V. 
CHIN A. 
4S4 
with agate, jaiper, and other precious ftones. The walks 
were not covered with gravel, nor were the grounds en¬ 
riched by belts of trees, nor clumps of (hrubs; art had 
lent but little afliftance to nature in the diftribution of 
ks objefts. One of the curiofities,' reported to be in the 
garden of Zhe-hol, was inadmiflible to the party, the 
to^wn in immature ; being inclofed within thofe limits 
let apart for the ladies of the palace. It is faid, by a 
miffionaiy, to be an exaft representation of the tranfac- 
tions of common life; as well as the bustle and confulion 
of the capital. The fame miffionary, in quality of artilt, 
had been engaged in the embellifhment of afimilar work, 
in the ladies’ -garden at Yuen-min-yuen. Something of 
this kind is juft finifhed in one of the imperial palaces of 
Peterfburg. 
The general deportment of the colao, duringtheex- 
curfion through the gardens, was that of an experienced 
courtier; his politenefs and attention to the ambaffador 
were unremitting. The other minifter was affable and 
courteous; but the manners of his brother, the general, 
were formal and ungracious; nor was it in the power of 
the ambaffador, by flattering his talents as a warrior, to 
diffipate his ill humour. The prime minifter, in the 
courle of converfation, mentioning the arrival of the 
Lion and Hindooftan at Chu-fan, his excellency feized 
that opportunity of requefting that captain Mackintoih 
might now be permitted to join his fliip, having paid his 
obeifance to the emperor; but the Thibet general, who 
kept clofe to the colao, immediately interpofed and ex¬ 
claimed, “It was highly impolitic to fufter him to tra- 
/verfe the Chinefe dominions.” Nothing decifive was 
therefore determined on for the prefent; but the ambaf¬ 
fador prelied the colao to give him an.opportunity here¬ 
after of renewing the fubjeft. Ho-choong-taung, from 
the multiplicity of ftate bufinefs, and the great fatigue 
of that day's exercile, was taken ill, and he fent to re- 
queft the ambaffador would allow bis Engliih phyfician 
to vifit him. Dodfor Gillan followed the meffenger to 
the colao’s houle, where fome of the faculty were affem- 
bled. Tea, fruit, and fweetmeats, followed the firft ce¬ 
remonies of introduction; when thefe were removed, 
the patient prefented firft his right arm, then his left; 
and the doftor, to comply, in tome degree, with the 
prejudices of the country, and that he might give no of¬ 
fence either to the patient or his phyficians, very gravely 
felt the pulfe of both arms, and for fome continuance. 
He told them, however, that Europeans did not deem it 
at all necefiary to feel the pulle in different parts, as they 
well knew that the pulfation was fimulfaneous in every 
part of the body; which doftrine being new, and as 
amazing to the phyficians as to the colao himfelf, he ap¬ 
plied the fore finger of the colao’s right hand to the left 
temporal artery, and the fame finger of his left hand to 
the right ankle, when, to his utter affonifiiment, he 
found the pulfe beat at the lame inftant of time at each 
part. By the anfwers to the queftions which doftor 
Gillan put to him, he found two diftinft complaints, 
rheumatifm and hernia. The doftor’s explanation of the 
nature of the diforders, and propofed method of cure, 
were put down in- writing; the colao was perfeftly fatis- 
fied v.ith the doftor’s ideas, and made him a prefent of a 
piece of’ ink. 
As no interview could be obtained with the colao for 
fome time, notwith ;, anding he was foon eafed of his rheu¬ 
matic pains, the ambafiador determined to write to him 
on the fu jeft of captain Mackintofh, to requeft leave for 
his fpeedy departure to rejoin his (hip at Chu-fan; and, 
as no Chinefe could be found hardy enough to carry a 
letter, without leave, from the legate, (who had juft been 
degraded by the emperor for not going on-board the Lion 
with the two mandarins, Van-ta-zhin and Chow-ta-zhin, 
and now wore in his bonnet the opaque white, inltead of 
the tranfparent blue button, and, pendent from his cap, 
a crow's tail feather inftead of a peacock’s, though he 
kill retained his authority and offices, being protected 
by Ho-clioong-taung,) the interpreter to the embaffyv 
not without great rifle, and much perfonal infult from 
the rabble on the road, undertook the bufinefs, and put 
the letter in a proper channel for its fpeedy delivery. 
