8 20 A Supplemental Account of the Commodities, Book j. 
Laws .'of the Land permit the Man to divorce- his Wife 
whenever he pleafes, which they many times do for flight 
Caufes: ; but the Woman has not the fame Privilege •, and 
if fhe defires it, obtains it with Difficulty ; but the Man is 
.bound to reftore the Woman what file brought with her, 
and keep the Children begotten between them ; but now 
Divorces are not half fo frequent as formerly. Adultereffes 
are' puniflied here very feyerely, the: Offender being caft to 
an Elephant bred up tor that Purpofe, who throws them up 
into the Air, and then tramples them under Feet, till they 
are dead. 
Of all the Eaftern People the Tunquin efe are the molt 
foci.able, and molt frequently vifit each other ; generally 
they make their Vifits about Noon, with a Train fuitable 
to their Condition ; the Princes and Mandarins ride on 
Elephants, or are carried in Pallenkies, and their Train is 
of fifty orfixty Perfons ; the ordinary Gentry, and Officers 
of the Court, ride on Horfeback, and are ndt allowed above 
feven or eight Servants to attend them. They chew Beetle 
continually, where it is to be had, and at their Vifits always 
prefen t their Friends with fome at taking Leave ; and the 
richer the Box is, the greater the Prefen t is efteemed. 
Among the Tunquinefe , it is a great Diffionour to have the 
Head bare, for they fhave all Criminals, and if any Perfon 
be found without Hair, they apprehend him, and carry 
iini' to the Governor, who caufes him to be nailed to a 
Crofs immediately. They fit crofs-legged, as the reft of 
the AJiatics ; but inftead of Carpets, they ufe Mats made 
of Reeds, as fine as Thread, and as foft as Velvet, which 
they lay upon Beds, not on the Ground, as the Perfians 
and other Indians do. They are not curious in their Diet, 
but very neat in dreffing it. 
The common People are contented with Rice boiled in 
Water, dry Fiffi and Eggs (for they eat Flefli only at their 
Feftivals) but the great Lords are ferved every Day with 
Fleffi and Fiffi ; but they know not how to bake any thing. 
All their Meat is cut in little Pieces, and ferved up in little 
lackered Plates lefs than our Trenchers. They ufe no 
Napkins, or Table-cloths, Knives, Forks, ©r Spoons ; but 
only two Sticks to take up their Meat ; for they never touch 
it with their Hands. They wafti their Hands, Mouths, 
and Faces, before they fit down to Meat ; but never after 
their Meals. They are ufually filent at Table ; but if they 
have a Mind to difcourfe, the eldeft begins firft ; for they 
pay much Honour to Age. When they would know whe- 
ther any Perfon has eaten fufficiently, they afk him whether 
he has eaten his Rice, meaning thereby the whole Repaft, 
as the Scripture does by Bread. They never afk any Man 
how he does, but how he eat his Dinner ; for the more a 
Man eats, the better they fuppofe him to be in Health. 
They take much Delight in Comedies, which are ufually 
afted upon the new Moon, and laft all Night. 
They fet up their Theatres in great Halls, and adorn 
their Stages with beautiful Machines and Scenes. They 
have feldom more AClors than eight, either Men or Wo- 
men, and they are very magnificently clad ; they a£t their 
Parts perfectly well, and obferve an exaCt Time in their 
Dancing. Their ordinary Paftimes, and efpecially for the 
Lords and Mandarins, are Fiffiing and Hunting: In the 
former they take the greater Pleafure, becaufe their Rivers 
are full of Fiffi ; but they never follow their Sport but upon 
certain Days, when they may be fpared from their Bufinefs. 
The Tunquinefe are Lovers of Learning, and apply them- 
felves to their Studies with Diligence. Their Learning 
confifts in the Knowledge of the Laws of their Country, 
Mathematicks, and Aftronomy. They are Admirers of 
Poetry and Mufick, and are accounted the greateft Artifts 
in them of all the People of the Eaft. 
To acquire Nobility by Learning, they ftudy hard for 
eight Years in the Office of a Notary, ProClor, or Advo- 
cate ; and if upon a Uriel Examination they are found to 
underftand their Office fo well as to anfwer all Queftions 
about it, their Names are prefen ted to the King, who 
grants them a Title of the Synde. Having arrived at this 
Degree, they are ordered to ftudy Mufick, Aftrology, 
Poetry, and Mathematicks, five Years; and if upon a 
fecond Examination they anfwer all Queftions put to them 
in thole Sciences, they are raifed to the Dignity ofDoucan; 
after this they muft fpend four Years more to write and 
read the Cbm/e Characters to fuch Number of Words ; for 
to know or write it fully is alffioft impoffible, it is To ; copi- 
ous; and to underftand the Laws and Cuftoms of the Chinefe ; 
and after a ftria Examination' by all the Mandarins of 
‘Hearnifigy'^id^Tanffs; or Noblemen, foh fiighf Days, , if 
they anfwer well, thly arfiye at the Degree of a Tariff, and 
are receivedrihto the Rank'of 'thb Nobility, and the King 
gives them certain Towns to take the Rents j but to fome 
more, and others dels, according to their Merit, or the 
; Prince’s Favour V and the 'King gives them a Veil of Sattin. 
