upon it), and then stated that he would come on board the ship, whither the captain was then pro- ceeding, in an hour, with the applications he thought necessary for it. At the time appointed, one of the chiefs, with this surgeon, and another more in the character of a physician, and their re- tinue, some of them bearing a medicine-chest, made their appearance alongside. The injury be- ing again examined (and it having been previous- ly decided they were to have the management of the cure, under surveillance, in order to observe how they would act), a fowl was killed with much form, and skinned, and a composition of flour and eggs, with some warm ingredients about the con- sistence of dough, was put round the fractured part (which had the effect of retaining it in its po- sition), and the whole enclosed in the skin of the fowl. As this fowl appeared to have been sacri- TO CHINA. 81 ficed, its skin being applied to enclose the whole was most probably meant to act as a charm. The manual part finished, the physician proceed- ed to examine the general state of health, and the pulse appeared to be his chief, and indeed only guide in this respect. The arm was laid bare to the shoulder, and he applied liis fingers with great attention, and with as much solemnity as ever issued from Warwick-lane, to the course of the artery, and at all parts of the arm where he could feel it beat, to ascertain whether it was every where alike ; and, lest there should be any mistake in this point, the other ai'm underwent the same in- vestigation; the whole party looking all the while extremely grave. Having now decided as to tlie medicines necessary on this occasion, his little chest was brought forward, with his pharmacopoeia, and a sort of Clinical Guide, directing die quantity and quality of the dose. His chest was extremely neat, its exterior japan- ned black, and a number of partitions in it, again sub- divided, so as to contain about a hundred and eighty diftbrent articles (quite enough in all conscience, even among the greatest hypochondriacs and drug- swallowers) ; but they were fortunately all simples, being a collection of wood-shavings, roots, seeds, and dried flowers of his own country. There ap- peared also some ginseng, a product of Tartary and Corea, much in vogue in these parts. Small M 82 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE portions of the specified articles were measured out with a silver spatula, and put up in little par- cels, and directions were now issued as to the mode of boiling and drinking the decoction. Next day they were highly delighted to hear the good effect of their medicines, though they had never been taken (as many a poor doctor is cheated by cunning patients); and a new application was brought for the finger, termed a fish poultice, so composed as to look, and indeed to smell, some* thing like currant-jelly. Having carried on this scheme for a few days, they were then informed that the finger was so much better as to render their attendance unneces- sary any longer ; and, as a reward for their services, they were presented with some little articles, and, among others, as an addition to the chest, some spirits of hartshorn, displaying to them its effect on the olfactory organs, with which they were quite astonished and pleased ; some spirits of lavender and oil of mint, they also considered a great acqui- sition. The physician, more especially, seemed to be a very respectable man, and was treated as such by those about him. Their practice seems to be a good deal derived from the Chinese, for their no- tion of the circulation of the blood, or rather their having no correct notion about it, is the same. Neither have they any idea of anatomy from actual observation, and, of course, the greater operations TO CHINA. SB cannot be undertaken ; one man only was examined by Mr. Rankin, who had lost his arm, and his stump was rather a rude one. Some corn was left with them, which they promised to cultivate ; and fortunately captain Hall had some English pota- toes, which were likely to be productive, and the mode of planting them was particularly described. Their fields were extremely neat, and their furrows arranged with much regularity, by a plough of a simple construction drawn by bulls, assisted occa- sionally by the use of a hoe ; and they practised ir- rigation in the culture of their rice. A young bull of English breed (though calved on the island) was presented to the chief authorities by captain Maxwell, leaving them also a cow (having two on board), so that it is possible the next visitors who touch at Lewchew may find a larger, though they cannot find a better, race of cattle. The mode of dancing of these people may, strict- ly speaking, be termed hopping; for they jump about upon one leg only, keeping the other up, and changing occasionally, making a number of extravagant motions, and clapping with their hands, and singing at the same time their dancing song. According to our notions, this was their only un- graceful action. A number of them thus engaged, more especially when joined by the officers (who must needs acquire their style), formed rather a gro- tesque assembly. They attempted our mode of S4* VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE country dancing, and managed (considering it was necessary to make use of both feet) tolerably well. The Lewchews are a very small race of people, the average height of the men not exceeding five feet two inches at the utmost. Almost the whole animal creation here is of diminutive size, but all excellent in their kind. Their bullocks seldom weighed more than 350 lb., but they were plump and well-conditioned, and the beef very fine ; their goats and pigs were reduced in the same propor- tion, their poultry seeming to form the only ex- ception. However small the men might be, they were sturdy, well-built, and athletic. The ladies we had no opportunity of measuring, but they ap- peared to be of corresponding stature. These islanders, most probably, originated from Japan or Corea, having a good deal of the Corean lineaments, but rather milder, and softened down. They are obviously not of Chinese origin, having nothing whatever of that drowsy and elongated eye which peculiarly distinguishes the latter; nor would it seem that the few Chinese and their descendants settled on the island freely mixed with the native. Lewchews, the national features and the natural disposition of the two people being perfectly dis- tinct, and differing in every respect. Neither have they any mixture of Indian blood, being quite as fair as the southern Europeans ; even thoise who are M TO CHINA, 85 " most exposed being scarcely so swartliy as the same class of society in Spain or Portugal. The Chinese language is learnt by a few, as the French is in our own country ; but the bonzes, who are also schoolmasters, teach the boys their native language, which is a dialect of the Japanese, and is rather soft and harmonious; and they have nothing of that hesitation in utterance, or appear- ance of choking, which is observed in the former, often requiring the action of the hands to assist the tongue*. The orders and records of govern- ment are in their own, or Japanese character; but they have books in the Chinese language. They bum the bodies of their dead, and deposit their bones in urns (at least in our neighbourhood), in na turah vaults, or caverns of the rocks along the sea-shore. The graves of the few Chinese resi- dents here are formed in their own style. Crimes are said to be very unfrequent among them, and they seem to go perfectly unarmed, for we observed no warlike instruments of any descrip- tion ; and our guns, shot, and musketry, appeared to be objects of great wonder to them. It must have been the policy of the Chinese to disarm them, for it appears that, in the first instance, they de- fended themselves nobly against their attacks, as * In Uiis respect the Chinese seem to resemble what is said of a Frenchman: — That if his hands are tied he cannot' speak / $6 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE well as those of the Japanese. Not even a bow or arrow was to be seen ; and, when they observed the effect of fowling-pieces in the hands of some of the gentlemen, they begged they might not kill the birds, which they were always glad to see fly- ing about their houses ; and if we required them to eat, they would send in their stead an additional quantity of fowls on board every day.— An order was immediately issued to desist from this sort of sporting. The people of Tatao and the north-east islands are reported to have been in possession of books previous to the Chinese attack on Grand Lewchew, and to have been even more polished than in the principal island. Tatao and Ki-ki-ai are said to produce a sort of cedar, termed kien-mou by the Chinese, and iseki by the inhabitants, which is con- sidered incorruptible, and brings a great price, the columns of the palaces of the grandees being generally formed of it. The vessels of these islands, in the general ap- pearance of their hulls and plan of rigging and sails, are precisely the same as we had observed throughout the whole of our track from the Gulf of Pe-che-lee to Napa-kiang. They had in com- mon use, canoes hollowed from the trunk of a tree, much the same in shape as those of other parts of the world where they are employed, and of suffi- cient size to contain easily from six to ei^ht or ten TO CHINA, . 87 people. For purposes of heavier burden, they had boats strongly built, and rather flat- bottomed. In these boats they brought our water, bullocks, and other stock, on board. The water was not sent in barrels, but in open tubs, and baled from these into our casks. During our stay here, the Lyra was detached by the senior ofiicer, in consequence of the people having told us that there was a closer and more secure harbour to the northward, to circumnavigate and examine the coast of the great island ; which service Captain Hall performed, and returned to Napa-kiang, in seven days. The state of cultivation was represented as very fine on a small island, which was named by cap- tain Hail Sugar-loaf Island ; and a town was ob- served, which had a very handsome appearance from the sea ; trees, as usual, filling up the inter- stices between the houses, which rose from the ^atcr-side to the foot of the high land. About twelve miles easterly from this island they anchored near an islet, which was named Herberfs Isle; and from thence proceeded in the boats to examine what seemed to be the mouth of a river ; here it is reported there were not less than ten fathoms of depth within it, the whole passc.ge being narrow, and the direction tortuous ; in short they here discovered a harbour, not inferior in any , respect, and in some superior, to Port Mahon, in 88 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE Minorca. The banks of this winding arm of the sea are high rocks, overgrown with climbing plants and flowers. It has, moreover, the advantage of Mahon of having a second outlet or communication with the sea : in short, it was discovered that an island in the mouth of a deep indent in the coast of the main island formed a circumnavigable pas- sage, with safe anchorage in every part of it, and a sufficient depth of water for the largest class of ships, with good holding ground. It was named Port Melville, In glens, formed by the opening of the rocks on its right bank, were observed several little villages, prettily situated ; and the inhabitants were found to be the same civil creatures as on every other part of the island. The north eastern parts of the great Lewchew would appear not to be so populous, and therefore not so much cultivated, as the south-western side, or Cheouli, a greater extent of forest land being noticed ; and on the western side also appeared to be the best and safest places for anchorages. A few days previous to our leaving the island, intimation was sent that a man of the first distinc- tion (said to be one of the princes, and nearest heir to the crown) intended paying a visit to the ship. He was carried down to the moutli of the little river, opposite to the anchorage, in a close chair, or palanquin, amidst an immense concourse of peo- TO CHINA. 89 pie, who had flocked from all parts to this spot. — He embarked in great state, in their own boats, with their flags flying ; and was saluted, on his ap- proach to the ships, by seven guns from each, and received on board the Alceste with every possible respect and attention ; the rigging being manned, and the officers in full dress. — He was above the usual size of the Lewchews, and had rather more of an European countenance. His robe was of a dark pink-coloured silk ; the cap rather lighter, with bright yellow flowers on it. In his mien and deportment there was much dignified simplicity ; for, although his carriage was that of a man of high rank, it was totally unmixed with the least appear- ance of hauteur ; and his demeanour was, alto- gether, extremely engaging. As he passed along the decks, his own people saluted him by kneeling ; clasping the hands before their breasts and bowing the head. He examined minutely every thing about the ship, and seemed equally pleased and surprised with all he saw. After joining in a sumptuous collation in the cabin, he took his leave with the same honours as when he came on board, having previously invited the captain and officers to an entertainment on shore. The day appointed for this feast happening to be the 25th of October, the anniversary of our venerable sove- reign's accession to the throne, a royal salute was N 90 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE fired, at sun-rise, by both ships ; at noon the stand- ard was hoisted, the ships dressed in colours, and another salute fired ; after which the boats, with their flags flying, containing the captains and every officer that could possibly be spared, proceeded into Napa-kiang. They were received precisely as on the fiarmer occasion, except that the number of grandees was greater, and there appeared a higher degree of state. The prince received the party at the gate, and conducted them into the hall. Three tables were laid close to each other ; the first for the great man and the captains, the second for the superior offi- cers, and the third for the young gentlemen. This prince, or chief, did the honours of his own table, occasionally directing his attention to the others ; but a man of some rank was added to each of them, for the purpose of seeing the strangers properly treated, as well as to pass and proclaim the toasts ; and for this purpose they were allowed to be seated, all the rest standing round the room, but, at the same time, joining heartily in the gene- ral mirth and glee. The healths of our king and royal family were toasted with much respect, and the anniversary of his majesty's accession was a day of real jubilee at Napafoo. The sovereign of Lewchew, the queen and princes, were proposed by our party ; whilst they (never deficient in po- liteness) toasted the wives and children of their TO CHINA. 91 friends, the Engelees, In dining on board the ship, captain Maxwell had given confectionary to those who were married, in parcels, proportioned to the number of children they had ; and on this oc- cation they returned the compliment ; in the dis- tribution of which, it was quite amusing to see some of the young midshipmen acquiring at once wives and large families. Some personal presents from the captains were on this day offered to the chiefs, consisting of va- rious articles as before, adding some damask table- cloths, and elegantly cut decanters and glasses, which they seemed highly to admire. Specimens of their manufactures in cloth were sent on board the ships in return. At their departure, the prince attended the party nearly to the landing-place; and, when about to take his leave, two small additional presents (at the the suggestion of captain Hall) were given to him, as memorials. One was a very neat pocket ther-, mometer (the use of the larger ones having been explained to him on board), and the other a cor- nelian seal set in gold, with a riband attached to each : they were hung round his neck ; and the ceremony, being in public, had the appearance of investing him with an order, with which he seemed to be highly gratified. As the boats shoved off from the landing-place, the crews gave them three cheers, which they returned in their own style of 9S VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE salutation. They had sent on board the ship a great number of coloured paper lanterns, for the purpose of illuminating her at night, in honour of our king. This was done after dark, the lanterns being regularly ranged along the yards and rig- ring, the main-deck ports illuminated, sky rockets thrown up, and blue lights burnt at the yard arms, bowsprit, and spanker-boom ends, with a feu de» joie of musketry, thrice repeated round the ship. The whole had a very brilliant effect from the shore, where tliousands of the natives had collected to view the scene . x\bout this time the boatswain's wife of the Alceste, who had been a good deal on shore, and was much noticed by the higher class of natives, had a splendid proposal made, by a depu- tation from some great man, to remain behind ; a grand house to live in, and all manner of finery and attentions ; great offers were also made to the boatswain to induce him to comply with this bar- gain ; but (after two days' consideration) the ne- gociation was broken off on the part of the husband, who refused to part with her. These proposals most likely came from the king, for it is not pro- bable that any subject could have entered into a treaty of this sort. A young lady of high rank, who had a great curiosity to see this Inago-Engelese^ or English- woman, was brought to her one day when she was quite alone, and walked round her for a consider- TO CHINA. 93 able time, eyeing her with great appearance of surprise. The marriages of this country are not managed blindfold, as in China ; but the young people are permitted to make their own choice, and to com- municate without reserve. In China they would seem to have a superstitious dread of all foreign women ; so much so, that any ship, having one or mcM-e on board, must land them at the Portuguese settlement of Macao, before they are permitted to pass up the river ; as they fancy that their putting foot on the celestial soil would be attended with some great calamity to the country, or perhaps rather that their unrestrained liberty would be a bad example for their secluded females. The rocks about the coasts of Lewchew were all of the coral kind ; and immense masses, some assuming very odd shapes, were seen every where along the sea-shore ; and some of the same forma- tion were found on the higher land, and at some distance from the beach, whose situation is not easily to .be accounted for, unless we suppose them to i^ave been elevated by the force of volcanic fire. The period of our departure being now fixed, all the stores were embarked on the evening of the 26th October. The next morning, as the ships unmoored, the Lewchews, as a mark of respect, arrayed themselves in their best apparel, and pro- 94 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ceeding to the temple, oiFered up to their gods a solemn sacrifice, invoking them to protect the En- gelees, to avert every danger, and restore them in safety to their native land ! In the m nner of this adieu there was an air of sublimity and benevolence combined, by far more touching to the heart than the most refined compliment of a more civilized people. It was the genuine benignity of artless nature, and of primitive innocence. Immediately following this solemnity, our particular friends crowded on board to shake hands ^ and say " Fare- well !'* whilst the tears which many of them shed, evinced the sincerity of their attachment. Even hard-faced Buonaparte was not unmoved ; and, asi the ships got under weigh', they lingered alongside in their eanoes, displaying every sign of affection- ate regard. We stood out to seaward ; and, the breeze be- ing favourable, this happy island soon sunk from the view ; but it will be long remembered by all the of- ficers and men of the Alceste and 'Lyra ; fiar, tiie kindness and hospitality of its inhabitants have fixed, upon every mind, a deep and lasting impres- sion of gratitude and esteem. Standing between w^hat had been termed Lyra's Reef (where she had been so nearly lost) and the Southern Isles, we pursued our course to the south- westward. On the next day we saw Typinsan, one of the most considerable of the Lewchewan group ; TO CHINA, 95 and, on the 30th, descried Botel Tobago Xima. ve- ry much resembling, in its general features, St. He- lena. Passing to the northward of it, we discovered, on the same day, the island of Formosa. The south-east part (thai which we saw) is extremely high and mountainous, as, indeed, the whole of it is represented to be ; and with the wind atN. E., as we then had it, and blowing strong, the surf rolled in with dreadful force upon the reefs extend- ing from it*. Becoming too dark to see our way between the south end of the island, and the rocks of Vele Rete, we bore up, until, by our run, we * The western parts of Formosa are under the dominion of the Chinese, but the eastern shores are still occupied by the aboriginal inhabitants. They are stated to be in a very uncivilized condition ; that they can run with the swiftness of a greyhound: and are such expert marksmen with the bow and arrow, as to kill a pheasant on the wing with the great- est certainty. The water of the island is considered most itv; salubrious. Theii' mode of courtship is rather odd : when a young man fixes his affections, he hovers about the house where the object of his regard resides, and plays upon some musi- cal instrument, which signal she answers by coming out to meet him, and settle the matter, provided he is to her taste ; should it be otherwise, she takes no notice, the gentleman whistles in vai7i, and must try his fortune elsewhere. The bridegrooms here transfer their filial duty to their fathers-in- law, and in fact tre considered, after the marriage, as part of the wife's family. ^6 VOYAGE OP H, M. S. ALCESTE were fairly to the southward of this danger, and then hauled to the wind on the starboard tack. The passage across the Straits of Formosa was boiste- rous in the extreme, blowing a severe gale at N. E., with that sort of tumbling sea felt in many other parts of the world, and which is infinitely more try- ing to ships than the long expansive swell of the wider ocean. The Alceste was a good deal injur- ed, and the Lyra had nearly foundered, the fore-top sides giving way, and sustaining other damage. On the 2d November saw the grand Lemma ; and on the same day pushed up to the anchorage, at the island of Lintin, without a pilot. Here we remain- ed unnoticed for some days, when a number of men-of-war junks anchored near us, and a manda- rin (their admiral) came on board, who, after the usual interrogatories, promised that a pass and pilot should be sent to us, to proceed up the river. In the time of Lord Anson, the Typa, near Macao, was of sufficient depth to receive the Centurion, a sixty-gun ship ; but, at the present day, no frigate of large size can with propriety enter it, having be- come much shallower from the deposition of mud. To have brought up the provisions and stores for the use of the ships, which had been left at that place (subject to the conjoined impositions of the Chinese and Portuguese), in hired vessels, would have been expensive : the Lyra, therefore, was or- dered down for that purpose. n TO CMNA. 97 We soon began to experience the inveterate ill- will of the viceroy, Tsong-tou^ of Canton, who, well aware that the object of the embassy was in a great measure directed against his extortions, and those of his myrmidons, on our commerce, natur- ally entertained the most perfect hatred and detesta- tion for any ship attached to such a mission. The people of Lintin (no doubt by the influence of their superiors) dammed up the course of the water ; and it was not until sentries were placed along the little stream, to keep it clear, that we were enabled to fill our casks. The comprador, or the person em- ployed to supply ships with provisions and neces- saries, could only smuggle himself on board after dark ; and then hurrying away trembling, for fear of being found near us at daylight with his boats. His master (or partner), Aming, had very lately been tortured, imprisoned, and fined ; or, to use the Chinese phrase, squeezed in a very heavy sum, on suspicion that he knew of the intention of the captains of some Chinamen to proceed into the city, in order to present a memorial to the viceroy ; and that he had not given information of this circum- stance, that it might have been prevented. It seems the viceroy, in malicious feeling to the General Hewitt, because she had been connected with the embassy, would not permit her to load, under pretence that she was a tribute ship ; that she must wait to carry back the unaccepted presents, O 98 VOYAGE OP H. M. S, ALCESTE and of course could have no room for teas. Had it even been intended diat she should carry back the presents (which was not the case, as, in the event of their not being received, they were to be otherwise disposed of), still they would not have occupied the tenth part of her tonnage ; and, be- sides all this, it was no business of the viceroy to interfere with the arrangements about the unaccept- ed tribute. Captain Campbell, therefore, attended by a party of his brother officers, and some of the gentlemen of the factory, on finding other measures vain, proceeded to make a personal application to the viceroy, and to present a memorial, stating the great hardship and unreasonableness of this prohi- bition. This bold manceuvre, however, was unat- tended with success ; and so far from the memori- al being received, they were treated with every indignity, the people spitting in their faces. The General Hewitt was guarded with more rigour than ever, being surrounded by war junks; and, previ- ous to our arrival, capt. Colin Campbell, of the navy, who, being unemployed, accompanied his brother in this voyage, with all who happened to be on board, were detained prisoners, at the second bar, for more than five weeks. On the 11th another mandarin came On board, who disclaimed any knowledge of the former, or what he had promised, stating, through the me- dium of an interpreter (who seemed himself a man TO CHINA. 