352 VISIT OF MR. MORRISON TO THE LEGATE. 
“ The Legate sat on the right-hand end of the couch, leaving the chief 
place empty for his absent colleague. At the upper end of the left row of 
chairs, the commander of the district, with a red button in his cap, sat. 
Next to him, Yin, a military officer (Hee-tue), with a red button, and 
Chang, a civil officer (Tuon-tue), ofTeen-tsin, with a blue button. These 
two persons were to attend upon the accommodation and safe conduct of the 
Embassy, under the Legate and Viceroy. These two gentlemen properly 
bore the title of Ta-laou-yay, ‘ Great venerable Father but in their inter- 
course with foreigners were called by their domestics Ta-jin, ‘ Great Men.’ 
The Legate and Yin were Tartars ; Chang was a Chinese ; Kwang, the Le- 
gate, was a little man, about fifty-eight years of age, pleasant and convers- 
ible in his manner, but artful and fraudulent ; seeking to obtain his purpose 
rather by negative than positive acts ; withdrawing the means of comfort, 
rather than by inflicting what was disagreeable ; close-minded, specious, 
and clever. Yin was of low stature and ruddy complexion, and good na- 
tured, with a little of the feudal pride of the Tartar, and ignorant as 
Tartar Chinese military men generally are. Chang was rather old, tall, thin, 
and emaciated, it is to be apprehended, by the use of opium and debauchery. 
The commander of the troops at Ta-koo, was not seen frequently enough 
to form an opinion of his character. 
“ In the presence of this assembly, the Legate began in a distinct and 
cheerful tone, to inquire the distance we had come ; whether we had touched 
at Macao ? how long we had come from thence ? whether we had met the 
vessels he had sent to meet us? (he had never sent any;) the number of 
ships ? of men in the ships ? of persons in the Embassy ? and so on ; to 
which he received such answers as truth and prudence suggested. The 
other gentlemen joined .the Legate in expressing their satisfaction. 
“ He hinted, that instead of seventy-five persons, fifty would be enough ; 
to which it was replied, that to China, twenty or thirty, more or less, could 
be of very little consequence ; that to do the thing liberally would be hand- 
some. He received the suggestion, and we heard no more of the objection 
till it was too late to alter it. He said that Chang and Yin would the next 
day go on board our ships to wait on the Ambassador and the Commissioners. 
“ After this we withdrew, and had a dinner in the Chinese manner with 
the inferior officers who had been on board. In the temple there was an 
upper story, from which we had a view of the surrounding country, and of 
the ships in the roads. Their masts only were visible. An officer entered 
