Cuar. XIX.] A FREE PASSAGE OFFERED. 355 
promised to send one of his servants to get one, 
and. in the mean time invited me to take some cake 
and tea, which were immediately set before me. 
The gun which I had with me was an object of 
great curiosity to the old man, more particularly 
the locks and percussion caps, which he told me he 
had never seen before. During the time I was 
discussing the cake and tea, he asked me a multi- 
plicity of questions; such as, where had I come 
from last ? who had told me there was a road to 
Shanghae this way? &c. &c., some of which I 
answered, and some I found it convenient not to 
understand. At last, through some blunder on the 
part of my servant, it became known that he be- 
longed to me; a circumstance which was imme- 
diately communicated to the mandarin, who sent 
for him and subjected him to a close and searching 
examination. 
While this was going on, the mandarin of the 
highest rank in the city arrived, having been sent 
for by his brother in office to hold a conference 
regarding me. ‘These worthies, after a long con- 
sultation in a private room, came out and informed 
me, in the blandest manner, that they intended to 
give me a free passage across the country to 
Shanghae, in a boat belonging to themselves, and 
that, to add more to my comfort, they would send 
another boat to convey my servant and luggage. 
This seemed at first sight remarkably kind ; but I 
had been long enough in the celestial empire to 
be aware of the necessity of looking narrowly into 
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