99 of some little consequence, and who evidently enjoyed peculiar satisfaction in repeating whatever was galling to the feelings of a Briton), that he had been making fools of us about sending a pass ; that the embassador, had been sent away in disgrace from Pekin ; that he must soon arrive here, when he would be immediately sent on board, and dis- missed with all the English ships from the country, and so forth ; adding that vvg must remain at our present anchorage, not attempting to pass up the river ; and even, during our stay here, it would be necessary to have a security-merchant to answer for our good conduct. The latter part of this rhodo- montade about a security-merchant for the king's ship, captain Maxwell begged might not be repeat- ed, unless they wished to be thrown overboard ; quietly telling them he would wait a reasonable time longer for the viceroy to send down a pass, or chop^ to proceed up the river, which he was desirous of doing for two reasons : 1st, The ship required caulking and other repairs, which it was impossible to accomplish in her present unprotect- ed and exposed situation. Next, the Lion, in the former embassy, had been admitted to a place of security ; and the emperor having, in the first in- stance, expressed his pleasure that the Alceste should have the same reception, it could only be considered an indignity to be excluded ; and would be a bad precedent. They now became a little lOO VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE more cool ; and, after some desultory conversation, took their leave : but previously captain Maxwell insisted on their admitting (to exclude them from all shuffling), that, if a pass was not sent down in 48 hours, he was to take it for granted that leave was given. That day arrived without the least notice being taken of us; and the pilot who had come on board, in the hope of carr) ing us up, sneaked oft' in the dark, saying it was dangerous for him to have any connexion with us. Against an open attack a British commander can never be at a loss how to act ; but the present was a most trying and embarrassing case, and imposed a very heavy and serious weight of responsibility. That his majesty's ship should be supplied by an unauthorized individual under cover of night, and by stealth, was not to be endured ; to be denied admission to the harbour, and detained in an unpre- cedented manner, at this season of the year, in an open and dangerous road, could not be viewed but as an act of absolute hostility ; and to all this were added sneering insult and contempt of the most mortifying kind. To have waited longer for an explicit answer would have been vain ; for a Chinese who could so far forget himself, even in the most common occa- sions of intercourse, as to give a frank, ingenuous, and undesigning reply to any communication, TO CHINA. 101 would be considered by his own countrymen a fool, and by foreigners a prodigy. They are a people, who, by early education and constant habit, are manoeuvrers, and always enjoy a much higher satisfaction in obtaining any purpose by fraud, trick, and overreaching, than by the most direct, candid, or honourable means ; and afford a strong exemplification of the distinction between low cunning and true wisdom. , On the other hand, the king's representative was in their power, and this circumstance rendered a decision on the case still more difficult ; but it was equally clear that the government which attempted to dishonour the flag would not respect the embas- sador; and experience has fully proved, that the tame submission of other nations has only added to the arrogance, and fostered the insolence of the Chinese. This, perhaps, was the impression on captain Maxwell's mind, when he got under weigh on the 12th ; but not a word was expressed. The examination, however, of the locks and flints on the carronades by the gunner, with a few other minor preparations, were hailed as auspicious omens, and excited the most pleasing hopes ; for the Chinese have no foreign friends ; every sea- man, whether of the navy or merchant's service, from experience of their faithless conduct, con- sidering himself in a state of warfare from the moment he enters their territory. We got up as lOS VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE far as Lankeet Flat that night, without a pilot; but Mr. Mayne, the master, who knew the ground, vo- lunteered to carry up the ship as far as she could go. Here we anchored for the night, and spoke the Cornwall Indiaman, bound homewards. About two o'clock P. M. next day we again weighed, the flood tide serving, and beat up, to- wards the Bocca Tigris, or Bogue, then distant a few miles. The Bocca Tigris is the mouth of the principal branch of that river, on which Canton is situated, and where it is contracted to about the breadth of the Thames at London ; but the banks are formed by high land, more especially on the east side. The fortifications on this pass were formerly in- significant, and allowed to remain in a very dis- mantled state ; but lately they have been repaired and strengthened with much care ; an additional battery of forty guns being built, rather farther up, and on the same side with old Annan-hoy ; a hun- dred and ten pieces of cannon, of different calibres, being at present mounted on these forts, including that of the island of Wang-tong opposite, the whole three being within half-gunshot of each other, with a garrison at this time of about 1,200 men. Chumpee, which lies in a corner farther down, has about twelve or fourteen guns ; but a ship may keep out of reach of them. As we advanced, some war-junks formed a line off Chumpee, and were TO CHINA. 103 soon after joined by several more, making altogeth- er seventeen or eighteen. They carry, on an aver- age, six guns, with from sixty to eighty men each. About this time (five o'clock) the same loquacious linguist before mentioned came on board from the mandarins, and desired, in a high and domineering tone, that the ship should be directly anchored, and that if we presumed to pass up the river, the batte- ries would instantly sink her ; availing himself, at the same time, of that favourable opportunity, to express his personal se72se of low consideration for us, and plainly telling the captain he thought him very impertinent. The latter calmly observed that he would first pass the batteries, and then hang him at the yard-arm, for daring to bring on board a British man-of-war so impudent a message : his boat was then cut adrift, and himself taken into custody. The junks now commenced firing blank cartridge, which we returned with three guns from the ship, affecting to consider this as a mere salute. On the next tack we passed close to these warriors, who remained quiet until we got inside of them, and opened Chumpee ; when that fort, little Annan-hoy, and the junks (now under weigh), began to fire with shot. At this moment the wind becoming light and baffling, we were obliged to drop anchor in Anson's bay, in order to hold the ground we had gained, and that they might not suppose they had driven us back ; and in the act of 104 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE wearing for this purpose, we gave the admiral of the junks a single shot only, by way of a hint*. They immediately ceased firing ; and their junks anchor- ing near us, all remained quiet until a little after eight o'clock, when a light breeze sprung up, which enabled us to lay our course, and the anchor was again weighed. The moment this was observ- ed by the junks, they beat their gongs, fired guns, and threw up sky-rockets, to give the alarm, and in an instant the batteries were completely illuminated, displaying lanterns as large as moderate- sized bal- loons, (the finest mark immaginable for us), com- miencing also a warm, but ill-directed, fire from both sid.es. Steering a steady course, the ship maintained a slow and regular fire, as the guns could be got to bear, without yawing her. From the lightness of the breeze, which the can- nonade seemed to lessen, it was a considerable time before we got abreast of the largest battery. At last, when within pistol-shot of the angle of it, and just before they could get all their guns to bear into the ship, a whole broadside, with cool aim, was poured in among them, the two-and- * This first shot was fired by the captain's own hand, that in the event of the Chinese demanding those who fired, in- stead of those who ordered, or of seizing upon any innocent person, he might fully place himself in the situation of being individually responsible for all consequences. TO CHINA. 105 thirty pounders rattling the stones about their ears in fine style, and giving them at the same time three roaring cheers. This salvo was decisive at this particular point ; their lights disappeared in a twinkling, and they were completely silenced ; but from the island op- posite they still continued their fire, the balls which passed over and around us striking New Annan- hoy, which had thereby the fuU benefit of their own as well as our shot. Soon after this our point was gained ; and, standing up the river, we displayed our stern to these gentlemen. It is somewhat extraordinary that it should have been gained so easily ; for, notwithstanding we were nearly an hour wrangling in this narrow passage, not a man (on our side) was killed, the ship only hulled twice, and some trifling damage done to the rigging. Almost any Euro- pean gunners, with the same advantages, would have blown the frigate out of the water. During this affair, the flashing of the guns on the glassy surface of the river, and the rolling echo of their reports along the adjoining hills, had a very grand and animating effect. The Chinese linguist, who had crawled below when he saw matters taking a serious turn, and having observed there was no joking in the case, began in real earnest to think, as one part of the promise had been fulfilled, that his time had now arrived. Coming trembling upon P 106 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE deck, he prostrated himself, and, kissing the cap- tain's feet, begged for mercy. At that moment, hearing the order given to " stand by the larboard guns for Tiger Island" (on which we then sup- posed there was a battery), he said, with a rueful countenance, " What ! no hab done yet?" " Not half done," was the reply : " How many guns have you got on Tiger Island ?" — but, without waiting to answer this question, (or indeed reflecting in his perturbation that there were none at all), he wrung his hands, groaned heavily, and dived again below. We stood on for some miles farther, and then anchored. — Next morning, before day, we found ourselves surrounded by their grand Jleet ; but they were wise enough to make no attack ; for, having now broken the ice, it was too late for half-mea- sures, and there was plenty of grape at hand to pick their teeth, had they offered the least molesta- tion. Half-measures seem to be a bad system in any dealings, but more especially with uncivilized peo- ple, for they are apt to attribute forbearance to fear, and acquire, under that impression, fresh courage. When the late admiral Drury was induced to make a show of force at Canton, but was withheld, by circumstances, from proceeding to actual hos- TO CHINA. 107 tilities, there was no end to their gasconading ; they considered his retiring as a great victory gained, and it is celebrated as such by an inscription in one of their pagodas. On the morning of the 15th, the Alceste an- chored among the Indiamen at second bar, still attended, but with perfect respect, by their fleet. In the evening, captain Maxwell, attended by two gentlemen of the ship, proceeded in person to Canton to demand satisfaction (after having taken it) for the insult offered in firing upon the king's ship. On their way up they remained one even- ing with captain Campbell, of the Hewitt, and on that night, the news of the business with the bat- teries, having become public, much alarm was at first excited at Canton, as to the consequences of this measure ; but the next morning they were agreeably surprised by the appearance of several tea-junks alongside, with part of her cargo, the viceroy having given permission for her to load immediately ! — It also came to pass that the said viceroy thought proper to send down to the frigate, on this day, a high mandarin, attended by one of the Hong merchants, to wait upon the captain to welcome him into the river, and compliment him with all possible politeness ! It appeared, therefore, that the late head-thump- ing ceremony produced both tea and civility ; and, 108 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE most probably, it is the only mode of Ko'towing*^ by which we will ever receive either, on reasonable terms, from the Chinese. They affect, in their usual disingenuous cant, to despise our commerce ; they say they could do perfectly well without it, and it is a mere matter of grace and favour that we are permitted to approach their shores, and carry on a trade highly to our advantage ; but, when the company's agents were lately driven to the neces- sity of abandoning Canton, of stopping the trade, and giving up all concern with them, having ac- tually taken their departure, struck the flag and flag-staff, and were on their way down the river, the Chinese authorities became alarmed, and sent after them to beg they would return, making such Cair promises as patched up, for a time, their dif- * Ko-tonv is the ceremony exacted from all ti'ibutary princes and embassadors on approaching the presence of the emperor, and consists in kneeling, placing the hands foi'- ward, and then knocking the head thrice against the ground. The fiatient now stands upright, and, by word of command, kneels and knocks again, and afterwards a third time, mak- ing, in allj three prostrations, and nine thumps : and this is required not merely in the imperial presence, but on receiv- ing any message, or donation of broken victuals, from the emperor, and was actually pei'formed by the Dutch embassy for some half- gnawed bones in 1795. (Vide Van Braam's own account.) So that a man, to be much about court in China, would require a skull as thick as a buifalo's. TO CHINA. 109 1 ferences. Neither will they trade Iwnestly or say I at once there is an end of all intercourse ; and day j after day we are insulted and trifled with by them. The removal of our trade for a single year, and the appearance of a few of our lightest cruizers on their coasts, would throw the whole of this celestial empire into confusion ; for they are not prepared for the loss that would occur in the one case, nor to meet the tumult and convulsion that would be ex- cited by the destruction of their fisheries and coast- ing trade in the other. So feeble is their naval power, that, after warring with the pirates for many years, who chased their vessels up the river, and sacked the towns and villages within a few miles of Canton, they were at last obliged to compro- mise with them, bribing the whole to be quiet, and making their chitkjirst-chop mandarins. Krusenstern, the intelligent Russian navigator, who had occasion, in his voyage round the world, to touch at this port, where he experienced much vexation and insult, says, with great truth and pro- priety, what all equally feel, that " the forbearance and mistaken lenity of the greater civilized pow- ers have emboldened these savages, not only to consider as barbarians all Europeans, but actually to treat them as such." Captain Maxwell, on arriving at the city, sent in a strong note to the viceroy on the subject of his rudeness to the ship, which the latter answered by 110 VOYAGE OF H, M, S. ALCESTE a letter yrom the Hong merchants to &ir Theophilus Metcalfe, the chief of the factory, who told the merchants, that, having no control over the king's officers, he neither could receive nor communicate it. The Hong people next applied to captain Maxwell personally, with their letter of explana- tion about the fracas that had occurred ; but he refused to receive them or their letter, on the ground that Chinese merchants were not the proper chan- nel of communication between him and the vice- roy. There the matter rested. The substance of this epistle was known to be some flimsy excuse about a mistake in sending, down the chop or pass, which not being received by the mandarins at the forts, they were obliged to act according to orders. But what shewed the barefaced effrontery of their assertions was their public account of the business, whilst in the very act of presenting this letter of explanation (for they affect to give a public account of all transactions), which stated that the affair at the Bogue was a mere chin-chinning or saluting matter, altogether. The first report, previous to the official fabrication, was forty-seven killed, besides a number of men spoiled^ (wounded), which pro- * Among these tvise and enlightened people^ if a man is materially sfioiled he must die ; for they neither will permit the necessary knowledge to be acquired for the performance of any operation, nor will they allow a stranger, who has TO CHINA. Ill bably might be near the truth, considering they stood rather thick ; but, after the appearance of the edict., it became a subject on which " no man can talk'^y . This is what the Chinese call " making face^'' or keeping up appearances, with respect to any circumstances they are desirous of having re- ported their own way ; and the people on the spot are literally ordered not to believe the evidence of their own senses, but to take the proclamation or edictf (as it is termed) for their guide, which is spread about in other parts, and handed down to posterity as good history, which no man dares to contradict. Few, it is supposed, will be credulous that knowledge, to save him, but at the risk of his own life ; as, in the event of the patient dying within forty days, from that or any other cause, the anatomist would certainly be strangled, or, if he had plenty of money, well squeezed, at least. * There was, however, a good deal of talk, sub rosa, up- on the subject, and the shot found in the battery having been sent up to Canton and weighed, they hai-yaived a great deal at what we termed our smaller ships, throwing shot of 25 catties (321bs.) each, asking seriously about the probable consequences of the rejection of the embassy, and whether our larger ships could come up the river. The last ac- counts from China state that these feelings have rather in- creased than diminished. t Some how or other the word edict has crept into gene- ral use for any piece of common information, whether it is from the emperor, or has the force of a law or not. 112 yOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE enough (who have ever been in China) to believe, that the people have the privilege of criticising the conduct of their superiors, and even of remarking publicly on the conduct of the emperor. The law which permits them to do so, may, indeed, be con- sidered as a very severe piece of irony on their ac- tual state. That the viceroy had an intention of insult be- yond the mere exclusion of the ship is rendered more than probable from the circumstance of a number of barges having been placed in the back passage to Macao, and not in the route of lord Macartney to Canton, which were removed from that situation immediately after the late occurrence ; and likewise from the general tenour of his con- duct throughout. Be this as it may, it would clearly have been a triumph to his cause, and that of his ad- herents, that the embassador should have arrived at Canton with as little eclat and appearance of res- pect as possible ; it would have added (as exterior is every thing with them) in the eyes of the Chi- nese, as well as foreigners, to the idea of disgrace and discomfiture to an obnoxious mission. But the advance of the ship to Wampoa not only com- manded as brilliant an entry for the embassy* as * That the Chinese did not join in it, is only an addition- al proof that they would have prevented it, had they dared. TO CHIN4. 113 ever had been witnessed on any other occasion ; but, what was of equal importance, it sustained the dignity of the flag, and reduced the viceroy (after offering every insult) to the meanness of congratu- lating those who had defied his flotilla and batter- ed his fortifications. Canton may be considered the most interesting city in China. It is one of the first in point of size, and, perhaps, the very first with respect to wealth ; and here, as the native manners may be seen in all their purity as perfectly as in any other part, the traveller has also the advantage of viewing them as connected with Europeans, and of notic- ing their brightest efforts of imitative genius, which the encouragement afforded by the commerce of the place calls forth. The numerous junks and boats of all descrip- tions in motion upon the Tigris surpasses even the busy scene displayed upon the Thames ; for here the boats are the only residence of some thou- sand families, who live entirely on the water, and manage to obtain a livelihood, some by plying pas- sage, others by fishingand picking up floating articles, and not unfreqently by exercising their talents like our mud-larkers and river pirates. The appearance of the river at night, completely illuminated by the lamps and lanterns in all the j boats, has a very pretty effect. Infanticide is said not to be so common in China as was at one time Q 114 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE believed ; but that it actually exists is not attempt- ed to be denied even by the Chinese themselves ; one of whom, on being interrogated seriously on this subject, readily admitted, without seeming to consider it as a crime, that they certainly did drown their children when they were so numerous as to be inconvenient to them ; but that boys might be exposed alive, and, if picked up, they became coo- lees or slaves. It would appear, therefore, that fe- male children are most likely to become the victims in this way, from being less useful to their parents when they grow up ; for the patriarchal law of Chi- na considers the sons as slaves of their father ; and he is entitled to sell them as such, should occasion require. The entertainments given by the Hong merchants at Canton to their European friends are considered to be very superb. Seldom fewer than a hundred people sit down in th6 great hall to din- ner, which is usually dressed in our style (although they have also their chop-stick feasts), and plenty of the best viands, wines, and fruits, cover the table. Bird-nest soup is also handed round as a great treat, to which the Chinese attribute very extraor- dinary and invigorating qualities. On us, however, it produced no unusual effect ; and we should not have known it from any other, had it not been point- ed out. These bird-nests, which are collected in the Sunda Archipelago, are rather expensive arti- cles, being purchased by an equal weight of silver. TO CHINA. 