Produced by Stan Goodman, Meredith Bach, and the Online
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[Transcriber's Note:
English transliterations for the Greek and Chinese words have been
provided. Transliterations have not been provided when a Chinese
character is followed by a transliteration in the book.
A few other substitutions have also been used in this version of the text.
They are as follows:
[= ] surrounding a vowel indicates that it is a long vowel with a macron
(dash) above it.
[v ] surrounding a vowel indicates that vowel has a circumflex above it.
A good number of printer's errors have been corrected, including all
those in the Errata. All other spelling and grammar inconsistencies have
been retained.
As a final note, the I section of the index contains both I and J
entries.]
[Illustration: _Hickey del^t T. Medland sculp^t_
_Portrait of Van-ta-gin_
_Pub. May 2, 1804, by Mess^rs. Cadell, & Davies, Strand, London._]
TRAVELS
IN
_CHINA_,
CONTAINING
DESCRIPTIONS, OBSERVATIONS, AND COMPARISONS, MADE AND COLLECTED IN THE
COURSE OF A SHORT RESIDENCE AT THE IMPERIAL PALACE OF YUEN-MIN-YUEN, AND
ON A SUBSEQUENT JOURNEY THROUGH THE COUNTRY FROM
PEKIN TO CANTON.
_IN WHICH IT IS ATTEMPTED TO APPRECIATE THE RANK THAT
THIS EXTRAORDINARY EMPIRE MAY BE CONSIDERED TO
HOLD IN THE SCALE OF CIVILIZED NATIONS._
"NON CUIVIS HOMINI CONTINGIT ADIRE _CORINTHUM_."
_It is the lot of few to go to_ PEKIN.
By JOHN BARROW, Esq.
LATE PRIVATE SECRETARY TO THE EARL OF MACARTNEY, AND ONE OF HIS SUITE AS
AMBASSADOR FROM THE KING OF GREAT BRITAIN TO THE EMPEROR OF CHINA.
_ILLUSTRATED WITH SEVERAL ENGRAVINGS._
_LONDON_:
Printed by A. Strahan, Printers-Street,
FOR T. CADELL AND W. DAVIES, IN THE STRAND.
1804.
TO
_THE EARL OF MACARTNEY, K. B._
ONE OF HIS MAJESTY'S MOST HONOURABLE PRIVY COUNCIL,
_&c. &c. &c._
THIS VOLUME OF TRAVELS IN CHINA, _&c._
IS RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED,
BY
HIS MOST FAITHFUL
AND OBLIGED HUMBLE SERVANT,
JOHN BARROW.
CONTENTS.
CHAP. I.
PRELIMINARY MATTER.
_Introduction.--General View of what Travellers are likely to meet
with in China.--Mistaken Notions entertained with regard to the
British Embassy--corrected by the Reception and Treatment of the
subsequent Dutch Embassy.--Supposed Points of Failure in the former,
as stated by a French Missionary from Pekin, refuted._--Kien Long's
_Letter to the_ King _of Holland.--Difference of Treatment
experienced by the two Embassies explained.--Intrigues of
Missionaries in foreign Countries.--Pride and Self-Importance of the
Chinese Court.--List of European Embassies, and the Time of their
Abode in Pekin.--Conclusion of Preliminary Subject._ Page 1
CHAP. II.
Occurrences and Observations in the Navigation of the Yellow Sea, and
the Passage up the Pei-ho, or White River.