The ambaffador and his fuite were called before fun- 
rife, on the morning of the 17th of September, to be pre¬ 
fent at the celebration of the emperor’s birth-day, a fef- 
tival which lafted many days, though the feaft appeared 
to be calculated for rendering foiemn and devout ho¬ 
mage to the fupreme majefty of tiie emperor. The cere¬ 
monial paffed in a vaft hall, in which were affembled the 
princes, tributaries, ambaffadors, great officers of ftate, 
and principal mandarins. To the found of cylindric 
bells, fufpended in a line from ornamented frames of 
wood, and gradually diminifhing in fize ; and alfo to that 
of triangular pieces of metal, placed in the fame order as 
the bells, as well as to the muficof various other inftru- 
ments, a flow and foiemn hymn was fung by eunuchs. 
During the chaunting of this encomiaftic fong, which, 
accompanied by the rnufic, produced a grand effeft; at 
particular fignals, nine times repeated, every perfon pre¬ 
fent proftrated himfelf nine times, except the ambaffidor 
and his fuite, who made only one profound obeifance. 
He to whom this awful aft of adoration was made, the 
emperor, kept himfelf the whole time invifible. The ip., 
fluence intended to be wrought upon the minds of men 
by this veneration of a human being, was not to be ef¬ 
faced by an immediate fucceffion of lport or merriment: 
feenes of this kind were deferred till the morrow. In the 
mean time the ambaffador, accompanied by Sun-ta-zhin, 
a Tartar chief, lately promoted to the rank of colao, vi- 
fited, among other places, the grand temple of Poo-ta-la, 
comprifing one prodigioufly large, and Several fmall, fa¬ 
brics. The principal was a grand cathedral of a fquare 
form, each of whole fides was two hundred feet. It con¬ 
tained eleven rows of windows, one above another, hav¬ 
ing as many ranges of apartments. The front was plain 
and uniform, but well finifhed. The apartments of the 
quadrangle were united together by a fpacious corridor 
below, and an open gallery above. A Ipace railed off in 
the middle of the chapel, raifed above the floor, prefented 
three altars luperbly decorated, and three coloffean ffa- 
tues of Fo, his wife, and child; and, in an obfeure 
recefs, at the back of thefe altars was the facred taber¬ 
nacle, with a Angle glimmering light, as if intended to 
imprefs the mind with religious awe. No lefs than eight 
hundred lamas, or priefts, were attached to this temple, 
fome of them from their infancy; but all officiated in the 
exterior ceremonies cf religion, which greatly contri¬ 
buted to its magnificence. 
The next day, upon the lawn before the emperor’s 
great tent, were exhibited a variety of entertainments: 
and his imperial majefty, furrounded by his court, cheered 
them with his prefence. The amufements were entirely 
Chinefe; and every perfon who excelled in any particu¬ 
lar talent, whether for ftrength, dexterity, or in the per¬ 
formance of any extraordinary feat of agility, were af¬ 
fembled on the cccafion, in the prefence of innumerable 
fpeftators. Some were famous in the art of balancing; * 
others at legerdemain, tumbling, wreftling, dancing, and 
various other exercifes. There was alfo lome vocal, and 
a great variety of inftrumental, mulic. After the mufi- 
cians, were performed fancied ballets, by many hundred 
perfons, habited in tunics ; in which fuch Chinefe cha- 
rafters were reprefented as, difeovered by the aid of 
lights in tranflucent lanterns of various colours, reflefted 
much commendation on his imperial majefty. After the 
ballets, various kinds of fire-woiks were launched off, 
which difplayed great {kill in the pyrotechnic art. Seve¬ 
ral of the conceits were new to the Englifh fpeftators, 
among which was the following : A large box being lent 
up high in the air, its bottom feemed accidentally ta 
drop out, from which aperture ifl'ued a vaft number of 
papers wrapped up in a flat form. Thefe papers unfolded 
therafelves from each other by degrees, and were tranf- 
formed 