115 Their composition is not yet exactly known, but it is some gelatinous substance, most likely of the vegetable kind, which the swallows pick up. During the whole of the entertainment, a play is performing on a stage erected at one end of the hall the subject of which it is difficult, in general, for an European to comprehend, even could he attend to it for the deafening noise of their music. By collecting together in a small space a dozen bulls, the same number of jack-asses, a gang of tinkers round a copper caldron, some cleavers and mar- row-bones, with about thirty cats ; then letting the whole commence bellowing, braying, hammering, and caterwauling together, and some idea may be formed of the melody of a Chinese orchestra*. Their jugglers are extremely adroit, and the tum- blers perform uncommon feats of activity. The Chinese government, with regard to religion, is tolerant. It appears to be in wordly concerns Only that it is tyrannical, and seems to be indiffe- rent as to what a man professes, provided he does not interfere in state affairs. Some one, calling himself a catholic bishop, was, a short time before our arrival, strangled in one of the provinces, being * Their softer music, employed at their weddings, and other occasions unconnected with the stage, is not unpleas- ing to the ear. il6 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE suspected of intermeddling with temporal matters, and promoting the late rebellions. Another was said to be under sentence of death on the same ac- cusation. They not only worship their own tutelary deities, but they are represented as making offerings to evil spirits, or, as it is vulgarly termed in this country, they " hold a candle to the devil," in order to avert mischief. They have not the advantage of any par- ticular day set aside for public worship, nor do they attend their temples congregationally. Their priests or bonzes are not treated with that reverence land respect which is justly and reasonably due to the respectable ministers of religion in all countries. They are otherwise free, however, from indecorum and irregularity, having no wild fanatics, such as exist in India ; they are not troubled with domi- neering spiritual inquisitors, as in some of our neighbouring countries ; nor have they any impi- ous quacks and mountebank preachers, abusing toleration and dishonouring religion, as in Eng- land. The Chinese are strangers to love : from the spirit of their institutions, w^hich unnaturally pro- hibit all intercourse between the sexes, that pas- sion can never be felt; and marriage is a mere cold-hearted bargain, conducted through the me- dium of some female agent, whenever a man finds it convenient to have a wife. As he never sees the TO CHINA. 117 lady until he unlocks the door of the sedan chair in which she is brought home, the key of which is previously sent to him, he is of course very lia- ble to have tricks played upon him. — For exam- ple, more especially as polygamy is allowed, a man may have a wife sufficiently young to be considered his daughter ; should he want money, and the lady another husband (both very likely cases), or from any other reason should they wish to part, and think proper to act in collusion, she is sold as his daughter to another man, who is thus imposed upon by having a second-hand wife palmed off upon him, instead of a new one. The rigour of the law against offenders of this kind, which awards a very severe bambooing to all principals, aiders, and abettors, affords a proof that frauds of this descrip- tion are not unfrequent. With a people who still imagine the earth to be a plane, and China in the middle, with all her tribu- tary kingdoms around her ; who are equally unin- formed with regard to astronomy ; who, in the pro- hibition of the study of the human frame, preclude the attainment of the very basis of all medical knowledge ; and who, in fact, in every branch of natural philosophy, are equally ignorant, and re- solved to continue So ; it is evidently impossible to connect the term science in any shape or manner. The natural productions of the country, and their acquaintance with agriculture and the arts 118 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE (as far as they have been able to advance for that glorious edict which stamped them perfect, and commanded they should not proceed beyond the bounds of excellence), have already been (and pro- bably may be again, with additional information) described, by those whose peculiar opportunities, as well as talent for observation, enable them to speak fully, and with precision, on those subjects. The government of China, however plausible it may sound in theory, is, by all that can be obser- ved in a transient view, and, by every concurrent testimony of residents in the country, most iniqui- tous and tyrannical in practice. The mandarins, and even the emperor, it is true, cannot boldly and openly chop off heads like a Turkish bashaw or the dey of Algiers : but they have the knack of rendering life very miserable, and assume the pow- er of bambooing, torturing, fining (or squeezing J, and every species of oppression short of death. The human kind can scarcely be more degraded than in China, for no where is power more diaboli- cally perverted. Their laws, with the exception of some absurdities (such, for example, of visiting mere accidental homicide with the same punish- ment as the most deliberate murder), read very well; and, were they duly and impartially adminis- tered, might be found sufficiently adapted (as all laws ought to be) to the genius and character of the people they are formed for ; but this is by no TO CHINA. 119 ] means the case ; briber}^ and corruption being so i connmon, as scarcely to be the objects of indigna- tion or remark. A few years since an affray took place (as usual) between some of the seamen of the Indiamen who were at Canton on leave, and the Chinese mob, in which one of the latter by an unlucky blow was killed. The Chinese authorities demanded blood for blood, one of the seamen having been seized and detained in the factory : this, however, was not tamely yielded to (as in the case of the inno- cent gunner, who was sacrificed in so cowardly a !| manner many years ago), but was resisted on the ground either of the aggression of the Chinese, or of a mutual inclination to fight, in which a man happened to be killed, without the least previous intention of murder. Fortunately the Lion, of 64 guns, captain Rolles, happened to be there, which probably gave some weight to these arguments ; and the mandarins, having no objections to com- promise the matter for money, proposed that a cer- tain sum should be paid to them for the benejit of the deceased^s relations, and a slave could then be purchased of the Portuguese at Macao, who might be strangled in lieu of one of the sailors, and thus the law would be perfectly satisfied ! It may easily be imagined this proposal was not acceded to ; and, at last, after much discussion, the 120 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE matter was arranged in some way or other with- out resorting to this horrible mode of expiation*. It is lamentable to observe that the institutions of any nation should have the effect of deadening every feeling of sympathy, and of exciting, instead of discouraging, " man's inhumanity to man ;" but such is the case in this country ; and when any one is severely wounded by accident, or falls into a river, or other situation of danger, he is certain of receiving no assistance from the by-standers, who will most probably take to their heels, in order to save themselves from being the last person seen near him. ^About midnight, sometime in November, 1816, when the Alceste was lying at second bar, the shrieks of some people in the water were heard near the ship. The hon. Mr. Stopford, who had the watch, and another gentleman, collecting a few individuals who happened to be on deck, jumped into a boat alongside ; pushed off to their assis- tance ; and, directed by their cries, picked up, one after the other, three Chinese, who were plunging about in the river, which is here several miles wide. * Related by J. Cotton, Esq., of the English factory at Canton. TO CHINA. ISl It was a fine night, and a number of small junks were moving up under easy sail, several of whom passed within a few fathoms of these people who were bawling for help ; and although they could, without the slightest difficulty, have saved the whole, they continued their course, the crews standing upon deck, and viewing their struggles with the most callous indifference. On carrying the three men on board the frigate, it appeared they had been crossing the river at this place, in a little Sanpan^ or boat ; in which were, besides themselves, the wife and child of one of them ; and that this boat had been run down by one of the headmost junks, which passed on without taking the least notice, and regardless of their fate, although they had occasioned the mischief; the others coolly following their example ; when they were fortunately heard from the ship, and preserved by the boat. The poor woman and child, being unable to swim, sank, and were drowned. Before day-light these people got a passage on shore by a boat which happened to be passing near the ship, and in the course of the forenoon one of them returned on board with a cumshaw, or pre- sent, of three wild ducks, which he presented on his knees to the gentleman who had saved him, stating that, by the junk running over their sanpan, he had lost his wife and a bull child (his only mode of expressing a boy), and must himself with the R 1S3 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE Other men have perished also but for the assistance we aiForded them. Pleased with this appearance of heart and gratitude, where so little was expected, some money and provisions were given him for his ducks, and he was allowed to bring on board fish, and other articles for sale, which, from becoming rather a favourite, soon enabled him to repair the loss of his boat. The Chinese, viewing them in every point, are assuredly a very singular race, and afford a melan- choly example of the perverseness of human nature ; exhibiting a people who have had for some thousand y£ars a dawn of civilization, which, from the ope- ration of the most narrow-minded principles, has never brightened into day. But for the presump- tuous folly of supposing themselves at the summit of perfection, and the absurd tyrranny of fettering the human understanding, by forbidding all innova- tion and improvement, China might and ought to have been at the present hour the greatest nation of the world. Instead of impotent and gasconading pretensions to universal supremacy, she might have enjoyed, from her early and local advantages, the real glory of being the seat of arts, literature, wealth, and power. What have the governors or the governed gained by this pretended non-intercourse, and stupid con- tempt of the rest of mankind ? The frequent change ot dynasty and constant rebellions tend to show that TO CHINA. 133 tlic former have been by no means secure ; whilst the debased and humiliated state of the people suffi- ciently evinces that their sordid an I illiberal plan confers no benefit on the general mass. The Chinese, however, are not without their ad- mirers. Some attribute their suspicious meanness, knavery, silly pride, and other ill qualities, to their depraved mode of government, which narrows their ideas, by compelling their attention, and attaching importance, entirely to the observance of useless forms and ceremonies ; and by admitting of no de- viation from one contracted path, even in the sim- plest transactions of life ; and that, were it not for these shackles of the mind, they would be a gay, civil, industrious, and honest people. Perhaps there may be a good deal of truth in this argument, and it is, therefore, extremely unfortunate that some change does not take place in a system which produces effects so injurious to the reputation of mankind. Another, and very distinct class of encomiasts (of the true antediluvian school), affect to hold them in high estimation, solely on account of their unva- rying habits, and tenacious adherence to their ancient customs ; and as they are now, in all respects, pre- cisely what they were two or three thousand years ago, they venerate them as living monuments of former times, and as valuable specimens of the antique. In their present state, however, from whatever cause it is produced, few moderns will take their leave of 124 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE them with sentiments of regard or estimation ; and even the most inveterate antiquarian, had he more concerns with them than those merely speculative, might be divested, perhaps, of some of his preju- dices. Of the embassy, we had heard nothing distinct- ly for nearly five months, except that it had not been received; and it was not clearly understood until its arrival at Canton, that the refusal to sub- mit to a humiliating ceremonial, considered as stamping it with a character purely tributary, was the cause of this failure ; and that a reception on the unconditional terms of the Chinese would have been deeemed more prejudicial to the objects of the mission than even a rejection by firm resis- tance. But these weighty matters are foreign to the subject of a mere simple sea- voyager, and will be so well described by those officially connected with them, as to render any farther observation unne- cessary. Although the viceroy of Canton was in daily communication with the legate, or commis- sioner, appointed to accompany the embassy through the country, yet he maintained a sullen silence as to the probable period of its arrival, making no communication that we might prepare for that event; and it was not until the 31st of December that a letter of old date, having been detained for some time, was put into captain Maxwell's hand, from lord Amherst, stating when the embassy TO CHINA. 125 was likely to enter Canton, which took place on the following day, A procession of boats, consist- ing of the barges of the two men of war, those of the factory, the American consul, and all the India- men, who were very numerous, with their respec- tive flags, the captains and officers in full dress, and the boats' crew in uniform clothing, proceed- ed some miles up the river, where they fell in with the Chinese barges, having the embassy on board. This meeting was highly gratifying to both parties, after a separation of nearly five months, durmg which each had, in its respective route, observed many novel scenes, and encountered extraordinary occurences. Lord Amherst removing into his own (or the Alceste's) barge, a double line of boats was form- ed on each side, and in this order proceeded down the river, and was landed at the entrance of the great temple, on the Honan side, from whence he was conducted to his residence by a very numerous assemblage, who had collected to receive him. The apartments in this place had been fitted up with much taste, and great appearance of comfort, under the inspection of Mr. Urm.ston, of the fac- tory, and was by far the most commodious and re- spectable quarters they had met with in China. A temporary building, or wooden frame covered with yellow screens, and containing a chair of state, hav- 1S6 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ing also yellow ornaments and the usual insignia of the emperor, was erected in the principal square, for the occasion of the viceroy's interview with the embassador, in order to deliver the emperor's let- ter to the prince regent. This ceremony took place some days after the arrival of his lordship. The viceroy had been ordered by his court to make a speech to the embassador, on presenting this letter ( which speech had been in rehearsal for some months, and the subject of it publicly known through the medium of Portuguese translations) ; and it appeared that the ten our of this embryo ha- rangue was rather of an insulting nature, containing such expressions as " Your good fortune has been small ;" " You sighed after happiness, and were unable to lift your eyes up to heaven," i. e- to view the celestial emperor, and others of a similar kind. The preamble of this edict also stated, that there appearing to be no want of respect in the king or prince, who had sent over so many seas to pay him homage, but that the fault lay in the embassa- dor's not understanding the rules of true politeness; he therefore had accepted some trifling articles of the presents of the said king, and in return had bestowed precious gifts, agreeably to the maxim of Confucius, *' Take little, and give much ;" and that, " on the receipt of these gifts, the embassa- dors became exceeding glad, and expressed great TO CHINA. 1S7 contrition * for tlieir conduct;" and went on to say " that the viceroy, on their arrival, was to give them an entertainment in compliance with good manners, after which he was to rid himself of them as soon as possible ; and should they again supplicate him to accept their presents, he was enjoined to say to them, " The edict has passed and cannot be re- voked ! the emperor can be troubled no more !" and so forth. As it appeared this intended address had been made by them matter of public notoriety, it was understood, that, in order to prevent any /ja/ai'er of this sort, a hint was given to the viceroy the day previous to the interview, cautioning him against the use of any improper language, as it might call forth replies which would be unpleasant. At the time appointed this meeting of ceremony took place, and was accompanied by the appearance of guards, music, and other attendants, there being much state observed on each side. ( * A tolerably strong example oftliis sort oi face-making I occurred during the discussion about tlie performance of the I ceremony, in which the precedent of lord Macartney's not ' having done it was brought forward, when the emperor de- j Glared, through his ministers, that he himself had seen his j lordship perform it ; and they coolly called on Sir G. Staunton, who had been page in that embassy, to vouch for the truth of the fact. — That he did submit to the Ko-tow is no doubt the face they have put upon it in all the records of the empire. 1S8 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE The emperor's letter contained in a bamboo case, covered with yellow silk, was now taken from this throne, and presented to the embassador, who transferred it to his secretary ; and the persons on either side, who were (by previous regulation) allowed chairs, having taken their seats, and the usual unvarying number of complimentary ques- tions having been gone through, such as " What age are ye?" and some others of the same high im- portance, the viceroy began to state, through the me- dium of Mr. Morrison, who interpreted, '* By the favour of the emperor you have traded to this country for more than a hundred years, very much to your advantage." " Tell him," said lord Am- herstj " the advantage is mutual," This being done, the viceroy replied, " No, the advantage is very much on your side." *' Repeat to him," said his lordship, " that the advantage is strictly mutual." From the dignified and independent manner in which this was spoken (a manner which, of course, from his peculiar situation, and the diffe- rent style of those he had to deal with, he could have no conception of), and perceiving, also, a determination to repulse every thing border- ing on impertinence, he seemed to be quite awed and disconcerted ; the thread of his discourse was broken, and he got no farther on with this mighty specimen of altiloquence, than to say something about " the subject being a disagreeable one;" TO CHINA. 129 when the embassador considering the public busi- ness ended by the presentation of the emperor's letter rose up, and, wishing him a very good mor- ning, retired in the same state as on coming to this hall of audience. On the 20th, every thing being ready, his ex- cellency left Canton on the forenoon of the 20th January, 1817, and was attended to Wampoa in the same style as on entering it, except that, in pass- ing the various ships in that branch of the river, each saluted with nineteen guns, the Chinese war- junks also saluting. It appeared that the viceroy, just as the embassador had embarked in his barge to proceed down the river, approached near in his boat,, and made a tender of a complimentary card, which was not accepted, it being deemed an im- proper time and mode of presenting it. On the 21st the Alceste weighed and stood down the river; and, on the morning of the 22d, as we passed our friends at the forts, each battery fired a distinct salute, in honour of the embassador, as did the different war-junks ; and their whole military force, exchjsive of that in the batteries, vi'as drawn out in line in Anson's Bay, and fired a feu de-jole with their matchlocks. The ship answered all these in rotation, with three guns to each. On the same evening we an- chored oft' the city of Macao, and the next morn- S 130 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ing his excellency landed ; but here the ghost of the late queen made its way through the centre of the earth, (for we were now antipodes to the Bra- zils), and prevented any public attentions being paid to the embassador, because the accounts of her death had just arrived. The fact is, these poor people dare not, were they ever so willing, do any thing which they think may be displeasing to the Chinese, under whom they live in a state of mise- rable thraldom ; the latter having it in their power, and frequently resorting to the measure, of stopping their allowance of provisions whenever they display the least symptom of being unruly ; and in the present case it seemed to be the wish of the Chi- nese to have the whole management of the honours to the embassador ; a mandarin receiving him on going on shore, although within their walls, precise- ly as he would have done, had the Chinese flag, instead of that of the Portuguese, been flying there. Macao is stated to be a possession of little or no value to the crown of Portugal, and, under the cir- cumstances of its present tenure, certainly not one that is either honourable or independent. The cave of Camoens is the only object here which attracts the notice of a traveller, from its being the spot in which he composed his celebrated poem of the Lusiad. Camoens, certainly the greatest, and perhaps the only, Portuguese poet whose fame TO CHINA. 131 ever extended beyond the boundaries of his own country, deserved a better fate ; and it is painful to think he died a beggar in the streets of Lisbon. On the 9th January, the embassador having re- embarked, we took our leave of China, steering for Manilla, the capital of the Philippines, or Span- ish India, where we arrived on Monday the 3d of February, but found it was only Sunday at this place, owing to the diftbrent routes by which the Spaniards and the Portuguese advanced to the Asi- atic seas ; the one by Cape Horn, the other by the Cape of Good Hope ; a circumstance which may produce an awkward effect on people newly arrived at Manilla ; — for instance, a stranger invited to a party on Wednesday, without at all reflecting on the way he came thither, might dress himself for the occasion, and make his appearance on Tues- day. The town of Manilla, from its peninsular situation, having on one side the sea, and on the other a deep and rapid river, with strongly-fortified ditches across the isthmus, ought to be, with a pro- per garrison, very defensible, for there are no com- manding heights in its immediate vicinity ; but their soldiers consist almost entirely of mulattoes and blacks, and seem to be in a very lethargic state of discipline. The Metees, or Mulatto women, who are a mix- ture "between the Spaniards and the natives, are re- markable for their symmetry of form and stately 133 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE mien, and this sort of beauty is so universal as hardly to admit of an exception. The religion of the Indians under the immediate controul of the Spaniards is Christianity ; but at Mindanao and the other islands (of which there are more than a thou- sand), where they are governed by their own sal- tans, it is said to be a mixture of Mahomedanism with their original Pagan rifes. The banks of the river, as well as the lake from which it issues, called the Laguna de Bria (its nearest part about eighteen miles from die city), are represented as extremely beautiful, and abounding in tropical scenery. Thii. lake extends more than thirty njiles into the interior. Near its head are some remarkable hot springs, called " Los BaSos," or baths; but they seemed rather too hot for that purpose. iLuconia* is about four hundred miles in length, and two hundred in breadth ; and, were it made * Canada is said to have derived its name from the Span- iards, when they landed in that quarter, repeating the words " aca nada," or " nothing here" (meaning tliere was no gold to be found), which the Indians caught the sound of. Some similar occurrence appears to have occasioned the name of Lu§on. When Magellan's party first went on shore they found one of the native women beating rice, as is usual at the present time, in a mortar hollowed from the trunk of a tree, and, finding herself surrounded by strange men, she held up to them the large wooden pestle, calling TO CHINA. 