Then they go to vifit their Towns given them by the 
King,- where they art received in a gilded’ Brangiiar, with 
Mufick, vand they ftay three Months for choir Recreatioh, 
• and- then they return to Court to inftrfid tftemfelves in the 
Affairs of the KingdOm and Paike, arid arrive at the Dig- 
nity of ; Mandarin. In the' mean time their Names being 
written' under large Tablfes, are fet upon the Gate of the 
King’s Palade eight Days, that all the People may know 
who are received into the Rank of the Nobility, 
The Phyficians of Tunquin ftudy Books but little, .but 
fpend their Youth in fearchihg into the Virtues Of Roots 
and Simples, and how to apply them to every Diftemper,, 
which they judge of by the beating of the Pulle, and its Di- 
Verfity of Meafure, as by the Pulfe of the right Hand they 
guefs at the Condition of the Lungs, and by that of the 
Arm of the Diftemper of the Stomach and Kidneys ; by 
the Pulfe of the left Hand they judge of the Corn 
dition of the Heart ; and by that of the Arm of the 
State of the Liver ; and by the Pulfe of the Tem- 
ples, both right and left, they give a moft exqtiifite 
Judgment of the Kidneys. They carefully count how 
many times the Pulfe of a fick Perfon beats in the Space of 
One Breathing, and according to thefe feveral Pulfes they 
will tell you which Part of the Body is particularly diftem- 
pered, whether the Heart, Liver, or Lungs, or whether it 
proceeds from any outward Caufe.- They generally give 
DecoClions of Herbs and Roots, with a little Ginger. 
They ufe China Ink to flop a Dyfentery, and for the Cure 
of Wounds, and give Powder of Crabs in Dyfenteries and 
Fevers, often in Water, fometimes in Brandy. 
They preferibe Tea, which comes to them from China. 
and Japan , as an excellent Remedy againft the Head-ach 
and Gravel, and with a little Ginger for the Griping of the 
Guts. That is accounted the beft Tea which colours the 
Water greeneft ; for that which colours it red is little ac- 
counted of. Againft the Affli&ions which proceed from bad 
Airs, and cold Wines, they ufe a Counter-poifon mixed 
with Aqua Vita, in which alfo they dip a Cloth, and rub 
the Patient well ; but in this they boil a little Ginger, and 
for a more Ipeedy Cure they fweat the Patient in a Cloud 
of Frankincenfe ; they never ufe Blood-letting, and in the 
Purple Fever they ufe Fire, and fometimes pricking every 
Spot. The Spot being burnt will give a Whiff like a Squib, 
which is an infallible Sign that the Venom is gone out of the 
Body ; but the Phyfician muft take care that it does not 
enter his own, for then Death certainly follows. If the 
Spot be pricked to let out the peftilential Blood, they burn 
it, and then rub it with Ginger, not permitting the Patient to 
take the Air in twenty Days, or eat any Fleffi, or Butter. 
Thefe Remedies are effectual to a Wonder, and cure in a 
ffiort Time. 
The Kingdom of Tunquin was anciently a Part of China , 
but has been for fix hundred Years governed by its own 
Kings. The firft that affumed the Tide of King was a 
Robber, whofe Name was Bin , who heading a great 
Number of Malecontents, gained many bloody Battles over 
the Chinefe , and feized the Province for his Kingdom. The 
People did not permit him to reign long in Peace ; but 
rifing againft him, flew him ; though he left two Sons, yet 
they reigned but a few Years fucceffively, and died without 
Iffue. The Kingdom after their Death was mightily di- 
ffracted with Civil Wars, till the Chinefe being called in to 
affift the weaker Party, brought things to a Settlement, 
and a Mandarin, of the Family of Lelequell , was advanced 
to the Throne. 
He being a valiant and prudent Prince, reftored Peace 
and Order to the Kingdom ; and after he was eftabliffied, 
built an admirable Palace of Marble of divers Colours, and 
very large ; he left one Daughter to fucceed him, and fhe, 
to fecure berfelf, married -a powerful Mandarin, of the 
Houfe of Tran ; but fhe being depofed, and flain by her 
rebellious 
i 