_Different Testimonies that have been given of the Chinese
Character.--Comparison of China with Europe in the sixteenth
Century.--Motives of the Missionaries in their Writings.--British
Embassy passes the Streights of Formosa.--Appearance of a_
Ta-fung.--_Chu-san Islands.--Instance of Chinese
Amplification.--Various Chinese Vessels.--System of their
Navigation--their Compass, probably of Scythian Origin--foreign
Voyages of.--Traces of Chinese in America--in an Island of the
Tartarian Sea--in the Persian Gulph--traded probably as far as
Madagascar.--Commerce of the Tyrians.--Reasons for conjecturing that
the Hottentots may have derived their Origin from China.--Portrait
of a Chinese compared with that of a Hottentot.--Malays of the same
descent as the Chinese.--Curious coincidences in the Customs of
these and the Sumatrans.--Cingalese of Chinese Origin.--One of the
Brigs dispatched to_ Chu-san _for Pilots.--Rapid Currents among the
Islands.--Visit to the Governor.--Difficulties in procuring
Pilots.--Arbitrary Proceeding of the Governor.--Pilots puzzled with
our Compass--Ignorance of--Arrive in the Gulph of_
Pe-tche-lee.--_Visit of two Officers from Court, and their
Present--enter the_ Pei-ho, _and embark in convenient
Yachts.--Accommodating Conduct of the two Officers.--Profusion of
Provisions.--Appearance of the Country--of the People.--Dress of the
Women.--Remarks on their small Feet.--Chinese an uncleanly and
frowzy People.--Immense Crowds of People and River Craft at_
Tien-sing.--_Decent and prepossessing Conduct of the
Multitude.--Musical Air sung by the Rowers of the Yachts.--Favourable
in the Chinese Character.--Face and Products of the
Country.--Multitudes of People Inhabitants of the Water.--Another
Instance of arbitrary Power.--Disembark at_ Tong Tchoo, _and are
lodged in a Temple._ 25
CHAP. III.
Journey through the Capital to a Country Villa of the Emperor. Return to
Pekin. The Imperial Palace and Gardens of Yuen-min-yuen, and the Parks
of Gehol.
_Order of Procession from_ Tong-choo _to the Capital.--Crowd
assembled on the Occasion.--Appearance of Pekin without and within
the Walls.--Some Account of this City.--Proceed to a Country Villa
of the Emperor.--Inconveniences of.--Return to Pekin.--Embassador
proceeds to Tartary.--Author sent to the Palace of_
Yuen-min-yuen.--_Miserable Lodgings of.--Visit of the President and
Members of the Mathematical Tribunal.--Of the Bishop of Pekin, and
others.--Gill's Sword-blades.--Hatchett's Carriages.--Scorpion
found in a Cask packed at Birmingham.--Portraits of English
Nobility.--Effects of Accounts from Tartary on the Officers of
State in Pekin.--Emperor's return to the Capital.--Inspects the
Presents.--Application of the Embassador for Leave to
depart.--Short Account of the Palace and Gardens of_
Yuen-min-yuen.--_Lord Macartney's Description of the Eastern and
Western Parks of Gehol.--And his general Remarks on Chinese
Landscape Gardening._ 87
CHAP. IV.
Sketch of the State of Society in China.--Manners, Customs, Sentiments,
and Moral Character of the People.
_Condition of Women, a Criterion of the State of Society.--Degraded
State of in China.--Domestic Manners unfavourable to Filial
Affection.--Parental Authority.--Ill Effects of separating the
Sexes.--Social Intercourse unknown, except for gaming. Their
Worship solitary.--Feasts of New Year.--Propensity to gaming.
Influence of the Laws seem to have destroyed the natural Character
of the People.--Made them indifferent, or cruel.--Various Instances
of this Remark in public and in private Life.--Remarks on
Infanticide.--Perhaps less general than usually thought.--Character
of Chinese in Foreign Countries.--Temper and Disposition of the
Chinese. Merchants. Cuckoo-Clocks.--Conduct of a Prince of the
Blood. Of the Prime Minister. Comparison of the Physical and Moral
Characters of the Chinese and_ Mantchoo _Tartars. General Character
of the Nation illustrated._ 138
CHAP. V.
Manners and Amusements of the Court--Reception of
Embassadors.--Character and private Life of the Emperor--His Eunuchs and
Women.
_General Character of the Court--Of the buildings about the
Palace_--Lord Macartney's _Account of his Introduction--Of the
Celebration of the Emperor's Anniversary Festival--Of a
Puppet-Shew--Comedy and Pantomime--Wrestling--Conjuring and
Fire-Works--Reception and Entertainment of the Dutch Embassadors
from a Manuscript Journal--Observations on the State of the Chinese
Stage--Extraordinary Scene in one of their Dramas--Gross and
indelicate Exhibitions--Sketch of_ Kien-Long's _Life and
Character--Kills his Son by an unlucky Blow--conceives himself
immortal--Influence of the Eunuchs at the Tartar Conquest--their
present State and Offices--Emperor's Wife, Queens, and
Concubines--How disposed of at his Death._ 191
CHAP. VI.