133 the most of, is fully capable of affording all the productions of either Western India or of the neighbouring Archipelago. It is so healthy, that the medical people have scarcely any practice, and complain that there are no " cnfermedades reynantes," or reigning diseases, such as the yellow fever, as it exists at the Havan- nah, Vera Cruz, Carthagena, and other settlements more (by their reckoning) to the eastward. This misfortune most probably proceeds from the very limited intercourse which Manilla has, compared to any of the others, with Europeans, or new- comersj the Spaniards who inhabit it being almost without exception Creoles*, and therefore assimi- lated, from their birth, to the climate. This re- stricted intercourse may be observed in there not being a single inn for the accommodation of stran- gers in the whole city of Manilla or its suburbs. Chinese emigrants are here in thousands, and are very industrious and money-making, being the chief artificers and traffickers in small matters, re- sembling the lower class of Jews. From their being found scattered about in all the Indian islands, out Looson, which is the native term for it ; and this becom- ing; a bye-word among the Spaniards, they named the island Lu^on, which has been modernized into Luconia. * Tl)is term does not mean a person having the least mix- ture of black blood, but merely a white born in the country. 134 V0YA6E OF H. M. S. ALCESTE they might indeed be considered as the Jews of the east, were they only half as honest. The Spaniards appear not to be fully in posses- sion of Luconia at the present day. They may be said, indeed, only to be masters of the ground they occupy in a military point of view, for, by their own accounts, it is not only dangerous to travel without an escort in the country, but it is not safe for a Spaniard to walk out singly after dark about the suburbs of Manilla. A day or two after our arrival, three of the natives, who had been concern- ed in the murder of a marchioness, were strangled before the porch of one of their churches. These people seemed to have been actuated not by a spirit of plunder, but of revenge, for some real or supposed injuries, as the deed was committed in the public square, by dragging her from the car- riage on her return home in the evening ; and in this way frequent assassinations occur. A gentle- man of the Alceste being in a party one evening, where observations on the murderous character of the natives were the subject of conversation, took occasion to observe that if such was the case it would be necessary to keep a look-out in going homewards ; but he was assured that, as an English officer, he had nothing to fear. " No, Senor, temen ustedes, pero matan a nosotros," " They are afraid of you, but they kill us." It cannot be fear alone that induces the natives to TO CHINA. 135 spare the English officers, who certainly freely ex- posed themselves at times and in situations the most favourable for assassination, without suffer- ing the slightest injury ; and it is probable that a French, German, or any other transitory stranger might do the same ; for it evidently is to their own immediate rulers that this feeling of hostility exists ; and it is no doubt the result of their impolitic mode of governing. Such a state of things would render the Philippines a very easy conquest to any invading force in time of war ; but the court of Spain, at present, seems to have most to fear from those sentiments of independence which have ex- tended from Buenos Ayres to Manilla, and appear to be a point of union in which almost all classes are agreed, not excepting even the hierarchy. The celebrated and unfortunate Perouse, when at this place in his voyage of discovery, made the following remarks : — " Manilla is built on the shore of a bay of the same name, which is more than twenty-five leagues in circumference. It lies at the mouth of a river, navigable as far as the lake from which it rises, and is, perhaps, the most de- lightfully situated city in the world. Provisions of all kinds are in the greatest abundance there, and extremely cheap ; but clothing, European hard- ware, and furniture, bear an excessively high price. The want of competition, together with the pro- hibitions and restraints of every kind laid on com- 136 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE merce, render ail the productions of India and of China at least as dear there as in Europe ; and this colony, although the various imports bring near 800,000 piastres annually into the treasurj-, costs Spain 1,500,000 besides, which are sent there every year from Mexico. " The immense possessions of the Spaniards in America have not admitted of the government es- sentially directing its attention to the Philippines, which resemble the estates of those great lords whose lands lie uncultivated, though capable of making the fortunes of many families. I should not hesitate to assert, that a very great nation pos- sessed of no other colony than the Philippine Islands, and who should establish the best govern- ment of which they are capable, might behold all the European settlements in Africa and America without envy. " Three millions of inhabitants people these va- rious islands, of whom that of Luconia contains nearly one-third. These people appear in no res- pect inferior to those of Europe. They cultivate the earth like men of understanding ; are carpen- ters, joiners, smiths, goldsmiths, weavers, masons, &,c. I have walked through their villages, and ■ found them kind, hospitable, and communicative ; and, though the Spaniards speak of and treat them with contempt, I perceived that the vices they at- tributed to the Indians ought rather to be imputed TO CHINA. 137 to the government they have themselves establish- ed." Speaking of no encouragement being given to labour, he states that " as soon as the inhabi- tants have the quantity of rice, of sugar, and of vegetables, necessary for their subsistence, the su« perflux is of no value whatever. In such circum- stances, sugar has been sold for less than a half- penny the pound, and the rice remained upon the ground without being reaped. ^ " It would be difficult for the most unenlight- ened society to form a system of government more absurd than that which has regulated these colonies for the last two centuries. " The port of Manilla, which ought to be free and open to all nations, has been till very lately shut against Europeans, and open only to a few Moors, Americans, and the Portuguese of Goa. The governor is invested with the most despotic authority; and the audiencia, which ought to moderate his power, is totally impotent before the representative of the Spanish government. In point of fact, though not by law, it lies in his breast to admit or confiscate the merchandise of foreigners whom the hope of advantage may have brought to Manilla, and who would not expose themselves to this risk but on the probability of a very great profit, ultimately ruinous to the consu- mers." It is undoubtedly as unaccountable, as it appears to be unenlightened, that a nation should T 138 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE take deliberate measures to make a colony a bur- den to it, which is not only fully able to maintain itself, if permitted, but to enrich the mother coun- try. It seems almost equal to that of restoring the inquisition. The Spanish authorities here were marked in their attentions to the embassador during his stay ; and, on the 9th of February, having re-embarked, we got under weigh, bound homeward, and parted company with our consort, the Lyra, who proceed- ed from hence with dispatches for India. A course was now shaped to avoid the numerous rocks and shoals not well defined, which lie in that part of the Chinese Sea more immediately to the westward of the Philippines, and to the north-west- ward of Borneo ; and having by the ] 4th passed the whole, and got into the usual track for the passage of either the Straits of Banca or Caspar, it was resolved to proceed through the latter, as being more direct and less subject to calms than the for- mer, and considering them equally safe from the latest surveys and directions being on board, some of them by those who had personally examined them. At day-light in the morning of the 18th we made Caspar Island exactly at the time ex- pected, and, passing it, stood on for the Straits. As is customary in approaching any coast or pas- sage whatever, but more especially one that all are not familiarly acquainted with, the utmost precau- TO CHINA. 139 tion was taken by keeping the leads going in both chains, men looking out at the mast-heads, yard- arms, and bowsprit-end, the captain, master, and officer of the watch, on whom the charge of the ship at such a time more particularly devolves, having been vigilantly on deck during the whole of the previous night and this morning. Steering un- der all these guarded circumstances, the soundings 'exactly corresponding with the charts, and follow- ing the express line prescribed by all concurring directions to clear every danger (and the last dan- ger of this sort between us and England), the ship about half-past seven in the morning struck with a horrid crash on a reef of sunken rocks, and remain- ed immovable ! It was very soon indeed but too evident that any attempt to move her would be attended with the most fatal consequences ; for, on each side of the rocks on which she hung, the water deepened from ten to seventeen fathoms immediately around her; and, from the injury received, she must have gone down in a few minutes, had she forced her way over this narrow reef. The best bower an- chor was therefore let go, to keep her fast ; and the pumps were soon abandoned, being clearly of no avail. The boats were now hoisted out, and lieutenant Hoppner, with the barge and cutter, ordered to proceed with the embassador and suite, and all 140 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE those not essentially required, to the nearest part of the island, which seemed about three miles and a half distant. Meanwhile every exertion was used by the captain and officers, who remained by the ship, to secure what provisions and stores could be obtained ; a task of considerable labour and difficulty, for all was under water, which now rose above the orlop-deck. When she struck the tide must have been rising, for towards the afternoon it fell outside, and conse- quently inside the ship several feet, thereby enabling us to save ourselves from absolute starvation by laying hold of some articles of provender which floated up, assisted by divers, and which the boats were employed in conveying to the shore. A raft was also constructed, on which were placed the heavier stores, with some baggage, and towed towards the island. By the return of those boats which carried his excellency on shore we learnt the very great difficulty of effecting a landing, the man- grove-trees growing out to a considerable distance in the water ; and it was not until after ranging along-shore for nearly three miles from the place they first attempted that a small opening appeared, through which, by scrambling from rock to rock, they at last obtained a footing on terra Jirma, Here, by cutting away a quantity of the smaller jungle at the foot of a hill (for the island was com- pletely overgrown with wood), a space was cleared TO CHINA. " 141 away, where, under the shade of the loftier trees, they bivouacqued for that day and night. On board the ship the work went on with ac- tivity, endeavouring to save whatever might be most useful on such an occasion ; but, as the tide rose, the swell of the sea lifting her from the rocks, she dashed on them again with such violence, as to render it necessary about midnight to cut away the topmast. At day -light on Wednesday the 19th, Mr. M'Leod landed with two men who had been severely wounded by the fall of the masts, and with a report from the captain to lord Amherst. The spot in which our party were situated was sufficiently romantic^ but seemed at the same time the abode of ruin and of havoc. Few of its inha- bitants (and among the rest the embassador) had more than a shirt or pair of trowsers on. The wreck of books, or, as it was not unaptly termed, *' a literary manure," was spread about in all direc- tions ; whilst parlimentary robes, court-dresses, and mandarin habits, intermixed with check shirts and tarry jackets, were hung around in wild con- fusion on every tree. On his lordship being informed that no fresh water had as yet been obtained from the ship, and that it was barely probable some might be got by scuttling the lower deck, he desired every body might be called around him, and ordered that a gill of that which had been sent on shore the day be- 142 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE fore (what happened to be on deck in the drip- stones and water jugs), with half that quantity of rum, should be equally served out to every man without distinction, and, taking his own share with perfect good humour, afforded to others an exam- ple of calm fortitude, and a cheerful readiness to share in every privation, which never fails on such occasions to have a powerful and beneficial effect, more especially when that example is found, where it ought to be, in the first rank. Parties were now returning who had been search- ing for water in vain, every attempt to dig for it having proved fruitless, or being too near the sea, salt water alone had oozed into the pits. At one spot they found the skeleton of a man, and the horrid idea of his having died from thirst rushed on every mind. Those who went into the wood, on these excursions, were obliged to notch the trees, and leave marks as they advanced, in order to find their way back. In the forenoon captain Maxwell came on shore, to confer with lord Amherst on the best mode to be adopted in the perilous situation they were then placed. The boats were utterly • in- capable of conveying half our number any where ; and, as some must necessarily go to the nearest friendly port for assistance, captain Maxwell judg- ed it best that his excellency and suite should pro- ceed with a proper guard for Batavia, or whatever part of Java they could fetch, from whence vessels TO CHINA. 1-13 could be despatched to bring off those who remain- ed behind. This being what is termed the north-west mon- soon, there was every UkeHhood of the boats reach- ing Java (the current being also in their favour) in three days ; and by this arrangement, which very happily was setded without loss of time, two grand purposes were answered, the nearest to the captain's heart, and his duty, viz., the immediate conveyance of the embassador and suite to a place of safety ; and, by their safety, ensuring more effectually than by any other means that of the officers and men who remained with himself upon this desert isle. It was thought probable that row-boats might be despatched from Batavia after the arrival of his ex- cellency, so as to reach the island (even against wind and current) in twelve or fifteen days ; and as Mr. Ellis volunteered to return with the first boat or vessel that shoved off to our assistance, an additional assurance was thus given, that, com- bined with the influence of the embassador with the Dutch government, no delay would occur in forwarding relief. After a short, and very slender fhe champetre in this wilderness (in which salt was viewed with the same horror as arsenic), his lordship about five in the evening, accompanied by the gentlemen of his suite, by lieutenant Hoppner, in command of the boats, Mr. Mayne to navigate, lieutenant Cooke, R, M. (with a party as officers 144 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE of the guard, in the event of falHng in with any of the Malay pirates who infest these seas), Mr. Blair, midshipman, and Mr. Somerset (who had come to see the world a little), waded out to the edge of the reef, and embarked in the barge and cutter. They were in all forty- seven persons, and had with them a small stock of provisions, consist- ing of a side of mutton, a ham, a tongue, about twenty pounds of coarse biscuit, and some few Tnore of fine, seven gallons of water, the same of beer, as many of spruce, and about thirty bottles of wine. This was all that could be spared ; and be- ing deemed equal to sustain nature for four or five days, in which period they must either make the land, or be so disposed of as to require no provi- sions, it was considered sufficient. After pulling outwards a little way to clear all the rocks, they made sail to the southward, attended by the best wishes of every man of the island, and were soon out of sight. The number left behind was 200 men and boys, and one woman. The first measure of captain Maxwell, after fix- ing a party to dig a well in a spot which was judg- ed, from a combination of circumstances, the most likely to find water, was to remove our bivouac to the top of the hill, where we could breathe a cool- er and purer aip; a place in all respects not only better adapted to the preservation of our health, but to otir defence in case of attack. A path was TO tJHlNA. 145 eut upwards, and a party employed in clearing away and setting fire to the underwood on the summit. This last operation tended much to free us from myriads of ants, and of snakes, scorpions, centipedes, and other reptiles, which in such a place and climate generally abound. Others were em- ployed in removing upwards our small stock of provisions, which were deposited (under a strict guard), in a sort of natural magazine, formed by the tumbling together of some huge masses of rock on the highest part of this eminence. On board the wreck a party was stationed, endeavouring to gain any accession they could to our stock of pro- visions and arms, and to save any public stores that could be found. There was a communica- tion for this purpose between the shore and the ship whenever the tide permitted. For the last two days every one had experienced much misery from thirst : a small cask of water (the only one which could be obtained from the ship) was scarce- ly equal to a pint each in the course of that period ; and perhaps no question was ever so anxiously re- peated, as '* What hope from the well?" About eleven at night the diggers had got, by rather a tor- tuous direction (on account of large stones), as far down as twenty feet, when they came to a clayey or marly soil, that above being a red earth, which seemed rather moist, and had nothing saline in the taste. At a little past midnight a bottle of muddy U 146 VOYAGE OF H. M* S. ALCESTE water was brought to the captain as a specimeny and, the moment it was understood to be fresh, the rush to the well' was such as to impede the work- men ; and it was necessary to plant sentries to ena- ble them to complete their task, and permit the wa- ter to settle a little. Fortunately about this time a heavy shower of rain fell, and, by spreading sheets, table cloths, &c., and wringing them, some relief was afforded. There are few situations in which tnen exposed without shelter to a torrent of rain would, as in the present instance, hail that circum- : stance as a blessing : bathing in the sea was also resorted to by many in order to drink by absorption, and they fancied it afforded relief. Thursday, 20th. This morning the captain, or- dering all hands together, stated to them in few words, that every man, by the regulations of the navy, was as liable to answer for his conduct on the present as on any other occasion ; that, as long as he lived, the same discipline should be exerted, and, if necessary, with greater rigour than aboard, a discipline for the general welfare, which he trusted every sensible man of the party must see the necessity of maintaining ; assuring them, at the same time, he would have much pleasure in recommending those who dis- tinguished themselves by the regularity and pro- priety of their conduct ; that the provisions we had been able to save should be served out, although necessarily with a very sparing hand, yet with the TO CHINA. 147 most rigid equality to all ranks, until we obtained that relief which he trusted would soon follow the arrival of lord Amherst at Java. During this day the well afibrded a pint of water for each man ; it had a sweetish milk-and-water taste, something like the juice of the cocoa-nut, but nobody found fault with it* ; on the contrary, it diffused that sort of happiness which only they can feel who have felt the horrible sensation of thirst under a vertical sun, subject at the same time to a harassing and fatigu- ing duty. This day was employed in getting up every thing from the foot of the hill ; boats passing to the ship, but unfortunately almost every thing of real value to us in our present case was under water. We were in hopes, however, that, as no bad weather was likely to happen, we might be enabled, by scuttling it at low water, or by burning her upper-works, many useful articles might be acquired. ***••** On Friday (21st), the party stationed at the ship found themselves, soon after day-light, surrounded by a number of MiJay proas, apparently well armed, and full of men. Without a single sword or mus- quet for defence, they had just time to throw them- selves into the boat alongside, and push for the * It was hafifiily said, when mixed with a little rum, to resemble milk punch ; and we eodeavoured to persuade ourselves that it was so. 148 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE shore, chased by the pirates, who, finding two of our other boats push out to their assistance, re- turned to the ship, and took possession of her. Soon afterwards it was reported, from the look-out rock, that the savages, armed with spears, were landing at a point about two miles off. Under all the depressi! .g circumstances attending shipwreck ; of hunger, thirst, and fatigue ; and menaced by a ruthless foe ; it was glorious to see the British spirit staunch and unsubdued. When the ordqr was given for every man to arm himself in the best way he could, it was obeyed with the utmost promptitude and alacrity. Rude pike-staves, were formed by cutting down young trees ; small swords, dirks, knives, chisels, and even large spike-nails sharpened, were firmly affixed to the ends of these poles ; and those who could find nothing better, hardened the end of the wood in the fire, and, bringing it to a sharp point, formed a tolerable weapon. There were, perhaps, a dozen cutlasses ; the marines had about thirty muskets and bayonets, but could muster no more than seventy-five ball-cartridges among the whole party. We had fortunately preserved some loose powder drawn from the guns on the upper deck after the ship had struck, (for the magazine was under water in five minutes), and the marines by ham- mering their buttons round, and by pieces of broken bottles rolled up in cartridges, did their TO CHINA. 