CHINA. 
• 49 '° 
he, the viceroy, had^ given of the genuine fentiments of 
his imperial majefty, he placed a firm reliance on the af- 
furances folemnly made to him, tl\at particular attention 
would be paid to the Britilh fubjefts in China, and had 
already imparted this confidence to the Englilh govern¬ 
ment in the letters he had fenf from Han-choo-foo, which 
he did not doubt would confide in their fulfilment. The 
viceroy then enquired of the ambaffador, whether he 
could empower him to certify a continuance of this ami¬ 
cable difpofition, by the king’s writing fpeedily to his 
imperial majeftv; and by fending again a minifter to 
China, if the emperor were inclined to admit of fucli, 
not in the expensive manner of the prefent embafly, but 
merely as a token of the continued amity of his Britan¬ 
nic majefty. His excellency, not expecting Inch a pro- 
polls!, replied, that “ the king would probably have no 
difficulty in writing to the emperor, to acknowledge the 
receipt of the prefents, and to exprefs his thanks for the 
diltinguiftied manner in which he had received the em- 
baffy; a circumftance unconnected with its objefts, all of 
which he had hopes might be eifefted in time ; but that 
the valt diftance between the two empires, and the diffi¬ 
culty and precarioufnefs of the navigation, made it im- 
pollible to determine the advent of a new embafly.” The 
viceroy ended by faying, that he would inltantly fend a 
meflenger to court with a relation of the conference, toge¬ 
ther with fuch intimations of his own as would, he hoped, 
be in all points perfeftly fatisfaftory to the emperor. 
The embafly embarked anew, and proceeding rather 
in a northerly courle, parted by a vail extent of fwampy 
land, in the midft of which was the largeft collection of 
water in the country, called Poyang Lake. Into this 
lake many rivers flow, and out of it feveral canals have 
been formed, and inclofed within ftronghigh banks, for 
the fecurity of veflels in ftormy or deluging weather. The 
billows often rife as high as thofe at fea, which render 
its paflage dangerous. Small fandy iflands were deferied 
in the lake, the folitary refidence of fifliermen. The pro¬ 
vince of Kiang-fi, which lay by the river fide, abounded 
with plantations of bamboo. The feet of the women here 
were not crippled, being left in their natural ftate. The 
river became again {hallow, and a fecond land tour was 
unavoidable. Preparations being accordingly made on 
the day of difembarkation, the embafly fet out early next 
morning, and foon arrived at the foot of that immenfe 
ridge of mountains which divide the province of Kiang- 
ii, from that of Quang-tong. The travellers began in a 
little time to afeend the liigheft of thefe eminences, the 
fumniit of which was confounded with the clouds above. 
There was an appearance of two clouds without motion, 
which left a regular void fpace between them ; but, af¬ 
ter the travellers had afeended a long way upon a cir¬ 
cuitous road, fo traced for the purpofe of being practica¬ 
ble for horfemen, they were aftonifned to find that thofe 
fteady-looking clouds were nothing more than the fum- 
fflit of the mountain, which had acquired this appear¬ 
ance by its being cut down in the center to a very con- 
fiderable depth, by mere dint of labour, in order to ren¬ 
der the afeent lefs fteep and difficult; a work of fo much 
utility, that the ftatue of the mandarin who had it done, 
is ereCted in many Chinefe temples in that neighbourhood. 
At the pafs is always kept a military port:. The moun¬ 
tain, on each fide of this key to the interior country, is 
clothed with plantations of trees to its utmoft height, 
from whence a moll extenfive and rich proipeft opens to 
the eye. A gentle and uniform defeent of leveral miles 
on each fide, almoft entirely covered with lively verdure, 
and crowned with towns, villages, and farm-houles, lays, 
as it were, a mod pifturefque feene at the feet of the 
fpeftator, whilft diftant plains of unbounded extent, with 
mountains rifing out of the horizon, terminate the view. 
