PACIFIC AND BEERING'S STRAIT. 169 



of seeing tlie place ; but An-yah would not permit it, 

 and fearful that we might really pursue this piece of 

 politeness further, got out of the ship as fast as he 

 could, saying the mandarin was at Potsoong, and not 

 in the town. About two o'clock he pushed off from 

 that place with his party in two clumsy punts, sculled 

 by several men singing a chorus, which differed, both 

 in words and air, from that used by the boatmen in 

 general. The mandarin was seated in the largest of 

 these boats, under a wide Chinese umbrella, with two 

 or three mandarins of inferior rank by him ; the other 

 boat contained An-yah, Shtafacoo, Sandoo, and others, 

 with whom we were well acquainted, and who rowed 

 on before the mandarin, and announced his approach 

 by presenting a crimson scroll of paper, exactly a yard 

 in length, on which was elegantly written in Chinese 

 characters, " Ching-oong-choo, the magistrate of Napa, 

 in the Loo Choo country, bows his head to the ground, 

 and pays a visit." By this time the other boat with 

 the great man was alongside the ship, and four do- 

 mestics with scarlet hatchee-matchees ascended the 

 side, one of them bearing a large square hatchee- 

 matchee box, in which there was an old comb. 

 They pulled up the side ropes, and carefully inspected 

 them, to see whether they were strong enough to hold 

 their master, and let them down again for the manda- 

 rin, who, very little accustomed to such feats, ascended 

 the side with difficulty. 



He was received with a guard under arms, and a 

 mandarin's salute was fired as he put his foot upon 

 the deck, with which he was much gratified, and he 

 shook every officer by the hand with unaffected plea- 

 sure. The yards had been manned as he was coming 

 off, and when the pipe was given for the seamen ta 