149 best to supply themselves with a sort of langrage which would have some effect at close quarters, and strict orders were given not to throw away a single shot until sure of their aim. Mr. Cheffy, the carpenter, and his crew, under the direction of the captain, were busied in forming a sort of abat- tis by felling trees, and enclosing in a circular shape the ground we occupied ; and, by inter- weaving loose branches with the stakes driven in among these, a breast-work was constructed, which afforded us some cover, and must naturally impede the progress of any enemy unsupplied with artil- lery. That part of the island we had landed on was a narrow ridge, not above musket shot across, bounded on one side by the sea, and on the other by a creek, extending upwards of a mile inland, and nearly communicating with the sea at its head. Our hill was the the outer point of this tongue, and its shape might be very well represented by an inverted punch-bowl : the circle on wliich the bowl stands would then shew the fortification ; and the space within it our citadel. It appeared by the reports of scouts, a short time after the first account, that the Malays had not actually landed, but had taken possession of some rocks near this point, on which they deposit- ed a quantity of plunder brought from the ship ; and during the day they continued making these predatory trips. 150 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE In the evening all hands were mustered under arms, and a motley group they presented ; it was gratifying, however, to observe, that, rude as were their implements of defence, there seemed to be no want of spirit to use them if occasion offered*. The officers and men were now marshalled regu- larly into the different divisions and companies, their various posts assigned, and other arrange- ments made. An officer and party were ordered to take charge of the boats for the night, and they were hauled closer into the landing-place. An alarm which occurred during the night shewed the benefit of these regulations, for, on a sentry chal- lenging a noise among the bushes, every one was at his post in an instant, and without the least con- fusion. On Saturday morning (22d), some of the Malay boats approached the place where ours were moor- ed; and, with the view of ascertaining whether * Even the little boys had managed to make fast a table- Ibrk, or something of that kind, on the end of a stick, for their defence. One of the men who had been so severely bruised by the falling of the masts, and was slung in his hammock between two trees, had been observed carefully Jishing^ or fixing, with two sticks and a ^ope-yarn, the blade of an old razor. — On being asked what he meant to do with it, he replied, " You know I cannot stand ; but, if any of these fellows come within reach of my hammock, I'll mark them." TO CHINA. 151 they had any inclination to communicate on friend- ly terms, the gig, with an officer and four hands, pulled gently towards them, waving the bough of a tree (a general symbol of peace every where), shewing the usual demonstration of friendship, and of a desire to speak to them ; but all was vain, for they were merely reconnoitering our position, and immediately pulled back to their rock. , The second lieutenant (Mr. Hay) was now or- dered with the barge, cutter, and gig, armed in the best way we could, to proceed to the ship, and re- gain possession of her, by fair means, or by force ; the pirates not appearing, at this time, to have more than eighty men. Those on the rocks, see- ing our boats approach, threw all their plunder into their vessels, and made oif. Two of their largest proas were now at work on the ship ; but, on observing their comrades aban- don the rock, and the advance of the boats, they also made sail away, having previously set fire to the ship, which they did so effectually, that in a few minutes the flames burst from every port, and she was soon enveloped in a cloud of smoke. The boats were unable to board her, and therefore re- turned. Here was a period to every hope of accommo- dation with these people, if, indeed, any reasonable hope could ever have been entertained on that bead. The Malays, more especially those wander- X 152 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ing and piratical tribes, who roam about the coasts of Borneo, Billiton, and the wilder parts of Suma- tra, are a race of savages perhaps the most merci- less and mhuman to be found in any part of the world. The Battas are literally cannibals. In setting fire to the ship, they gave a decided proof of their disposition to us ; but, although certainly with no good intention, they did merely what we intended to do ; for, by burning her upper works and decks, every thing bouyant could float up from below, and be more easily laid hold of. The ship continued iDurning during the whole of the night ; and the flames, which could be seen through the openings of the trees, shed a melan- choly glare around, and excited the most mournful ideas. This night also all hands were suddenly under arms again, from a marine firing his musket at what he very properly considered a suspicious character near his post, who appeared advancing upon him, and refused to answer after being re- peatedly hailed. It turned out afterwards that the branch of a tree, half cut through the day before, had given way, under one of a race of large ba- boons, who, we found about this time, disputed the possession of the island with us. At the well, where there generally was kept a good fire at night, on account of the mosquitoes, the sentries had more than once been alarmed by these gentlemen shewing their black faces from behind the trees. TO CHINA. 153 They became extremely troublesome to some ducks we had saved from the wreck, (carrying them up the trees with them, and letting them fall down again when alarmed), which, on several occasions, left their little yard, and came up among the peo- ple, when the monkeys got among them, instinc- tively preferring the society of man for protection. On Sunday morning (23d), the boats were sent to the still- smoking wreck, and some flour, a few cases of wine, and a cask of beer, had floated up. This last God-send was announced just at the conclusion of divine service, which was this morn- ing held in the mess- tent, and a pint was order- ed to be immediately served out to each man, which called forth three cheers*. This seems to be the only style in which a British seaman can give vent to the warmer feelings of his heart. It is his mode of thanksgiving for benefits received ; and it equally serves him to honour his friend, to defy his enemy, or to proclaim victor}. This day we continued improving our fence, and clearing * Some decorously righteous man observing to the chap- jain tl\at he had never seen such a scene in Enghmd as the congregation cheering at the church-door ; the latter replied, with proper liberality (and tolerable good hunnour), " per- haps you never saw a thirsty English audience dismissed with the promise qf a pint of beer a piece." X 154* VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE away a glacis immediately around it, that we might see and have fair play with these barbarians, should they approach. They had retired behind a little islet (called Pulo Chalacca, or Misfortune's Isle\ about two miles from us, and seemed waiting there for reinforcements ; for some of their party had made sail towards Billiton. Monday morning (24th), the boats, as yester- day, went to the wreck, and returned with some casks of flour only partially damaged : a few cases of wine, and about forty boarding-pikes, with eighteen muskets, were also laid hold of. With the loose powder secured out of the great guns in the first instance, Mr. Holman, the gunner, had been actively employed, forming musket cartridges; and by melting down some pewter basins and jugs, with a small quantity of lead, lately obtained from the wreck, balls were cast in clay moulds, increas- ing not a little our confidence and security. A quart of water each had been our daily allowance from the well hitherto, and on this day a second was completed near the foot of the hill, in another direction, which not only supplied clearer water, but in greater plenty; and we could now, with- out restriction, indulge in the luxury of a long drinkj not caring even to excite thirst, in order to enjoy that luxury in higher perfection. On Tuesday (25th), the boats made their usual trip ; some more cases of wine and a few boarding- TO CHINA. 455 pikes were obtained, both excellent articles in their way, in the hands of men who are inclined to enter- tain either *' their friends or their foes." On shore employed completing the paths to the wells, ajid felling trees which intercepted our view of the sea. Wednesday (26th), at day-light, two of the pirate proas, with each a canoe astern, were dis- covered close in with the cove where our boats were moored. Lieutenant Hay, (a straight- for- ward sort of fellow), who had the guard that night at the boats, and of course slept in them, imme- diately dashed at them with the barge, cutter, and gig. On perceiving this, they cut adrift their canoes, and made all sail ; they rather distanced the cutter and gig, but the barge gained upon them. On closing, the Malays evinced every sign of defiance, placing themselves in the most threatening attitudes, and firing their swivels at the barge. This was returned by Mr, Hay with the only musket in the boat, and, as they closed nearer, the Malays commenced tlirowing their jave- lins and darts, several falling into the barge, but without wounding any of the men. Soon after they were grappled by our fellows, when three of them having been shot, and a fourth knocked down, with the but-end of the musket, five more jumped overboard and drowned themselves (evidently dis- 156 VOYAGE OF H, M. S. ALCESTE daining quarter), and two were taken prisoners, one of whom was severely wounded. They had taken some measure to sink their proa, for she went down almost immediately. Nothing Gould exceed the desperate ferocity of these people. One who had been shot through the body, but who was not quite dead, on being removed into the barge, with a view of saving him (as his own vessel was sinking), furiously grasped a cutlass which came within his reach, and it was not with- out a struggle, wrenched from his hand : he died in a few minutes. The consort of this proa, firing a parting shot, bore up round the north end of the island, and escaped. Their canoes were also brought on shore, containing several articles of plunder from the ship. They appeared to be the two identical proas which set fire to her. The prisoners (the one rather elderly, the other young) when brought on shore, seemed to have no hope of being permitted to live, and sullenly awaited their fate ; but, on the wounds of the younger being dressed, the hands of the other untied, and food offered to them, with other marks of kindness, they became more cheerful, and appeared especially gratified, seeing one of their dead companions, who had been brought on shore, was decently buried. The Malays are a people of very unpreposses- sing aspect; their bodies of a deep bronze colour; their black teeth and reddened lips (fi*om chewing TO CHINA. 197 the betel-nut and siri), their gaping nostrils, and lank clotted hair hanging about tlieir shoulders and over their scowling countenances, give them alto- gether a fiend-like and murderous look. They are likewise an unjoyous race, and seldom smile. The state of one of the wounds received by the Malay (his knee-joint being penetrated, and the bones much injured) would have justified, more particularly in this kind of field practice, amputa- tion ; but, on consideration that it would be impos- sible to convince him of this being done with the intention of benefiting him, and might have the appearance of torture, which it was not improbable might suggest the idea of amputation and other operations to them, in the event of any, or all of us, falling into their hands, it was determined, there- fore, to try the effect of a good constitution, and careful attention. A little shed was built, and a blanket and other comforts given to him, and his comrade appointed his cook and attendant. They refused at first the provisions Ave offered them ; but, on giving them some rice to prepare in their own way, they seemed satisfied. Never expecting quarter, when overpowered in their piratical at- tempts, and having been generally tortured when taken alive, may account for the others drowning themselves. In the forenoon, immediately after this rencontre^ fourteen proas and smaller boats appeared standing 15S VOYAGE OF H. M. B, ALCESTE across from the Banca side, and soon after they anchored behind Pulo Calacca. -Several of their people landed, and carrying up some bundles on their shoulders, left them in the wood, and returned for more. We had some hope, from the direction in which they first appeared, as well as their an- choring at that spot (the rendezvous agreed upoa at the departure of lord Amherst), that they might have been from Batavia to our relief. The small flag (belonging to the embassy) was brought down and displayed on the look-out rock ; the strangers, each, immediately hoisted some flag at their mast-head. Anxious to know still more about them, Mr. Sykes was allowed to advance with the union jack, accompanied by some more of the young gentlemen, along the strand to a con- siderable distance ; and soon after some of their party, with a flag, set off" to meet them. As they mutually approached^ the Malays dropped a little in the rear of their flag-bearer, and laid down their arms ; ours also fell astern, and the two ancients (or colour men), wading into a creek which separated them, cautiously met each other. The Malay sa- lamed a good deal : many fine Yorkshire bows were made on the other side : shaking hands was the next ceremony, and then, joining flags, they walked up arm and arm to the place where the cap- tain and several others were stationed. Satisfied now they must be friends sent to our assistance, they TO CHINA. 459 were welcomed with cheers, and every countenance was gladdened. But our joy was of short duration ; for, although their flag was laid submissively at the captain's feet, and all was sufficiently civil in their deportment, yet they turned out to be mere wan- derers, employed gathering a sort of sea-weed, found on the coast of these (but in still greater abundance among the Pelew) islands, said by some to be an article of commerce with the Chinese epicures, who use it like the bird-nests in their soups. All this was made out chiefly by signs, ad- ded to a few Malay words which some understood. Mr. Hay, with his division armed, proceeded down to their anchorage himself, and some other officers, going on board with their rajah (as they styled him), who expressed a great desire to see the captain on board, and sent him a present of a piece of fish, and some cocoa-nut milk. During the night many schemes were proposed as to the best mode of negotiating with these people. Some thought that, by tlie hope of reward, they might be induced to carry part of us to Java, and our four remaining boats would then be equal to the conveyance of the rest. Others, adverting to the treacherous charac- ter of the Malays, and the great temptation to mur- der us when in their power, from that sort of pro- perty still in our possession, and to them of great value, considered it safest to seize upon and dis- arm them, carrying ourselves to Batavia, and then 160 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE most amply to remunerate them for any inconveni- ence they might have sustained from being pressed into the service. The morning of Thursday, the 27th, hovi^ever, perfectly relieved us from any further discussion on this subject, the rajah and his suite having pro- ceeded to plunder the wreck, which by this time they had espied. It is probable they were not cer- tain of our real situation on the first evening, but might have supposed^ fi'om seeing the uniforms, colours, and other military appearance, that some settlement, as at Minto, had been established there ; and this may also account for their civility in the first instance, for, from the moment their harpy -like spirit was excited by the wreck, and they saw our real condition, there were no more offerings of fish, or of cocoa-nut milk. To have sent the boats openly to attack them was judged impolitic ; it would only have driven them off for a moment, and put them on their guard against surprise by night, should it be thought necessary, in a day or two, to do so. They could deprive us of little ; for the copper bolts and iron work, which they were now most inter- ested about, v/ere not to us of material importance. We had the day before moved the boats into another cove, more out of sight (from the over- spreading branches of the trees), and safer in case of attack, being commanded by two strong litde TO CHINA. 161 ports (one having a rude draw- bridge), erected on the rocks immediately above it, and wattled in, where an officer and piquet were nightly placed ; and a new serpentine path was cut down to this inlet, communicating with our main position aloft. On Friday, the 28th, the Malays were still em- ployed on the wreck. A boat approached us in the forenoon ; but on the gig going out to meet it, they refused to correspond, and return to their party. No relief having appeared from Batavja, and the period being elapsed at which (as was now thought) we had reason to expect it, measures were taken, by repairing the launch, and construct- ing a firm raft, to give us additional powers of transporting ourselves from our present abode, be- fore our stock of provisions were entirely ex- hausted. On Saturday, the 1st of March, the Malays ac- quired a great accession of strength, by the arrival of fourteen more proas from the northward (pro- bably of the old party), who joined in breaking up the remains of the wreck. At day-light, on Sunday, the 2d, still greater force having joined them during the night, the pirates (leaving a number at work on the wreck) advanced with upwards of twenty of their heaviest vessels, towards our landing-place ; fired one of their patereroes ; beat their gongs ; and, making a hideous yelling noise, they anchored in a line, Y 163 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ^bout a cable's length from our cove. We were instantly under arms, the party covering the boats strengthened, and scouts sent out to watch their motions, as some of their boats had gone up the creek, at the back of our position ; and to beat about, lest any should be lying in ambush from the land. About this time, the old Malay prisoner, who was under charge of the sentries at the well, and who had been incautiously trusted by them to cut some wood for the fire, hearing the howling of his countrymen, left his wounded comrade to sjiift for himself, ran off into the wood, and escaped, carrying with him his hatchet. Finding, after wait- ing a short time in this state of preparation, that they made no attempt to land, an officer was sent a little outside the cove in a canoe, waving in a friendly manner, to try how they would act. Af- ter some deliberation, one of their boats, with seve- ral men armed with creeses, or their crooked dag- gers, approached : here, as usual, little could be made out, except a display of their marauding spirit, by taking a fancy to the shirt and trowsers of one of the young gentlemen in the canoe ; but, on his refusing to give them up, they used no force. A letter was now written, and addressed to the chief authority at Minto, a small settlement on the north-west point of Banca, stating the situation in which we were placed, and requesting him to for- TO CHINA, 163 ward, if in his power, one or two small vessels to us, with a little bread and salt provisions, and some ammunition. Again the officer went out in the canoe, and was again met by the Malay boat. This letter was given to them, the word Min- to repeatedly pronounced (which they seemed to understand), the direction pointed out, and signs made that on their return with an answer they should be rewarded with abundance of dollars, shewing them one as a specimen. This was done more to try them than with any hope of their per- forming the service ; for, although a boat went down to Pulo Chalacca (where they appeared to have somebody in superior authority), yet none took the direction of Banca. Meantime their force rapidly increased, their proas and boats of different sizes amounting to fifty. The larger had from sixteen to twenty men ; the smaller about seven or eight ; so that, averaging even at the lowest ten each, they had fully five hundred men. The wreck seemed now nearly exhausted, and appeared to be a very secondary object, knowing the chief booty must be in our possession, and they blockaded us with increased rigour, drawing closer into the cove, more especially at high water, fearful lest our boats, being afloat at that period, should push out and escape them. In the afternoon some of the rajah's people (whom we at first considered our friends) made their appearance, as if seeking a par- 164< VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ley ; and, on communicating with them, gave us to understand by signs, and as many words as couid be made out, that all the Malays, except their party, were extremely hostile to us ; that it was their determination to attack us that night ; and urging also that some of their people should sleep up the hill, in order to protect us. Their former conduct and present connexions displayed so evidently the treachery of this offer, that it is needless to say it was rejected, giving tliem to un- derstand we could trust to ourselves. They im- mediately returned to their gang, who certainly as- sumed a most menacing attitude. In the evening, when the officers and men were assembled as usual under arms, in order to inspect them, and settle the watches for the night, the captain spoke to them with much animation, almost verbatim as follows : " My lads, you must all have observed this day, as well as myself, the great increase of the enemy's force, for enemies we must now con- sider them ; and the threatening posture they have assumed. I have, on various grounds, strong rea- son to believe they will attack us this night. I do not wish to conceal our real state, because I think there is not a man here who is afraid to face any sort of danger. We are now strongly fenced in, and our position in all respects so good, that, armed as we are, we ought to make a formidable defence against even regular troops : what then TO CHINA. 165 would be thought of us, if we allowed ourselves to be surprized by a set of naked savages, with their spears and creeses? It is true they have swivels in their boats, but they cannot act here. I have not observed that they have any matchlocks or muskets ; but, if they have, so have we. I do not wish to deceive you as to the means of resis- tance in our power. When we were first thrown together on shore, we were almost defenceless ; seventy-five ball-cartridges only could be mustered: we have now sixteen hundred ! They cannot, I believe, send up more than five hundred men ; but, with two hundred such as now stand around me, I do not fear a thousand, nay, fifteen hundred of them ! I have the fullest confidence we shall beat them ; the pike-men standing firm, we can give them such a volley of musquetry as they will be little prepared for : and, when we find they are thrown into confusion, \ye'll sally out among them, chase them into the water, and ten to one but we secure their vessels. Let every man therefore be on the alert with his arms in his hands ; and, should these barbarians this night attempt our hill, I trust we shall convince them that they are dealing with Britons.'' Perhaps three jollier hun-as were never given than at the conclusion of this short but well- timed address. The woods fairly echoed again ; whilst the picquet at the cove, and those stationed at the wells, the instant it caught their ear, instinc- 166 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE tively joined their sympathetic cheers to the gene- ral chorus. There was something like unity and concord in such a sourid, (one neither resembling the feeble shout nor savage yell), which, rung in the ears of these gentlemen, no doubt had its effect ; for about this time (8 P. M.) they were observed making signals with lights to some of their tribe behind the islet. If ever seamen or marines had a strong in- ducement to fight, it was on the present occasion, for every thing conduced to animate them. The feeling excited by a savage, cruel, and inhospitable aggression on the part of the Malays, — an aggres- sion adding calamity to misfortune, — roused every' mind to a spirit of just revenge ; and the appeal now. made to them, on the score of national character, was not likely to let that feeling cool. After a slen- der but cheerful repast, the men lay down as usual upon their arms, whilst the captain remained with those on guard to superintend his arrangements. An alarm during the night shewed the eftect of pre- paration on the people's minds, for all like light- rring were at their posts, and returned growling and disappointed because the alarm was false. Day-light on Monday the 3d, discovered the pi- rates exactly in the same position in front of us ; ten more vessels having joined them during the night, making their number now at least six hundred men. TO CHINA. 