The little hills Icattered over the plains below, appeared 
'ike fo many hay-ricks. The town of Nan-gan-foo, which 
the travellers had fo lately left, feemed jike a heap of tiles, 
while the river that palled by it appeared only as a Ihining 
line. From the computations made by fir George Staurt- 
ton, this mountain was found to have an elevation of 
eight thoufand feet above the level of the fea. The tra¬ 
vellers arrived the fame evening at Nan-lhoo-foo, where 
fmall covered barges, on the river Pe-kiang, were pre¬ 
pared to carry them to Canton. Some days before they 
got to that city, perfons were heard to utter broken Eng- 
lifli as they palled, a proof of the influence of Britilh 
commerce; and many boats were feen going down the 
river with merchandize for the Englilh market. 
The viceroy judged it expedient to proceed to Canton 
before the party, to procure a fuitable reception for the 
embafly. He lent from thence large elegant barges, in 
which the ambaffador made his entrance into Canton, on 
the 19th of December, 1793. The lplendid manner in 
which his excellency was received, added to the perfonal 
attentions of the viceroy, muff have convinced the inha¬ 
bitants that the Englifh were no longer deftitute of pro- 
teftion, nor unworthy of efteem. 
Of the prefent ftate of the Chinefe empire, its cufloms, 
manners, general polity, genius, &c. the mod authentic 
information is unqueftionably to be obtained from the 
account fo recently given us by fir George Staunton. He 
fuggelts, that although the Chinefe form of government 
be provident and laudable, and its general regulations 
benevolent and wife, yet it is far from being a model of 
perfect jurifprudence, or adequate in a number of in- 
ltances, to the regulations it has in view. The objeft of 
the government, in feeking to maintain the general tran¬ 
quillity and welfare, feems to have' overlooked all pre¬ 
cautions for the perfonal fecurity of individuals. A court 
of jultice is eftabliftied for trying perfons acculed of crimes 
deierving death; but no jury is empannelled to try the 
fail. The impartiality of the judge is endeavoured to be 
fecured by appointing no man to that office in the pro¬ 
vince of which he is a native; but though he may not 
lean, from affeftion, to the one or the other of the par¬ 
ties, he is liable to be fwayed by the weight of prefents. 
Thefe difpenfers of juftice are not, as in England, placed 
above temptation by the amount of their falaries, which 
would render the acceptance of prefents as unneceffary 
as they are improper. 
Difputes among!! individuals concerning property, do 
not fill up a large fpace in the tranfaftion of Chinefe af¬ 
fairs. Property, whether real or perfonal, is held by te¬ 
nures too fimple to occafion much difference of opinion 
as to the right of it. There are no entails nor fettlements; 
and the fort of community in which mod families conti¬ 
nue to live in China, cuts off the principal fources of dif— 
fention. The halls of audience are, in faft, more en¬ 
gaged in folicitations than in contefts. Men of talents 
and learning are fometimes employed to fupport the'eaufe 
of others who are young, ignorant, or incapable; but 
there is no particular order of men who fubfilt in afflu¬ 
ence as lawyers and attornies, or who arrive at dignities 
like the former. The interefts of the emperor are always 
made the firft objeft. No property can be fecure again!! 
his claims. The preference thus given to the poffeffor of 
unlimitted power, may be confidercd as the natural ccn- 
fequence of it. Some juftification of this preference may 
likewife be derived from the confideration, that he who 
is molt liable to frauds, ought to have the moft effeftual 
means of guarding again!!, and punilhing, the comrnif- 
fion of them. 
The execution of all capital criminals takes effect but 
once in the year; and the number, feldom above two 
hundred, is very fmall for fo vail and populous an empire,. 
Theft and robbery are never punilhed with death, unlels 
accompanied w r ith perfonal injury and cruelty. The me- 
deration of thofe punilhments feems to imply the infre¬ 
quency of the offence; and the faft is really fo, except 
where famine rages, in which cafe no feverity of punifli- 
ment will prevent the commilfion of the crime. All cri¬ 
minals for execution are transferred from the leveral pro¬ 
vinces to Pekin, where a revifion of the fentence is had 
before 
