200 SURGEON-GENERAL C. A. GORDON. 
The Hon. Secretary, Captain F. Prtrir, F.G.S.—As regards the 
communications received from those unable to be present, the 
first is from Sir Thomas Wade, K.C.M.G., Professor of Chinese at 
Cambridge University: he expresses his regret at not being 
able to be present, and bears testimony to the value of the recent 
labours of Baron Richthofen and his work on China (in German), 
Dr. Bretschneider’s China, and a new work on the Formosan 
aborigines. 
Dr. Leitner writes, regretting that illness ‘“‘ prevents his being 
present at the reading of so good a paper as Dr. Gordon’s.” 
The AvurHor.—In the first place, I thank those who have been 
so good as to comment on my paper for the spirit in which 
they have expressed themselves. The difference of opinion that 
strikes me as being apparent among Chinese students* illustrates 
some of the difficulties I have had in preparing this paper, 
during which process I have consulted so many works that I am 
afraid to enumerate them; and in the course of the comments 
made on my remarks, I think you recognise the difficulty I had, 
out of the materials at my disposal, in weaving such a web as I have 
been able to produce. I tried, as far as possible, to give the 
authorities from whom I have quoted. Many of these are given 
in the footnotes, and others are given in the series of notes at the 
end of my paper, and I think that if my critics had consulted the 
notes which I give in the shape of an appendix, perhaps they would 
not have made some of the remarks they have. I may observe 
that the data from which I have taken my chronology included, 
as far as has struck me during the time their remarks have been 
made, such as are contained in works by Gutslaff, Hdkins, 
Du Halde, Williams, Boulger, Giles, Davis, Douglas, and the 
Encyclopedia Britannica. All of these authorities give more or 
less different dates ; so it will become apparent what great difficulty 
I have had in formulating the remarks I have made. In several 
instances I specially notice that the dates I give are approximate. 
I am afraid I shall not be able to answer all the comments 
made, but I will endeavour briefly to make such remarks as occur 
* The difficulties of Chinese students are increased by the Chinese 
characteristic disregard of accuracy. There is no accuracy in their system 
of statistics, and no uniformity in their standards of weights, measures, 
money, length, &c. A man becomes 80 years old after he stops being 70, 
their habit being to reckon by tens. ‘Their whole system of thinking even 
has a basis different from that to which Europeans are accustomed.— Hd. 