167 " The plot began to thicken," and our situation be- came hourly more critical. Their force rapidly accumulating, and our little stock of provisions dai- ly shortening, rendered some desperate measure immediately necessary. That which seemed most feasible was by a sud- den night attack, by our four boats well armed, to carry by boarding some of their vessels, and, by manning them, repeat our attack with increased force, taking more, or dispersing them. The pos- session of some of tlieir proas, in addition to our own boats (taking into consideration that our num- bers would be thinned on the occasien), might ena- ble us to shove off for Java, in defiance of them. Any attempt to move on a raft, with their vessels playing round it, armed with swivels, was evident- ly impossible. Awful as our situation now was, and every hour becoming more so ; starvation star- ing us in the face, on one hand, and without a hope of mercy from Uie savages on the other ; yet were there no symptoms of depression, or gloomy despair ; every mind seemed buoyant ; and, if any estimate of the general feeling could be coljected from countenances, from the manner and expres- sions of all, there appeared to be formed in every breast a calm determination to dash at them, and be successful ; or to fall, as became men, in the at- tempt to be free. 168 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE About noon on this day, whilst schemes and pro-, posals were flying about, as to the mode of execu- ting the measures in view, Mr. Johnstone (ever on the alert), who had mounted the look-out tree, one of the loftiest on the summit of our hill, descried a sail at a great distance to the southward, which he thought larger than a Malay vessel. The buz of conversation was in a moment hushed, and every eye fixed anxiously on the tree for the next report, a signal-man and telescope being instantly sent up. She was now lost sight of, from a dark squall over- spreading that part of the horizon, but in about twenty minutes she again emerged from the cloud, and was decidedly announced to be a square-rig- ged vessel. "Are you quite sure of that?" was eagerly inquired : — " Quite certain," was the re- ply : — " it is either a ship or a brig standing to- wards the island, under all sail ! — The joy this happy sight infused, and the gratitude of every heart at this prospect of deliverance, may be more easily conceived than described. It occasioned a sudden transition of the mind from one train of thinking to another, as if w^aking from a disagreeable dream. We displayed our colours on the highest branch of the tree, to attract attention, lest she should only be a passing stranger. . The pirates soon after this discovered the ship (a signal having been made with a gun by those an- T« CHINA. 469 chored behind Pulo Chalacca), which occasioned an evident stir among them. As the water was ebbing fast, it was thought possible, by an unex- pected rush out to the edge of the reef, to get some of them under fire, and secure them. They seemed, however, to have suspected our purpose ; for, the moment the seamen and marines appeared from under the mangroves, the nearest proa let fly her swivel among a party of the officers, who had been previously wading outwards*, and the whole, instantly getting under weigh, made sail ofi', fired at by our people, but unfortunately wit' out effect ; for, in addition to the dexterous management of their boats, the wind enabled them to weather the rocks. It was fortunate, however, this circum- stance took place, and that it had the effect of dri- ving them away ; for, had they stood their ground, we were as much in their power as ever, the ship being obliged to anchor eight miles to leeward of the island, and eleven or twelve from our position, on account of the wind and current ; and, as this wind and current continued the same for some time afterwards, they might, most easily (with their force), have cut off all communication between us. Indeed it was a most providential and extraordina- ry circumstance, during this monsoon, that the ship was able to fetch so far up as she did. The * The shot was picked up by one of the young gentle- men, and appeared to be of malleable iron, not quite round. z 170 V6YAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE blockade being now raised, the gis^, with Messrs, Sykes and Abbot, was despatched to the ship, which proved to be the Ternate, one of the com- pany's cruizers, sent by lord Amherst to our assis- tance, having on board Messrs. Ellis and Hoppner, who embarked the day of their arrival at Batavia, and pushed back to the island. The gig was able to return (being a light boat); but our friends, who attempted to pull ashore in the cutter, wTre compelled to put back, after struggling with the current for nine hours, during the night of Monday, and morning of Tuesday, the 4th. That day was employed in getting all the moveables we had saved from the wreck ready for embarkation. Wednesday, the 5th, landed Messrs. Ellis and Hoppner : — the recollection of the volun- tary promise made by the former at parting, now fulfilled, and re-appearing as a deliverer, added to the many interesting and peculiar circumstances of the meeting, gave a new glow to every feeling of friendship, and, on entering Fort Maxwell, they were received with heartfelt acclamation by the whole garrison, under arms. This fortification and its inhabitants had altoge- ther a very singular and romantic look. The wig- wams (or dens, as they were called) of some, neat- ly formed by branches, and thatched with the palm- leaf, scattered about at the feet of the majestic trees, which shaded our circle ; the rude tents of others ; TO CHINA. 171 the wrecked, unshaven, ragged appearance of the men, with pikes and cutlasses in their hands, g'ave, more especially by fire-light at night, a wild and picturesque effect to this spot, far beyond any rob- ber scene the imagination can portray. Two of the Ternate's boats also arrived with a twelve pounder carronade, some round and grape, and musket ammunition, in the event of the pirates thinking proper to return before we had finished our business ; which, from the difficulty of communi- cating, required the whole of Wednesday to per- form. On Thursday, the 6th, the majority of the offi- cers and men embarked in the boats (now increas- ed in number), and proceeded to the Ternate ; the raft, also, with four officers and forty-six men (and a cow), got under sail, and, after a comfortable cold- bath navigation, reached the ship after dark. Eve- ry article which could not be carried off, and was thought might be of the slightest use to the sava- ges, was piled into a heap, on the top of the hill, and made into a bonefire. At midnight the boats returned to bring off cap^ tain Maxwell, and those remaining with him ; the whole arriving safe on board on the morning of the 7th March. We were most hospitably received by captain Davidson and his officers*. * The wounded Malay was also carried to Batavia ; and he is now (although with rather a disabled joint) most prO' bably employed on board the Ternate. 17S VOYAGE OF H, M. S. ALCESTE The island of Pulo Leat is about six miles long, and five broad ; situated about two degrees and a half to the southward of the equator : it lies nexfc to Banca, and is in the line of islands between it and Borneo. It is uninhabited, and, as far as we could explore (and exploring was no easy task), produces nothing for the use of man. We found a great number of the rinds of what we afterwards discovered at Batavia to be the far-famed and de- licious mangustin, which only thrives near the line; ' — the baboons, who manage to live here, having monopolized all the fruit. Had we found any en- tire, we might have indulged in them, even with- out knowing their nature ; as, more especially in a case of short commons like ours, there could be no great danger in following the example of a monkey. The soil of the island would appear to be capa- ble of affording any production of the torrid zone, and, if cleared and cultivated, would be a very pretty place : the tree which produces the caout- chouc or indian rubber grows here. The small stock of provisions saved from the wreck, and the uncertainty of our stay there, ren- dered economy in their distribution, as well as the preventing any waste or abuse, a most important duty. The mode adopted by captain Maxwell, to make things go as far as possible, was to chop lip the allowance for the day into small pieces, TO CHINA. 17.3 whether fowls, salt beef, pork, or flour, mixing the whole hotch-potch, boiling them together, and serv- ing out a measure of this to each, publicly and open- ly*, and without any distinction. By these means no nourishment was lost ; it could be more equally divided than by any other way ; and, although ne- cessarily, a scanty, it was not an unsavoury, mess. All the bread, except a few pounds, was lost. The men had half allowance of rum divided be- tween dinner and supper (sometimes more on hard fags), and the officers two glasses of wine at dinner, and a quarter allowance of rum (a small dram- glass) at supper. A small bag of oatmeal was found one morning, which some of the young Scotch midshipmen con- sidered as their 07vn, and sat down, with great glee, round a wash-hand basin* full of burgoo^ made from it ; but they reckoned too securely on the antipathies of their English friends, for (not think- ing this, perhaps, a proper time for indulging national prejudices) they claimed their share, and managed to get through it without a wry face. * Truth requires it to be stated, and it may naturally be supposed, that, among so many, one or two progging sort of people might be observed, wiio had no disinclination to a little more than their just allowance ; but the general feel- ing was much too manly and fine to admit of cot;tamination. * Not the only extraordinary mess-dish which tliis occa- sion had reduced some to. 174 VOYAGE OF H. M. S, ALCESTE The guards at the posts, covering the boats, were generally under charge, alternately, of Messrs. Hay, Casey, Johnstone, Sykes, Abbot, Brownrigg, and Hope. The garrison duty^ at night, was con- ducted, in turns, by the surgeon, chaplain, Messrs. Eden, Raper, Mostyn, Stopford, and Gore ; thus making it light, and enabling them to keep their eyes open, and walk vigilantly round to observe that all the sentries were on the alert, and called out ever}' quarter of an hour ; the younger mid- shipmen being perched, in rotation, on the look- out rock during the day, to watch the motions of the pirates, and give notice of any ship or vessel which might appear in the offing. It is somewhat remarkable, that, during our stay here of nineteen days, exposed alternately to heavy rains, and the fierce heat of a vertical sun, none were taken sick, and those who landed so (some very ill), all recovered, except a marine, who was in the last stage of a liver complaint, contract- ed M'hilst in China, as one of the guard to the embassador. Another man, of very troublesome character, thought proper to leave his companions on the third day after landing. He may have been bit by a serpent in the woods, and died there, or have fallen into the hands of the savages ; but he was never afterwards l"ieard of. We marked with oil and blacking, in large characters, on the rocks, the date of our departure, to be a guide to any that TO CHINA. 175 might come there in quest of us, and in the after- noon of the 7th, we bid adieu to Pulo Leat, where it is not wonderful that, in our situation, we should have suffered some hardship and privation ; but it is remarkable, indeed, that, surrounded by so many- dangers, the occurrence of any one of which might have proved fatal, we should have escaped the whole. We had, for example, great reason to be thankful that the ship did not fall from the rocks on which she first struck into deeper water, for then all must have perished; — that no accident happened to the boats which conveyed the embassy to Batavia ; for, in that case, we should never have been heard of ; — that we found water ; — that no mutiny or division took place among ourselves ; — that we had been able to stand our ground against the pirates ; — and that the Ternate had succeeded in anchoring in sight of the island ; which she was only enabled to do by a fortuitous slant of wind for an hour or two. Had we been unfortunate in any one of these circumstances, few would have re- mained to tell our tale. It is a tribute due to captain Maxwell to state (and it is a tribute which all most cheerfully pay), that, by his judicious arrangements, we were pre- served from all the horrors of anarchy and con- fusion. His measures inspired confidence and hope ; whilst his personal example, in the hour of 176 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTfi danger, gave courage and animation to all around him. ^ We arrived at Batavia on the 9th, and, from the Ternate being so small, a number of our party crossed in the boats, which kept company with the ship. On the 10th we landed, and were most kindly received by lord Amherst, who converted his table into a general mess for the officers, as well as the embassy. Comfortable quarters were also provided for the men*, who, in a day or two, landed, and marched up there, with the flag which had been saved. They were met at Ryswick by his lordship, who accompanied them up. At Weltevreden, also, the officers met with a small, but choice band of their countrymen, whose soci- ety will not be easily forgotten, nor ever remem- bered without pleasure. A short journal of lieutenant Cooke describes the passage of the embassy across the Javanese sea, in the boats.- — " At seven in the evening of Wed- nesday, the 19th of February, all arrangements having been speedily made, the barge and cutter weighed, and pulled out to seaward, . there being a heavy swell across the reef ; — soon after made sail, * The hospitable houses of Messrs. Milne and Terino afforded lodging to the officers during their stay ; and much kind attention was experienced from captains Forbes, Dal- gains, Hanson, and M'Mahon, of the staff of sir William Keir. TO CHINA. 177 and sounded in nineteen fathoms ; — kept more to the southward, having got into mid-channel ; — at nine at night, entrance point, in the island of Banca, bore west three or four miles. " Thursday, the 20th. — At day-light, the cutter in company ; moderate breezes at W. N. W., and fair, with a smooth sea ; high land of Banca bear- ing north ; — having been much crowded in the night, some shifted into the other boat, in order to equalize the numbers. At seven, served out, for the first time, some provisions : a small portion of fresh meat and biscuit, with a gill of water and half a gill of rum, to each person. At ten a heavy squall occurred, attended by rain, which enabled us, by spreading cloths, and wringing them, to catch a bucket of rain-water, affording, to each person, about half a pint. Light airs, and calm : occasionally found it necessary to pull eight oars, and, by the assistance of the marines, we had two reliefs. Spelled the oars every two hours. Served out provisions and grog in the usual small propor- tions. Lowered the sails, the wind being adverse, afterwards becoming calm, and at other times light breezes from the south-west : each person had about half a pint of beer. Lightning from west to south-west, — water very smooth, — midnight, light airs. " Friday, the 21st. — Moderate breezes from the ^vestward, which soon became squally, and more to 2A 178 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTB the southward, occasioning a swell of the sea. At seven o'clock served out the remains of the fresh meat, and the usual gill of water, and half a gill of rum. Examined stock after breakfast, and found remaining six gallons of water ; spruce beer, eight gallons ; rum, four gallons and a half ; beer, four gallons ; wine, nineteen bottles ; five ditto of addi- tional water, one ham, one tongue, and thirty J)ounds of bread. Served out, at twelve o'clock, some spruce to all hands. In the afternoon, serv- ed grog in the usual quantity. Continued rowing all night, and gave some spruce beer to the rowers, who began to be much fatigued. Wind variable from west to south-west. ** Saturday the 22d. — Continued pulling all this inorning, the breeze being very light ; mustered provisions, and found them much reduced. At seven o'clock issued grog and a little bread to each, i-eserving a ham, the only meat now remaining, un- til dinner time. All the gentlemen who could pull relieved the rowers. About one o'clock a favour- able breeze sprung up at N. W. made all sail, and at half-past three o'clock saw Carawang Point, in Java, distant about nine or ten miles. At six b'clock the land-breeze coming off obliged the boats to anchor. Served out part of the ham, and a little biscuit and grog, as usual. At seven the wind moderated a little, and an attempt was made to row in ; but, the people being nearly exhausted^ TO CHINA. 17^ anchored again at nine o'clock ; the cutter having no grapnel, made fast to the barge. The night was fine, but a heavy swell occasioned the boat to roll extremely. " Sunday morning the 23d, the people having had some repose, and a little refreshment served out to them, weighed the grapnel, and pulled towards Batavia. Between the two points of land here, we accidentally fell in, although at a considerable dis- tance from the shore, with a stream of fresh water running into the sea, which put all in high spirits. To prevent any ill consequences, a little rum was put into a bucket, and every man drank about a pint. A favourable breeze also sprung up, and at half past ten o'clock we went along side the ship Princess Charlotte, in the roads, where we were very kindly received, our stock of provisions for forty-seven being at this time four or five pounds of bread, and (previous to falling in with the stream of fresh water in the sea), one gallon of water, one gallon of rum, and five bottles of wine, with some Madeira in ajar." During the whole of this little voyage the strictest equality was observed in the distribution of provisions; and if any distinction was made it was in favour of the rowers, those gentlemen who were unable to pull themselves taking a rather smaller proportion than those who did. The circumstance of the stream of fresh water, 180 VOYAGE OF H. M. S.y ALCESTE which seemed so providentially to extend into the sea, and afforded so much relief, is found to exist in many parts of the world, and has been lately turned to advantage by our Toulon fleet, which was enabled to water at the mouth of the Rhone, almost without losing sight of the port they were blockading. Off the Mississippi, ships can water even out of sight of land ; and the same is stated to be the case with the Oronoco, in South America. This will most probably be found in all narrow-mouthed rivers, which burst suddenly on the sea ; and from the fresh being specifically lighter than the salt water, it naturally floats on the surface of the heavier body, and remains unmixed as long as the current re- tains its force. The chief discomfort of this boat- voyage pro- ceeded from being so crowded, and being obliged to sit so long in a particular posture, and the great distress arising from thirst. It was very difficult indeed to prevent the people from drinking salt wa- ter ; one man became delirious, and it was attribu- ted to this cause. It most probably, however, pro- ceeded from the extreme irritation occasioned by thirst ; for salt water, although an article of jnateria medica in very extensive use, has never been known to take the direction of the head. About the 21st March the ship Charlotte return- ed to Batavia, which had sailed in company with TO CHINA, 181 the Ternate, having on board Messrs. Mayne, Blair, and Marrige. After beating against wind and current, from the 24th February to the 16th March, without being able to fetch farther than the south-east end of Banca, the current constantly sweeping them to leeward the moment they opened the Straits, Mr. Mayne, finding nothing was to be done in the ship, resolved to shove off in the barge, accompanied by the above gentlemen, and Mr. Thompson the supercargo, with two casks of wa- ter and one of beef for us, in the event of being- still on the island. They tugged at the oars until the next day, when, arriving in sight of the place we had occupied, they found a large flotilla of the pirates at anchor there, three of whom immediately gave chase to our boat. There was no time to be lost ; the barge made sail ; but, in addition to their sails, the Malays pulled furiously, and were gaining fast. The beef and water were now thrown over- board, to lighten the barge ; and, knowing whom they had to deal with, they prepared, being tolera- bly armed, to sell themselves as dear as possible. Fortunately at this moment a strong squall occur* red, which compelled the Malays to lower their sails, whilst the barge, carrying through all, got a-head and escaped, the pirates hauling their wind again towards the island. These proas were probably of the more distant islands, who, having only lately heard of the wreck, 18S VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE had arrived a day after the fair, and were hungry, and annoyed at finding no prey. Nothing could exceed the deplorable state of Java at the period of its conquesit by the British forces in 1811. The natives had at all times been enslaved and oppressed by the Dutch colonists ; and, from the strict blockade of our cruizers, the produce of the soil which they were unable to ex- port was rotting in the warehouses, and reducing the latter to a state of bankruptcy. The system of government immediately intro- duced by lord Minto, under the able superinten- dence of Mr. Raffles, corresponding with that ex- isting in British (and what is here termed western) India, very much altered the state of affairs ; but it more especially ameliorated the condition of the na- tive Javanese. It had been usual to compel the people to labour at the public works, whenever occasion required, without any, or at least for a very inade- quate, remuneration. They were also obliged to deliver in a certain quantity of produce, often ex- ceeding what they were able to afford ; whilst they were tyrannically restricted to the cultivation of those articles only which best answered the purposes of the Dutch monopolists. By the new order of things these forced services were immediately abolished. The people were paid a reasonable price for their volun- tary labour ; and, instead of arbitrary and compuU TO CHINA. 183 sory deliveries, encouragement was given to grow what were considered the most vahiable produc- tions of the island, and the Javanese were now stimulated to exertion by having an interest in the fruits of their industry. The revenue was now raised (except in one or two immaterial instances, which could not at once be conveniently altered) by a moderate land-tax on the whole. The rajahs or regents of the different districts were alloAved (and indeed preferred) a fixed salary to abandon their claims, to the former harsh method of raising their incomes, whilst they were still intrusted un- der proper surveillance with the administration of the laws, which were also new- modelled and ren- dered more equitable, torture being abolished, and the instruments burnt in the public square. The Chinese farmers of revenue, employed under the Dutch, who possessed peculiar ingenuity in squeez- ing the natives, were either removed, or their con- duct narrowly inspected by the British residents*. * Sir T. Raffles, in his elaborate work on Java, states, " that whenever the Chinese formed extensive settlements in Java, the native inhabitants had no alternative but that of abandoning the district, or of becoming slaves of the soil. Their monopolizing spirit was often even pernicious to the produce, as may be seen even at this day in the immediate vicinity of Batavia, where all the public markets are farmed by them, and the degeneracy and poverty of the lower clas- ses are proverbial." 