Fire-places and Kitchen Utensils. 417 



fire-place just described, and the same principles reg- 

 ulated the contrivance of both of them. It should be 

 bound round with iron wire, in order to hold it together, 

 in case it should crack with the heat of the fire. Two 

 places for the wire, one near its brim and the other 

 lower down, are shown in the figure. 



The aperture by which the air enters the ash-pit is 

 closed by a register-stopper, represented in the figure, 

 or a conical stopper of earthen-ware may be used for 

 that purpose. 



If such earths are used in constructing these small 

 portable furnaces as are known to stand fire well, there 

 is no doubt but these furnaces may, with proper usage, 

 be made to last a great while ; and, for confining heat, 

 they are certainly preferable to all others. 



The portable kitchen furnaces in China are all con- 

 structed of earthen-ware ; and no people ever carried 

 those inventions which are most generally useful in 

 common life to higher perfection than the Chinese. 

 They, and they only, of all the nations of whom we 

 have any authentic accounts, seem to have had a just 

 idea of the infinite importance of those improvements 

 which are calculated to promote the comforts of the 

 lowest classes of society. 



What immortal glory might any European nation 

 obtain by following this wise example! 



The emperor of China, the greatest monarch in the 

 world, who rules over one full third part of the inhab- 

 itants of this globe, condescends to hold the plough 

 himself one day in every year. This he does, no doubt, 

 to show to those whose example never can fail to influ- 

 ence the great bulk of mankind how important that art 

 is by means of which food is provided. 



VOL. IIL 27 



