166 



CHIN A. 



but call themfelves of tartar origin ; boaft of great antiquity ; 

 and produce fome books which are two or three thoufand years 

 old. They have been conquered by the Cbinefe, Japanefe, and 

 tartars ; fince the conqueft of China by the latter, their yoke 

 has been light ; they only are obliged to fend four ambaffadors 

 to Peking annually, to perform homage, where, after their 

 audience from the emperor, they remain in a ftate of confine- 

 ment till their return. The Cbinefe fear that fome time or other 

 they may unite with the RiiffianSf who have advanced far towards 

 the Cbinefe frontiers; this may occafion a revolt, and the confe- 

 quences prove fatal to the repofe of the empire. 



Korea had its wall to the north- weft, which has long fince 

 been in a ruinous ftate ; but even when complete, did not pre- 

 vent the conqueft of the country by the Manchew tartars. 



The Korea is mountainous, and not very fertile, except the 

 vales. It is full of woods, and produces moft of the European 

 fruits and foreft-trees. The fouthern part yields rice and excel- 

 lent grain. It breeds a hardy race of horfes, exclufive of a fmall 

 variety not three feet high ; alfo cows, and black fwine ; abounds 

 with various animals ; among others are numbers of tigers, the 

 fkins of which are a confiderable article of commerce in their 

 intercourfe with 'japan. Among the noxious re2:)tiles are cro- 

 codiles of an enormous fize. 



They have great quantities of feathered game, and a variety 

 of birds ; poflibly many of fhofe we have defcribed in the ArSiic 

 Zoology^ as belonging to the Tartarian or Siberian world. But 

 the fpecies of the pheafant kind, with feathers of the tail three 

 feet long, are confined to this country. The feathers are fent 



from 



