ACCOUNT OF BOOKS. 



975 



*' The natural colour both of the 

 Chinese and Tartars seems to be that 

 tuit between a fair and dark com- 

 plexion, which wc distinguish by 

 the word brunct or brunette ; and 

 the shades of this complexion are 

 deeper or lighter, according as they 

 have been more or less exposed to 

 the influence of the climate. The 

 ■women of the lower class, who la- 

 bour in the fields, or who dwell in 

 vessels, are almost invariably coarse, 

 ill-featured, and of a deep brown 

 complexion, like that of the Hot- 

 tentot. But this we find to be the 

 case among the poor of almost every 

 nation. Hard labour, scanty fare, 

 and early and frequent parturition, 

 soon wither the delicate buds of 

 beauty. The sprightlincss and ex- 

 pression of the features, as well as 

 the colour of the skin, which dis- 

 tinguish the higher ranks from the 

 vulgar, are in some, though very 

 few, such as might pass for beauties 

 even in Europe. The ]\Ialay fea- 

 tures, however, prevail in most ; a 

 small black or dark-brown eye, a 

 short round nose, generally a little 

 flattened, lips considerably thicker 

 than in Europeans, and black hair, 

 are universal. 



" The Man-tchoo Tartars would 

 appear to be composed of a mixed 

 race : among these we observed se- 

 veral, both men and women, that 

 were extremely fair and of florid 

 complexions : some had light blue 

 eyes, straight or aquiline noses, 

 brown hair, immense bushy beards, 

 and had much more the appearance 

 of Greeks than of Tartars. It is 

 certainly not improbable that the 

 Greeks of Sogdiana, wiiose descend- 

 ants must have blended with the 

 western Tartars, and with whom 

 the Man -tchoos were connected, may 

 ha>e communicated this cast of 



countenance. Tchien-Lung, "whose 

 nose was somewhat aquiline, and 

 complexion florid, used to boast of 

 his descent from Gengis-hhan : these, 

 however, are exceptions to the ge- 

 neral character, which is evidently 

 the same as that of the Chinese. 



" But although their appearance 

 and manners are externally the same, 

 a closer acquaintance soon discovers 

 that in disposition tliey are widely 

 difterent. Those who are better 

 pleased with a blunt sincerity, bor- 

 dering on rudeness, than a studied 

 complaisance approaching to ser- 

 vility, who may think it better to 

 be robbed openly than cheated ci- 

 villy, Avill be apt to give the prefer- 

 ence to the Tartar charat^ter. Yet 

 those Tartars of distincT:ion, who 

 fill some of the higher situations in 

 the state, soon lose their native 

 roughness, and are scarcely distin- 

 guishable in their manners and de- 

 meanour from the Chinese. 



" The ease, politeness, and dig- 

 nified carriage of the old viceroy »f 

 Pe-fchelee, who M'as a Man-tchoo, 

 could not be exceeded by the most 

 practised courtier of- modern En- 

 rope : the attention he shewed to 

 every thing that concerned the em- 

 bassy, the unaffec^tcd manner in 

 Mhich he received and entertained 

 us at Ticn-nng ; the kindness and 

 condescension with which he gave 

 his orders to the inferior oHicersand 

 to -his domestics, placed him in a 

 very amiable point of view. He 

 was a very fine old man of seventy- 

 eight years of age, of low stature, 

 with small sparkling eyes, a benign 

 aspect, a long silver beard, and the 

 whole of his appearance calm, vene- 

 rable, and dignified. The manners 

 of Siai.ta-gin, a relation of the em- 

 peror, and one of the six ministers 

 of state, were no less dignified, easy, 



au(J 