Language.--Literature, and the fine Arts.--Sciences.--Mechanics, and
Medicine.
_Opinion of the Chinese Language being hieroglyphical
erroneous.--Doctor Hager's mistakes.--Etymological Comparisons
fallacious.--Examples of.--Nature of the Chinese written
Character.--Difficulty and Ambiguity of.--Curious Mistake of an
eminent Antiquarian.--Mode of acquiring the Character.--Oral
Language.--Mantchoo Tartar Alphabet.--Chinese
Literature.--Astronomy.--Chronology.--Cycle of sixty
Years.--Geography.--Arithmetic.--Chemical Arts.--Cannon and
Gunpowder.--Distillation.--Potteries.--Silk
Manufactures.--Ivory.--Bamboo.--Paper.--Ink.--Printing.--Mechanics.
--Music.--Painting.--Sculpture.--Architecture.--Hotel
of the English Embassador in Pekin.--The Great Wall.--The Grand
Canal.--Bridges.--Cemeteries.--Natural Philosophy.--Medicine.--Chinese
Pharmacopoeia.--Quacks.--Contagious Fevers.--Small-pox.--Opthalmia.
--Venereal Disease.--Midwifery.--Surgery.--Doctor Gregory's Opinion of
their Medical Knowledge.--Sir William Jones's Opinion of their general
Character._ 236
CHAP. VII.
Government--Laws--Tenures of Land and Taxes--Revenues--Civil and
Military Ranks, and Establishments.
_Opinions on which the Executive Authority is grounded.--Principle
on which an Emperor of China seldom appears in public.--The
Censorate.--Public Departments.--Laws.--Scale of Crimes and
Punishments.--Laws regarding Homicide.--Curious Law Case.--No
Appeal from Civil Suits.--Defects in the Executive
Government.--Duty of Obedience and Power of personal
Correction.--Russia and China compared.--Fate of the Prime
Minister_ Ho-chang-tong.--_Yearly Calendar and Pekin Gazette,
engines of Government.--Freedom of the Press.--Duration of the
Government attempted to be explained.--Precautions of Government to
prevent Insurrections.--Taxes and Revenues.--Civil and Military
Establishments.--Chinese Army, its Numbers and
Appointments.--Conduct of the Tartar Government at the
Conquest.--Impolitic Change of late Years, and the probable
Consequences of it._ 357
CHAP. VIII.
Conjectures on the Origin of the Chinese.--Their Religious
Sects,--Tenets,--and Ceremonies.
_Embassy departs from Pekin, and is lodged in a Temple.--Colony
from Egypt not necessary to be supposed, in order to account for
Egyptian Mythology in China.--Opinions concerning Chinese
Origin.--Observations on the Heights of Tartary.--Probably the
Resting-place of the Ark of Noah.--Ancients ignorant of the
Chinese.--Seres.--First known Intercourse of Foreigners with
China.--Jews.--Budhists.--Nestorians.--Mahomedans.--Roman
Catholics.--Quarrels of the Jesuits and Dominicans.--Religion of
Confucius.--Attached to the Prediction of future Events.--Notions
entertained by him of a future State.--Of the Deity.--Doctrine not
unlike that of the Stoics.--Ceremonies in Honour of his Memory led
to Idolatry.--Misrepresentations of the Missionaries with regard to
the Religion of the Chinese.--The_ Tao-tze _or_ Sons of
Immortals.--_Their Beverage of Life.--The Disciples of_ Fo _or
Budhists.--Comparison of some of the Hindu, Greek, Egyptian, and
Chinese Deities.--The_ Lotos _or_ Nelumbium.--_Story of_ Osiris
_and_ Isis, _and the_ Isia _compared with the Imperial Ceremony of
Ploughing.--Women visit the Temples.--Practical Part of Chinese
Religion.--Funeral Obsequies.--Feast of Lanterns.--Obeisance to the
Emperor performed in Temples leads to Idolatry.--Primitive Religion
lost or corrupted.--Summary of Chinese Religion._ 418
CHAP. IX.
Journey from Tong-choo-foo to the Province of Canton.--Face of the
Country, and its Productions.--Buildings and other Public
Works.--Condition of the People.--State of Agriculture.--Population.