184 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE In Java there is no interruption to the course of vegetation. The spring is eternal ; and it is quite usual on the same day to see them sowing in one field, the second in half blossom, and reaping in the third. But with all these advantages of soil and climate the people had been driven to relinquish their native villages, and even to destroy the trees which the cruel impolicy of the whites compelled them to cultivate equally against their interest and their inclination. In the first settlement of colonies, it is notorious that enormities were committed by all Europeans on the aborigines of the country ; but without flat- tering our amour propre national, this unconcilia- tory and overbearing system seems to have been far less practised by us than by other nations, if we may judge from the comparative personal secu- rity with which a Briton roams every where at large. Previous to our possession of Java (when travelling became even more safe than in England), no Dutchman ever ventured to undertake a journey among the natives without a guard. The same is the case with the Portuguese and the original Brazilians, as well as the Spaniards at Manilla, and throughout the whole island of Luconia. With the Javanese harsh and rigorous measures seem, and indeed have been clearly proved to be, as unnecessary as they are unjustifiable, for few people bear a more mild, docile, or inoffensive TO CHINA. 185 character. They are a distinct race from the Ma- lays of the coasts, not only speaking a different language, but are anxious not to be confounded with them. Lord Minto, who was at Java at the period of its falling into our possession, made the following observations on the existing state of af- fairs, and the alterations he judged necessary : — " Contingents of rice, and, indeed, of other pro- ductions, have been hitherto required of the culti- vators, by government, at an arbitrary rate ; this, also, is a vicious system, to be abandoned as soon as possible. The system of contingents did not arise from the mere solicitude for the people, but was a measure alone of finance and control, to en- able government to derive a revenue from a high price im})osed on the consumer, and to keep the whole body of the people dependent on its pleasure for subsistence. I recommend a radical reform in this branch to the serious and early attention of government. The principle of encouraging indus- try in the cultivation and improvement of lands, by creating an interest in the effort and fruits of that industry, can be expected in Java only by a funda- mental change of the whole system of landed pro- perty and tenure. A wide field, but a somewhat distant one, is open to this great and interesting im- provement ; the discussion of the subject, how- ever, must necessarily be delayed till the investiga- tion it requires is more complete. I shall transmit 2B 186 VOYAGE OP H. M. S. ALCESTE such thoughts as I have entertained, and such hopes as I have indulged, on this grand object of amelio- ration ; but I am to request the aid of all the in- formation, and all the lights, that this island can afford. On this branch, nothing must be done that is not mature, because the change is too ex- tensive to be suddenly or ignorantly attempted. But fixed and immutable principles of the human character, and of human association, assure me of ultimate, and, I hope, not remote, success, in views that are consonant with every motive of action that operates on man, and are justified by the practice and experience of every flourishing country of the world." The wisdom and sound policy of these liberal and enlightened views have been fully proved by the increasing happiness and prosperity of the colo- ny, from the day they were practically adopted, up to the period of the transfer of the island ; and that the same system should be continued under the restored government appears to be the decided opinion of the wisest and most clear-sighted of the Dutch colonists ; as well for its obvious justice and humanity, as from a conviction of its superior efficacy in every other respect. At the same time measures were taken to abo- lish slavery, for the continuance of which, in Java, there appeared not even the plea of expediency. The farther importation of slaves was forbidden TO CHINA. 187 (For they were generally brought, for obvious rea- sons, from the neighbouring islands), and regula- tions were formed for the protection and better treatment of those actually existing. They were not allowed, for instance, to be sold or transferred from one master to another, but with their own approbation ; they were permitted the right of ac- quiring property either by their own industry, or from the gifts of others, independent of the con- trol of their masters, which they might appropriate, if they thought proper, after a certain term, to the purchase of their freedom, at a reasonable valuation, subject to the approval of a magistrate. An annual registry of each slave was also required, and a tax laid upon that registry, the proceeds of which were applied to charitable purposes ; and, in any instance where this registry was omitted to be given in, the slave was declared free. Although their present religion is that of Ma- homet (with a mixture of Paganism), yet the nu- merous relics of Hinduism, in high preservation throughout the island, evidently shew that the latter was the original mode of worship. Indeed, Balli, one of the neighbouring islands, performs the Hin- du rites at this day. Batavia is considered, and with much reason, as one of the most unhealthy spots in the world. But this character is applicable only to the town itself ; which, agreeably to Dutch usage, wherever 188 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE they could find one, is built in a swamp. The effect of this, within seven degrees of the equator, is precisely what rtiight be expected ; but at Rys- wick and Weltevreden, where the ground rises, certainly, not above a dozen or fifteen feet, and situated within three miles of the town, health is retained, at least, as perfectly as in any other part of India ; and it has been even said that a battalion of a regiment quartered there has returned a smaller sick report than the other, stationed in some part of England. No European, who can possibly avoid it, ever sleeps in the city ; but, after transacting his business, removes to the neighbourhood. Among seamen and soldiers, a night or two spent in Bata- via is deemed mortal ; but this increased fatality among them proceeds evidently from their never sleeping there but for the express purpose of get- ting drunk ; and, when immersion in putrid and marsh effluvia, in so hot a climate, is applied to a body, rendered highly susceptible of their impres- sion from previous ebriety, it is not to be wonder- ed that a fever of the worst class should be the consequence. They are also not so likely, in these cases, to receive that prompt assistance which alone can save them ; for, conscious of having been irre- gular in their conduct, they are ashamed and un- willing to make application until it is Often too late ; and the loss of a single day will, in severer Casies, be attended, in all probability, with the most TO CHINA. 189 dangerous consequences*. The insalubrity of Batavia is attributed, but with little appearance of justice, to the numerous canals which intersect the town ; for they rather seem to do good, by acting as drains, in a marshy soil ; and, if they are the re- ceptacles of filth and carcasses (which appeared not to be the case), it is the fault of the police, and not of the canals. Rice-fields, creating an artificial swamp, in addition to the natural moisture of the ground, certainly ought not to be permitted to exist in the immediate vicinity of a populous city ; and cannot be at all necessary in a country, two-thirds of which is uncultivated. The climate of Java may be varied at pleasure, from the suffocating heat of Bantam, or Batavia, to the cool, and even keen, air of the mountains, where fires and blankets are necessary ; which, to invalids requiring an immediate change of temperature, is an advantage of the highest importance. It is extraordinary how defective all colonies are in seminaries of education ; — a defect, more espe- * Captain Charles Ross, of the Pique, in the West Indies, among other judicious regulations of that excellent officer (whose orders were neither multiplied nor confused, and, for that reason, more likely to be rational), always considered a man found drunk to be an object for the surgeon's imme- diate care, in the first instance ; and it is astonishing the good effect this had, not only in preventing drunkenness, but in obviating its effects. 190 VOYAGE OF H. M. S, ALCESTE cially in those that are extensive and populous, for- which there can be no good excuse, and is attend- ed with much inconvenience ; for either the youth of both sexes receive no education at all, or must be sent home, at a great expense, for that purpose. This would appear to be much the case at Batavia, for the young men required to fill situations of re- sponsibility must be supplied by fresh importations ; ^nd the ladies, surrounded by a crowd of flattering slave- girls, generally creolize^ the whole day in a delectable state of apathy, without any sort of oc- cupation ; at sun-set, perhaps, taking a short air- ing in the environs. The elder dames inveterate- ly adhere to the kuhaya (a loose sort of gown, or wrapper, sometimes richly embroidered), but the English and French modes are universal among the rising generation. They form a curious contrast on public occasions, for, although sumptuary laws exist, which prevent, more especially ladies, from wearing jewels beyond a certain amount, and ap- pearing abroad attended by servants exceeding the number allowed for the particular rank of their hus- bands or fathers ; yet all classes, male and female, * Creolizing is an easy and elegant mode of lounging in a warm climate ; so called, because much in fashion among the ladies of the West Indies : that is, reclining back in one arm-chair, with their feet upon another, and sometimes upon the t^ble. TO CHINA. 191 seem privileged to undress themselves as they please. One evening, on our passage outwards, at a grand ball given by the British army officers, on the anniversary of the battle of Waterloo, at the Harmonie, an elderly gentleman, in a full suit of black, highly trimmed, and in the cut of the last century, was seen strutting about the room with a white night-cap on his head. Indeed, at dinner, in the best companies, they do not hesitate to wear their hats, if there is the least motion in the air, for they dread nothing so much as sitting in a cun^ent. The villas of the counsellors of the Indies are dis- tinguished by having black instead of white statues in their fronts, and about their gardens. They are, generally, heavy-looking houses, situated on the Jacatra and Ryswick roads, but have an air of state- liness. The restored Dutch government professes to act upon the principles which have been found suc- cessful during our possession ; but a circumstance which occurred a short time before our arrival here evinced strong symptoms of a recurrence to the system of terror. A body of the natives, about five hundred in number, having had some dispute with the local authorities near Indra Mayo, whilst making representation about some hardship (which they had been lately freely in the habit of doing, whenever they considered themselves in any way 193 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE aggrieved), were seized, and confined in a house, which, like the black hole of Calcutta, being too small for the prisoners, they, in desperation, at- tempted to break through the roof; when a body of military having by this time been collected, they were fired upon, the greater part killed, and the re- mainder, in some way or other, destroyed. It is somewhat extraordinary that the Dutch, who are, at home, a very unassuming, plain, and moral sort of people, should have displayed, on so many oc- casions, a ferocious and blood-thirsty disposition in their colonies. Marshal Daendels, it is confessed, made many judicious arrangements by the vigour of his measures, had he only been a little more scru- pulous as to the mode of obtaining his purposes ; but, to use his own expression, he " found it ne- cessary to put himself above the usual formalities, and to disregard every law but that which enjoined the preservation of the colony intrusted to his management." On one occasion he is said to have requested the magistrates to demolish their grand church in Ba- tavia, which was not only in the way of some fa- vourite scheme he had in view, but its cupola was the only land- mark for entering the bay, and, as such, greatly assisted the enemy's cruizers. The burgomasters ventured to oppose this project. In a very short time the church was found to be on fiye ; and the building being thereby in a great de- TO CHINA. f9S gree consumed and damaged, the remainder was soon razed to the ground*. His great military road, carried some hundred miles across the island, cost the lives of thousands of the Javanese, who were sacrificed to the system of forced services. He appears to have been little less despotic with the whites ; and many stories are told about him, " that he could even make hens lay eggs when he thought proper ;" but, although all seem to agree that he carried a high and imperious hand, yet none dare, even now, speak ill of him, for fear he may return. In equipping a considerable army, merely from the resources of the country, when entirely cut off from any communication with Europe, supplying them with a cloth adapted to the climate, and fur- nishing them with most of the other accoutrements, he put the manufacturing talents of the natives to the test, and he succeeded. Sir William Keir, Mr. Feudal, and Mr. Crans- sen, were still at Batavia, for the purpose of finally adjusting the transfer of the colonies, with the commissioners of his majesty, the king of the Netherlands. The Dutch squadron was absent at the different islands, resuming possession of them. They had, as well as the land-forces, suffered a very heavy loss from deaths ; and the baron de Capellan, who is individually a man of humanity, and was * The incendiaries were never found out. % c 194+ VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE extremely solicitous about their preservation, was stated to have personally interfered with the medical staff, who appear to have been much wedded to the old-fashioned practice, and to have given positive orders that the mode of managing the sick, which had proved successful with our troops on the very- same ground, should be adhered to. The ship Ccesar, captain Taylor, having been en- gaged to carry to England the embassy, with the officers and crew of the Alceste, being now ready for sea, her equipment having been expedited by the assistance of our artificers, his lordship embark- ed on the 12th of April, attended by sir William Keir, and all his staff, and receiving, from the Dutch authorities, every mark of respect due to his rank. We sailed on the same morning, and soon cleared the Straits of Sunda, and proceeded with a fair wind across the Indian Ocean. The gay scenes we had experienced for the last few weeks among our friends at Weltevreden and Batavia, and which we had enjoyed with the great- er spirit from our previous adventures, made us more susceptible of the dull sameness attending our present sky-and-water view. But a circumstance occurred, of all others producing the most instanta- neous and effectual relief from this feeling of tedium vita or ennui. The ship, one morning, was declar- ed to be on fire in the after store-room, and (to render the intelligence still more agreeable and in- TO CHINA. 495 teresting) close to the magazine, whilst the flames seen in that direction, and volumes of smoke now bursting forth, left no doubt of the fact. In a moment the liveliest bustle took place of listless yawning, and every mind was roused into a state of the highest activity. To be in a ship on fire in the middle of the ocean is suppvosed to be the most awkward and unenviable situation in which a man of weak nerves can be placed. Some again assert that it affords, more than any other occasion, an opportunity for the display of coolness, presence of mind, and decision. Happily, there were not wanting many possessing the latter qualities, who, by pushing through the smoke to the point of dan- ger, and scuttling the decks immediately above the place, succeeded in extinguishing the flames in about three quarters of an hour, but not without considerable difiiculty and damage. Very fortu- nately it was washing morning, and, of course, buckets, and other water utensils, were at hand. Had the accident taken place during the night, or had it been unobserved for a few minutes longer, and the fire had communicated to some oil and other combustibles near it, no human power could have saved us. This alarming occurrence, so nearly proving fatal, was occasioned by an idle looby, belonging to the Caesar, carelessly pumping off spirits with a naked light, in order to preserve the body oi a parrot^ which had died the night be- 496 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE fore. It had the effect, however, of occasioning the most rigorous precautions in future. Notwithstanding the crowded state of the Caesar, two passengers, of rather a singular nature, were put on board at Batavia, for a passage to England : the one, a snake of that species called Boa Con- strictor : the other, an Ourang Outang. — The former was somewhat small of his kind, being only about sixteen feet long, and of about eighteen inches in circumference ; but his stomach was ra- ther disproportionate to his size, as will presently appear. — He was a native of Borneo, and was the property of a gentleman (now in England), who had two of the same sort ; but, in their passage up to Batavia, one of them broke loose from his con- finement, and very soon cleared the decks, as every body very civilly made way for him. Not being used to a ship, however, or taking, perhaps, the sea for a green field, he sprawled overboard, and was drowned. He is said not to have sunk immediate- ly, but to have reared his head several times, and with it a considerable portion of his body, out of the sea. His companion, lately our shipmate, was brought safely on shore, and lodged in the court- yard of Mr. Davidson's house at Ryswick, where he remained for some months, waiting for an op- portunity of being conveyed home in some com- modious ship sailing directly for England, and where he was likely to be carefully attended to. TO CHINA. 197 This opportunity offered in the Cassar, and he was accordingly embarked on board of that ship with the rest of her numerous passengers. During his stay at Ryswick he is said to have been usually entertained with a goat for dinner once in every three or four weeks, with occasionally a duck or a fowl, by way of a desert. — He was brought on board shut up in a wooden crib or cage, the bars of which were sufficiently close to prevent his escape ; and it had a sliding door, for the pur«. pose of admitting the articles on which he was to subsist ; the dimensions of the crib were about four feet high, and about five feet square ; a space suffi- ciently large to allow him to coil himself round with ease. The live stock for his use during the pas- sage, consisting of six goats of the ordinary size, were sent with him on board, five being considered as a fair allowance for as many months. At an early period of the voyage we had an exhibition of his talent in the way of eating, which was publicly performed on the quarter-deck, upon v/hich he was was brought. The sliding door being opened, one of the goats was thrust in, and the door of the cage shut. The poor goat, as if instantly aware of all the horrors of its perilous situation, immediately began to utter the most piercing and distressing cries, butting instinctively, at the same time, with its head towards the serpent, in self-defence. 198 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE The snake, which at iirst appeared scarcely to notice the poor animal, soon began to stir a little, and, turning his head in the direction of the goat, it at length fixed a deadly and malignant eye on the trembling victim, whose agony and terror seem- ed to increase ; for, previous to the snake seizing its prey, it shook in every limb, but still continu- ing its unavailing show of attack, by butting at the serpent, who now became sufficiently ani- mated to prepare for the banquet. The first opera- tion was that of darting out his forked tongue, and at the same time rearing a little his head ; then suddenly seizing the goat by the fore leg with his mouth, and throwing him down, he was encircled in an instant in his horrid folds. So quick, indeed, and so instantaneous was the act, that it was impossible for the eye to follow the ra- pid convolution of his elongated body. It was not a regular screw-like turn that was formed, but re- sembling rather a knot, one part of the body over- laying the other, as if to add weight to the muscular pressure, the more effectually to crush his object. During this time he continued to grasp with his mouth, though it appeared an unnecessary precau- tion, that part of the animal which he had first seized. The poor goat, in the mean time, continued its feeble and half-stijied cries for some minutes, but they soon became more and more faint, and at last TO CHINA. 199 it expired. The snake, however, retained it for a considerable time in its grasp, after it was apparently motionless. He then began slowly and cautious- ly to unfold himself, till the goat fell dead from his monstrous embrace, when he began to prepare himself for the feast. Placing his mouth in front of the head of the dead animal, he commen- ced by lubricating with his saliva that part of the goat ; and then taking its muzzle into his mouth, which had, and indeed always has, the appearance of a raw lacerated wound, he sucked it in, as far as the horns would allow. These protuberances opposed some little difficulty, not so much from their extent as from their points ; however, they also, in a very short time, disappeared ; that is to say, externally ; but their progress was still to be traced very distinctly on the outside, threatening every moment to protrude through the skin. The victim had now descended as far as the shoul- ders ; and it was an astonishing sight to observe the extraordinary action of the snake's muscles when stretched to such an unnatural extent — an ex- tent which must have utterly destroyed all muscu- lar power in any animal that was not, like itself, endowed with very peculiar faculties of expansion and action at the same time. When his head and neck had no other appearance than that of a serpent's skin stuffed almost to bursting, still the workings of the muscles were evident ; and his power of SOO VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE ^suction, as it is enroneously called, unabated ; it was, in fact, the effect of a contractile muscular power, assisted by two rows of strong hooked teeth. With all this he must be so formed as to be able to suspend, for a time, his respiration, for it is im- possible to conceive that the process of breathing could be carried on while the mouth and throat were so completely stuffed and expanded by the body of the goat, and the lungs themselves (admit- ting the trachea to be ever so hard) compressed, as they must have been, by its passage downwardss The whole operation of completely gorging the goat occupied about two hours and twenty minutes : at the end of which time, the tumefaction was con- fined to the middle part of the body, or stomach, the superior parts, which had been so much disten- ded, having resumed their natural dimensions. He now coiled himself up again, and lay quietly in his usual torpid state for about three weeks or a month, when his last meal appearing to be com- pletely digested and dissolved, he was presented with another goat, which he devoured with equal facility. It would appear that almost all he swal- lows is converted into nutrition, for a small quantity of calcareous matter (and that, perhaps, not a tenth part of the bones of the animal) with occasionally some of the hairs, seemed to compose his general faeces ; — and this may account for these animals being able to remain so long without a supply of TO CHINA. 