ClIAP. VII. 
JEALOUSY OF THE MANDARINS. 
103 
empty house, rented by Captain Hely, who had kindly 
offered me the use of it during my stay. I had just 
entered the house, and had gone up stairs to look for a 
room in which I could have my bed placed, when I 
heard a person below putting various questions to my 
servants. I paid little attention to . this at first, as I 
knew the Chinese to be very inquisitive; but as the 
examination continued longer than was agreeable, I 
went down stairs to see what was the matter. There I 
found an ill-looking fellow with a brass button in his 
hat, and evidently belonging to the lowest class of 
mandarins, standing over my servants, and putting 
questions to them in a most authoritative manner, 
and in the Fokien dialect, which, as they were both 
northern men, they did not understand. For ten 
minutes they had been going on in this way, and 
neither party was any wiser than when they began. 
Turning to my servants, I asked them who the man 
was, and what he wanted. They replied that he was a 
mandarin, that he had been putting some questions to 
them concerning me ; but as he spoke in the Fokien 
dialect they could not understand him. 
The Chinese generally stand in great dread of their 
Government officers, and on this occasion my servants 
thought they had given me a good and sufficient reason 
for their having been detained so long. But I had not 
forgotten the annoyances which I had formerly endured 
at this place from Government spies, and at once 
ordered my servants to leave their interrogator, and 
attend to their duties. The officer looked rather dis- 
concerted, and walked out of the house. 
