210 Through the Yang-tse Gorges 



Their military exercises, with bows and arrows, are of the 

 feeblest nature, and I have never yet seen a Manchu regiment 

 armed with muskets ! A fixed number of posts in the ad- 

 ministration are specially reserved for them, as they would 

 succumb were they dependent for employment upon success 

 in the competitive examinations with the more active-minded 

 Chinese. The mutual jealousy of the Chinese mandarins, 

 who hold, as it is, all the highest posts in the provinces, 

 coupled with their conservative dislike to change, alone at 

 the present day retains the Manchus on the throne. What 

 would happen, were an energetic emperor like Kangshi to 

 arise and attempt to take the governing power really into 

 his own hands, no one can tell, any more than they can 

 prophesy what is to be the end of the contest between the 

 decaying civilization of the foremost empire of the East and 

 the aggressive civilization of the West, now hammering at 

 its gates. 



A Cantonese merchant, named Chen, had invited me to 

 dine with him in a garden in the lower city. He promised 

 me a dinner cooked in European style; having lived in 

 Shanghai and Canton, he was supposed to comprehend the 

 wants of the barbarian appetite. On arriving, I was intro- 

 duced to two Cantonese mandarins who were reclining on 

 the dais at the head of the guest-hall, whiling away the time 

 with the unfragrant drug. Shortly afterwards the rest of the 

 party arrived, and we sat down to the round table in the 

 centre, seven in all. The dinner proved, unfortunately, a 

 most decided failure ; the strange meats were unacceptable 

 to the other guests, and, in order to show due appreciation 

 of my host's hospitality, I had to make up for my fellow- 

 guests' indifference by setting to as best I could. As it was 

 a very hot day, I asked leave to remove my coat, after the 

 Chinese fashion, and set to with a will. Certainly if anything 