301 food. He had more difficulty in killing a fowl than a larger animal, the former being too small for his grasp. Few of tliose who had witnessed his first exhi- bition were desirous of being present at the second. A man may be impelled by curiosity, and a wish to ascertain the truth of a fact frequently stated, but which seems almost incredible, to satisfy his own mind by ocular proof; but he will leave the scene with those feelings of horror and disgust, which such a sight is well calculated to create. It is difficult to behold, without the most painful sen- sation, the anxiety and trepidation of the harmless victim, or to observe the hideous writhing of the serpent around his prey, and not to imagine what our own case would be in the same helpless and dreadful situation. A lion, a tiger, and other beasts of prey, are sufficiently terrible ; but they seldom, unless strong- ly urged by hunger, attack human beings, and generally give some sort of warning ; but, against the silent, sly, and insiduous approach of a snake, there is no guarding, nor any escape when once entwined within his folds. . As we approached the Cape of Good Hope, this animal began to droop, as was then supposed, from the increasing coldness of the weather (which may probably have had its influence), and he refused to kill some fowls which were offered to him. Be- 2D SOS VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE tween the Cape and St. Helena he was found dead in his cage ; and, on dissection, the coats of his stomach were discovered to be excoriated and per- forated by worms. Nothing remained of the goat except one of the horns, every other part being dissolved. It may here be mentioned, that, during a cap- tivity of some months at Whidah, in the kingdom of Dahomey, on the coast of Africa, the author of this narrative had opportunities of observing snakes more than double the size of this one just de- scribed ; but he cannot venture to say whether or not they were of the same species^ though he has no doubt of their being of the genus Boa. They killed their prey, however, precisely in a similar manner ; and, from their superior bulk, were capa- ble of swallowing animals much larger than goats or sheep. Governor Abson, who had for thirty- seven years resided at Fort William (one of the African company's settlements here), described some desperate struggles which he had either seen, or came to his knowledge, between the snakes and wild beasts, as well as the smaller cattle, in which the former were always victorious. A negro herds- man belonging to Mr. Abson (who afterwards limped for many years about the fort) had been seized by one of these monsters by the thigh ; but, from his situation in a wood, the serpent, in attempt- ing to throw itself around him, got entangled with TO CHINA. 203 a tree ; and the man, being thus preserved from a state of compression which would have instantly rendered him quite powerless, had presence of mind enough to cut with a large knife, which he carried about with him, deep gashes in the neck and throat of his antagonist, thereby killing it, and disengaging himself from his alarming situation. He never afterwards, however, recovered the use of that limb, which had sustained considerable injury from his fangs, and the mere force of his jaws. These larger reptiles are seldom observed to be venomous, the smaller tribe being, in this respect, much more dangerous. In this country they had a smaller species of snake, called Daboa^ which is the object of their worship and adoration. It is perfectly hai'mless (to larger creatures), and is tameable. Great at- tention is paid to any that are found, being lodged in their temples, and fed by the priestesses with rats, mice, and sm^ler animals. People who are sick apply to it for relief; and, should one of them happen to entwine itself around a pregnant woman, it is considered the happiest possible omen for her- self and child. In this state she proudly marches through the town, sanctified, as it were, by the attachment of the snake, which encircles her naked frame ; and followed by crowds, those who meet her falling on their knees, and snapping their fin- gers (the usual salutation) as she passes. 204? VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE The Ourang Outang, also a native of Borneo, is an animal remarkable not only from being extreme- ly rare, but as possessing, in many respects, a strong resemblance to man. What is technically denominated the cranium is perfectly human in its appearance ; the shape of the upper part of the head, the forehead, the eyes (which are dark and full), the eye-lashes, and, indeed, every thing re- lating to the eyes and ears, differing m no respect from man. The hair of his head, however, is mere- ly the same which covers his body generally. The nose is very fiat,^-the distance between it and the mouth considerable ; the chin, and, in fact, the whole of the lower jaw, is very large, and his teeth, twenty-six in number, are strong. The lower part of his face is what may be termed an ugly, or cari- cature, likeness of the human countenance. The position of the scapulae, or shoulder blades, the general form of the shoulders and breasts, as well as the figure of the arms, the elbow-joint especially, and the hands, strongly continue the resemblance. The metacarpal, or that part of the hand imme- diately above the fingers, is somewhat elongated ; and, by the thumb being thrown a little higher up, nature seems to have adapted the hand to his mode of life, and given him the power of grasping more effectually the branches of trees. He is corpulent about the abdomen, or, in com- mon phrase, rather pot-belliedy looking like one of TO CHINA. S05 those figures of Bacchus often seen riding on casks ; but whether this is his natural appearance when wild, or acquired since his introduction into new society, and by indulging in a high style of living, it is difficult to determine. His thighs and legs are short and bandy, the ankle and heel like the human ; but the fore part of the foot is composed of toes, as long and as pliable as his fingers, with a thumb a little situated before the inkier ankle ; thi& conformation enabling him to hold equally fast with his feet as with his hands. When he stands erect he is about three feet high, and he can walk, when led, like a child ; but his natural locomotion, when on a plane surface, is supporting himself along, at every step, by placing the knuckles of his hands upon the ground. All the fingers, both of the hands and feet, have nails exactly like the human race, except the thumb of the foot, which is without any. His natural food would appear to be all kinds of fruit and nuts ; but he eats biscuit, or any other sort of bread, and sometimes animal food. He will drink grog, or even spirits, if given to him ; and has been known repeatedly to help himself in this way : he was also taught to sip his tea or cofiee, and since his arrival in England, has discovered a taste for a pot of porter. His usual conduct is not mischievous, and chattering like that of monkeys , in general ; but he has rather a grave and sedate 306 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE character, and is much inclined to be social, and on good terms, with every body. He made no difficulty, however, when cold, or inclined to sleep, in supplying himself with ajiy jacket he found hanging about, or in stealing a pillow from a ham- mock, in order to lie more soft and comfortably. Sometimes, when teased by shewing him some- thing to eat, he would display in a very strong manner the human passions, following the person whining and crying, throwing himself oiF on his back, and rolling about apparently in a great rage, attempting to bite those near him, and frequently lowering himself by a rope over the ship's side, as if pretending to drown himself; but, when he came near the water's edge, he always reconsidered the matter, and came on board again. He would often rifle and examine the pockets of his friends in quest of nuts and biscuits, which they sometimes carried for him. He had a great antipathy to the smaller tribe of monkeys, and would throw them over- board if he could ; but in his general habits and disposition there is much docility and good nature, and, when not annoyed, he is extremely inoffensive. He approaches, upon the whole, nearer to the human kind than any other animal. On the 27th May we anchored in Simon's Bay, at the Cape of Good Hope, from which we sailed again on the 11th of June, steering for St. Helena, where we arrived on the 27th. The exterior of TO CHINA. 207 this island has much of that appearance which in- duced madame Bertrand to term it the birth-place of the demon of Ennui ; but the interior is not destitute of beauties, for there are many very pleas- ing spots situated in its different valleys. One cannot help, in contemplating the calm tranquillity which reigns about Longwood (now the peaceful habitation of the greatest agitator of the world), being forcibly struck by the great mu- tability of human affairs. Bonaparte had for a considerable time past been very retired and difficult of access, but he was per- fectly disposed to see lord Amherst ; and on the day previous to our departure his lordship rode out there, accompanied by the gentlemen of his suite. He was introduced by Bertrand with not a litde form, and had, as well as Mr. Ellis, a very long private conversation previous to the introduction of the other gentlemen, who in the mean time were attended by generals Bertrand, Montholon, and Gourgaud, in the next room. At last they also were ushered in ; and a ring having been formed l^y the marshal round the principal personage of the group. Lord Amherst presented to him first captain Max- well, to whom he bowed very civilly, and said his name was not unknown to him ; observing, he had commanded on an occasion where one of his fri- gates. La Pomone, was taken in the Mediterra- nean. " Vous etiez tres mediant — Eh bien ! your 208 VOYAGE OF H. M. S. ALCESTE government must not blame you for the loss o( the Alceste, for you have taken one of my frigates," He said he was very happy to see young Jeffery Amherst, and good-hum ouredly asked him what presents he had brought with him from China, and so forth. The author of this narrative he interrogated about the length of time he had served, and whether he had been wounded ; repeating the last question in English. Proceeding next to Mr. Abel (who was'introdu- ced as naturalist), he inquired if he belonged to the royal society, or any of the public institutions, or was a candidate for that honour ; asking if he had been happy, in this voyage, in making any discove- ries in natural history, which could add to our stock of knowledge on that subject. Whether he knew Sir Joseph Banks, whose name, he said, was a passport in France ; and his wishes always attended to, even during war. Mr. Cooke's name induced him to ask if he was a descendant of the celebrated navigator ; observing, " You had a Cooke, who was, indeed, a great man." He requested to know, on Dr. Lynn being present- ed, at what university he had studied. — " At Edin- burgh" was the reply. — " Edinboorg !" he repeat- ed ; and went on to interrogate him whether he was a Brunonian in practice ; or if he bled and gave as much mercury as our St. Helena doctors. TO CHINA. 209 Mr. Griffith, the chaplain, was next introduced, whom Buonaparte termed Patimo)iiery and pro- nouncing, also, in English, clair-gee-maji. " Well, sir," he continued, " have you found out what reli- gion the Chinese profess ?" Mr. G. replied it was somewhat difficult to say; but it seemed a sort of polytheism. Not appearing to understand the meaning of this word, spoken in English, Bertrand remarked " Pluralitc de Dieiix.'''' — " Ah ! pluralite de Dieux^'^'' said he ; " do they believe in the im- mortality of the soul ?" " I think they have some idea of a future state," was the repl). "Well," said Buonaparte, " when you go home you must get a good living ; I wish you may be made a pre- bendary, sir.'* Proceeding to Mr. Hayne, he also questioned him in some general way ; and having now completed the circle, and said something to every body, he very courteously bowed to each of the party as they retired, who all felt much gra- tified at the opportunity of the interview. Al- though there was nothing descending in his manner, yet it was affable and polite ; and, whatever may be his general habit, he can behave himself very prettily if he pleases. He is by no means so cor- pulent as is usually represented, and his health ap- pears to be excellent. Longwood, from its situa- tion, ought certainly to be highly salubrious. On the 2d of July we sailed from St. Helena, touched at the island of Ascension on the 7th, and, on 2E 210 Voyage of h. m. s. alceste. the 12th, crossed the line, and got into our own hemisphere. Our passage homewards was ex- tremely favourable, on the 16th of August making the land, and the next morning brought us to Spit- head, from whence we landed once more in our native isle ; not merely with the common feeling of happiness which all mankind naturally enjoy on revisiting the land of their birth, but with those sensations of pride and satisfaction with which every Briton may look round him, in his o\vn country, after having seen all others. END OF THE NARKATIVE, APPENDIX. NO. I. ON our arrival at Portsmouth, a court martial (as is Usual in the navy) was held on board the Queen Char- lotte, to inquire into all the circumstances attending the loss of the ship, and into the conduct of the officers and men on that occasion ; composed of captain sir Archi- bald Dickson, bart- president ; captains Alexander, Dacres, Meynell, and Hickey ; Moses Greatham, judge advocate ; when, after Captain Maxwell's interesting narrative, detail- ing the facts relative thereto, having been read, and a num- ber of witnesses examined on the various statements con- tained in it, the court pronounced the following sentence^ after the usual preamble : — " Having maturely and deliberately weighed and consi- dered the whole, the court is of opinion, that the loss of his majesty's late ship Alceste was caused by her striking on a sunken rock, until then unknown in the straits of Caspar. That captain Murray Maxwell, previous to the circumstance, appeared to have conducted himself in the SIS APPENDIX. most zealous and officer-like manner ; and, after the ship struck, his coolness, self-collection, and exertions, were highly conspicuous ; and that eveiy thing was done by him and his officers, wiihjn the power of man to execute, pre- vious to the loss of the ship, and afterwards to preserve the lives of the right honourable lord Amherst, his majesty's embassador, and his suite, as well as those of the ship's company, and to save her stores on that occasion ; and there- fore adjudge the said captain Murray Maxwell, his officers and men, to be most fully acquitted." The vcourt was very crowded, and there were present lords Amherst and Colchester. The former, being examin- ed by the court, stated, " that he had selected captain Max- well, on the occasion of the embassy, from motives of per- sonal friendship, as well as from the high opinion he enter- tained of his professional character, M'hich opinion had been much increased by the events of this voyage," APPENDIX. S13 NO. II. r- CHRONOLOGICAL LIST of the Kings of Lewchew.from the End of the Twelfth Century y to the Beginning of last. First Year of Duration of their Reign. Lived. Reign. NAMES OF KINGS. A. D. Years. Years. Chun-tien 1187 72 51 Chun-Machuny, son of Chun-tien . 1238 64 11 Ypen, son of Chun-Machuny 1249 — — Yn-tsou 1260 71 40 Ta-tching, son of Yn-tsoir 1301 — 9 Yn-tse, second son of Ta-lching . . . 1309 — 5 Yu-tching, fourth son of Yn-tse . . 1314 — 23 Ly-Oucy, son of Yu-tching 1337 23 14 Tsay-tou 1350 — 46 Ou-ning, son of Tsay-tou 1396 — — Tse-chao, son of Ou-ning 1406 — 16 Chang-pa-tchi, son of Tse-chfio . . . 1424 68 18 Chang-tchong, second son of Chang-pa-tchi • . 1440 54 — Chang-tse-ta, son of Chang-tchong 1445 42 5 Chang-kin-foo, paternal uncle of Chang-tse-ta 1450 52 4 Chang-tai-kieou, brother of Chang- kin-foo 1454 46 7 S14 APPENDIX, First Year of Duration of their Reign. Lived. Reign. NAMES OF KINGS. — A. D. Years, Years. Chang-te, third son of Chang- ta-kieou 1461 29 9 Chang-y-ven i 1470 62 7 Chang-tching, son of Chang-y-ven . 1477 62 50 Chang-tsing, third son of Chang- tching 1527 59 29 Ghang-y-ven, second son of Chang- tsing 1556 45 17 Chang-yong, second son of Chang- y-ven 1573 35 is Chang-ning, grandson of Chang- tsing .. . 1588 57 32 Chang-fong, descendant of a brother of Chang-yong 1 62 1 51 20 Chang-hien, third son of Chang-fong 1641 23 7 Chang-tche, brother of Chang-hien 1 648 40 2 1 Chang-tching, son of Chang-hien . 1669 65 41 Chang-pen, grandson of Chang- tching 1710 34 3 Chang-king, son of Chang-pen .... 1713 — — . The above list being copied, by pere Gaubil, from the Chinese Report of Supoa-Koang, they have, in that transla- tion from the ox'iginal language, no doubt, acquired their present Chinese character of expression. APPENDIX. Sid NO. III. NAMES and SITUATION of the Lewchew Islands, according to the same authority. To the JVorth-eastward. To the JVorth and Westward. Yon-chang-pou Gan-kini-chan Fokou Kichan Yeoula Ye-Kichan Oa-kinou Lun-koan-chan (or Sulphur Kia-ki-luma Island) Tatao (of considerable size) Mat-che-chan, surrounded Ki-ki-ai by five islets To the South and Westward. Another Mat-che-chan Koumi-chan Typin-chan, or INIa-kou-chan Ykima Yleang-pa To the Eastward, Koulima Kon-ta-tia Talama Tsin-kinou Mienna Ysi Oukomi Pama Pat-chong-chan Palouma Yeouni Kpumi The whole situate at va- Kaumi rious distances, extending Te-ke-tou-non from the main island towards Kauli-che-ma Japan, Corea, and the island Ola-ke-se-kou of Formosa, four only lying Pa-tou-li-ma to the eastward. S16 APPENDIX. NO. IV. J/jS. fisher collected a few of the Lewchewan wordsi which may tend to give some idea of the sound of their language. Beard. Figoo. Button. Tama. Book. Shumutsee. Bite. Qtiayon. Boat with sails. Tima. Boat rowed with oars. Chunee. Branches of trees. Tanun. Comb. Sabachee. Chair. Ee. Cows. Ooshu. Cold. Fuisa. Cut. Chichau. Candle. Doe. Coffin. Quan. Come ashore. Chung. Cloth. Dasha.. Colours (ensign). Chuata. Coral. Ooru. Come here. Cuma cay-chung, Day. Okiou. Drink. Nummee. Dead. Sijoug. APPENDIX. 217 Eye. Egg. Earth. Eat. Fingers. Feet. Fowls. Fan. Fan-ning. Fish-ing. Goat. Good. Grave (for dead). Good bye, or adieu. God. Gong. Hair. Hat. He. Handkerchief. Horse. Head-pin with a star-head. Head -pin with a scoop-head. How do you do ? Ink. Jar. I or me. I will come again. I do not understand. I thank you. I will go. I will sing. Knife. 2 Me. Cooga. Sinna. Conun. K-cuT^euA^ Ibec. "^tt4t. Fisha. n- ^<^ Fuee. Ogee. o^g^u^ -Ccfi Ogee-shun. Juh-shun. Figa. Yutissa. *r tf '- 4> A t\ii Hacka. <\oM..tK^ Wa-coutee. Joh. ^^t^ Caniutchung, Carasee. Camuree. Adee. t»At- Sagee. Mah. {A/r>it3L. Cameaashee. Usisashee. Uga-ma-bidda ? Tamagufing. Tusaadzee. Oau Atucara. Chi-carang. Ca-fush. Oa Atchung. Oa Utshang. Sigu. F M^ APPENDIX. Large. Ufishta. Moon. Stee. Musquito. Gadjang. Milk. Chee. Man. Ekegah. Nose. Hana. Nails. Cimee. Night. Masta. Not good. Wassa. No. Arang. Oil. Unda. Paper. Cabee. Potatoes (sweet). Moo. Physician or Surgeon. , Isha. Priest. Bozy. Pig. Oa. Rain. Amuie. Riding. Ditaugin. Sun. Tida. Stars. Hushee. Shoes. Saba. Stones. Ishee. Sit down. Iree. Ship (large). Ufubuny. Ship (small). Cubunee. Sleep. Ninjun. Sick. Yadon. Sailor. Biotee. Shell. Keh. Silk. Dunsy. Stone-mason. Ichi-secu. Square used by ditto,. Banjoganee Serpent. Onegha. t APPENDIX. 919 Sea. Sand. Sash or Girdle, worn hy the Lewchewans. Stop. Small. Teeth. Trowsers. Trees. Tobacco-pipe. To bring. Tea. Temple, or house of worship in the garden, where the sick were. Umbrella. Very good. Water. Wind. Wood. Woman. You. You give me. Yes. You are a good fellow. Ooshu. Sinna. Ubu. Ichuna. Coosa. Ha. Jacama. Ifcoojee. Tsidee. Toute-coo. Cha (Chinese.) Jah Joh. Cassa. ' — Churissa. Midzee, Casechute. Kee. Inago. Ya. Tare Curran. Simung. Churamung. Ce^^ ^ APPENDIX. NUMERALS. 1 Titsee. flii^ S m_ 1 Tatsee, f t*X»,U^ 3 Metsee. ^vu^ii*- 4 Yutsee. V^i-tvK. 5 Ititsee. ^ *^ **- 6 Mutsee. 4'HA*t4t*' 7 Nanatsee. 8 Jatsee, 9 Cucunutsee. 10 Too. 1 1 Too-Titsee. ^ ^*- 12 Too-Tatsee, and so on to nineteen. |-^*^vu. 20 Nijoo. 21 Nijoo-Titsee, &c. 30 Sanjoo. 31 Sanjoo-Titsee, &c. 40 Sinjoo. 41 Sinjoo-Titsee, &c. 50 Gunjoo. 51 Gunjoo-Titsee, &c. 60 Docodoo. 61 Ducodoo-Titsee, &c. 70 Stigoo. 71 Stigoo-Titsee, &c. 80 Hacheegoo. 81 Hachegoo-Titsee, &c. 90 Cunjoo. 91 Cunjoo-Titsee, &c. 100 Hiacoo. ' t The numbers after each ten were always repeated in a manner similar to our own arithmetic. APPENDIX. 231 No. V. THE FAREWELL. [^The insertion ofthefollonving -verses., by Mr. Gillard, clerk of the Lyra, may not, fierhaps, be deemed irrelevant to the subject, as they express not only his own, but the general sentiments, on leaving the worthy Islanders at Grand Lewchew.^ THE sails are set,— the anchor weigh'd ; Their course, south-west, the ships pursue ; And, friendly signs at parting made. We bid the land a last adieu ! From crowded boats, that grace our wake. In cap and vest but seldom wore. Their last " Farewell" the natives take, And, half-reluctant, seek the shore. / Each cliff's rude height and sea-worn base Presents a silent gazing throng ; Where e'en regret may find a place, As swift the vessels pass along. ^^ APPENDIX. And now the harbour's far astern ; The dang'rous reefs in distance fade ; — No object can the eye discern Without the glass's friendly aid. Yet, while the anxious straining sight Can still behold the fleeting shore, The telescope shall yield delight. And all its pleasing scenes restore. Again the rocks and tombs appear, The trees and straw -built huts arise. Where constant guards were plac'd, by fear^ To screen each beauty from our eyes. The path beside the wat'ring-place, Where branching pines adorn the hill, Th' assisted eye can faintly trace, And mark its numerous windings still. There, too, the stone enclosure stands, Within whose high extensive walls .The pagan native lifts his hands, And on his wooden idol calls. Yet ye, who boast the Christian name. Blush at a deed which truth must tell :— Hither they brought the skk and lame. And bade them in their temples dwell. Prom noise and crowded decks remov'd, Th' infirm inhal'd a purer air ; And native kindness daily prov'd They bless the hand that led them there. APPENDIX, SS3 In yonder grove's encircling shade, Where time will long the truth attest, The last sad rites by strangers paid, A youthful seaman's ashes rest. What tho* oblivion o'er his name May spread her veil of deepest gloom, Full many a fa v 'rite child of fame Would not disdain an equal tomb. Yet not the sick their thoughts confin'd, Nor yet th' interment of the dead ; The living still they bore in mind, And gave the ships their daily bread. While friendship thus was shewn to all, Congenial minds attach'd a few ; And mem'ry oft will, pleas'd, recall The names of « Mad'ra," and « Geroo." Farewell, dear isle ! — on you may breath Of civil discord never blow I Far from your shores be plague and death. And far — oh ! far — the hostile foe ! To distant climes our course we steer. Where fashion boasts her splendid reign ; Where science, fame, and wealth, appear, While lux'ry revels in their train. Meanwhile, ne'er 'mid your smiling scenes May pride and fierce ambition spring I Ne'er may they know what mis'ry means. Which vice and dissipation bring ! 224} APPENDIX. Still on your sons may plenty shine; Still may their happiness increase ; And friendship long their hearts entwine With love, with innocence, and peace. No more ; — for now the fresh 'ning breeze Impels us swiftly o'er the deep ; Your verdant shores no longer please, And faint appear your mountains steep. Their summits now are cloth'd in gray, And scarce the eye their place can tell ; And now they're melted quite away, — Once more, dear island, Fare thee well I ) THE END. ,-v ^,^' ;^4- .0 N <5 ^ \'^ ,.^^ g>' -^^. .V"^^ ^\.-,^ ■^ .; o*' v.'^ ^ <^^' -^. p. o>- \^' ''""<'. '":. ,A^ vXV -^^ ,0 o^ \'^ ^^ A^^ -^' '<^. A^ *, ':'^ .^^ -% ...^ -/- " N ■'^>- ,,XN N^^ ''^. J- V ^ Deacidified using the Bookkeeper procesi is' '-^ Mi\ Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide ;^a Treatment Date: March 2003 ^"'^' '.^ PreservationTechnologies O '' 4- A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION -^'-v"^ 'p. 1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive Cranberry Township, PA 16066 (724)779-2111 ■■6° "-^^ 4 '^C- oN V^ .•*> ^\^ ^0^ 0^ %• ■<• V, -^^ c^'- o -^. t"^'