_Attentions paid to the Embassy.--Observations on the Climate and
Plains of_ Pe-tche-lee.--_Plants of.--Diet and Condition of the
People.--Burying-place.--Observation on Chinese Cities.--Trackers
of the Yachts.--Entrance of the Grand Canal. The Fishing
Corvorant.--Approach to the_ Yellow River.--_Ceremony of crossing
this River.--Observations on Canals and Roads.--Improvements of the
Country in advancing to the Southward.--Beauty of, near_
Sau-choo-foo.--_Bridge of ninety-one Arches.--Country near_
Hang-choo-foo.--_City of.--Appearance of the Country near the_
Po-yang _Lake.--Observations in Proceeding through_
Kiang-see.--_The_ Camellia Sesanqua.--_Retrospective View of the
Climate and Produce, Diet and Condition of the People, of_
Pe-tche-lee.--_Some Observations on the Capital of China.--Province
of_ Shan-tung.--_Of_ Kiang-nan.--_Observations on the State of
Agriculture in China.--Rice Mills.--Province of_ Tche-kiang.--_Of_
Kiang-see.--_Population of China compared with that of
England.--Erroneous Opinions entertained on this
Subject.--Comparative Population of a City in China and in
England.--Famines accounted for.--Means of Prevention.--Causes of
the Populousness of China._ 488
CHAP. X.
Journey through the Province of Canton.--Situation of Foreigners trading
to this Port.--Conclusion.
_Visible Change in the Character of the People.--Rugged
Mountains.--Collieries.--Temple in a Cavern.--Stone
Quarries.--Various Plants for Use and Ornament.--Arrive at
Canton.--Expence of the Embassy to the Chinese Government.--To the
British Nation.--Nature and Inconveniences of the Trade to
Canton.--The Armenian and his Pearl.--Impositions of the Officers
of Government instanced.--Principal Cause of them is the Ignorance
of the Language.--Case of Chinese trading to London.--A Chinese
killed by a Seaman of His Majesty's Ship Madras.--Delinquent saved
from an ignominious Death, by a proper Mode of Communication with
the Government._--Conclusion. 591
LIST OF PLATES.
_Portrait of Van-ta-gin_--the Frontispiece. (_v. p. 184_)
_Trading Vessel_ and _Rice Mill_ to face page 37.
_Portraits_ of a _Chinese_ and a _Hottentot_ to face page 50.
_View_ in the _Imperial Park_ at _Gehol_ to face page 128.
_Artillery_, between pages 302 and 303 with a _guard_.
_Musical Instruments_ between pages 314 and 315 with a guard.
_Arch_ of a _Bridge_ to face page 338.
_Chinese Village_, and Mandarin's Dwelling, to face page 545.
ERRATA.
Page 20 line 12. _add_ a between of and crime
23. -- 2. _for_ twice _read_ thrice
39. line last, _for_ Mario _r._ Marco
44. -- 26. _for_ Toftanague _r._ Tootanague
46. -- 18. _for_ Geraffe _r._ Giraffe
81. -- 1. _add_ to between master and which
103. -- 17. _for_ monuments _r._ Monument
122. -- 7. _add_ the between of and palaces
127. -- 3. _for_ ther _r._ their
142. -- 1. _for_ whit _r._ with
183. -- 13. _for_ the _r._ a
186. -- 4. _for_ loose _r._ lose
224. in the note. _for_ A. Calpurnius _r._ T. Calpurnius
239. -- 13. _after_ cross place X
295. -- 20. _for_ numercial _r._ numerical
394. -- 15. _for_ an _r._ in
---- -- 16. _for_ in _r._ on
416. -- 1. _for_ blook _r._ stock
568. -- 12. _for_ from _r._ form
---- -- -- _for_ form _r._ from
583. -- last. _for_ thegr and _r._ the grand
ADVERTISEMENT.
The sentiments advanced in the present Work, and the point of view in
which some of the facts are considered, being so very different from the
almost universally received opinion, and some of them from the opinion
of those to whose friendship the Author is particularly indebted for
various literary communications, he thinks it right to declare, that
they are the unbiassed conclusions of his own mind, founded altogether
on his own observations; and he trusts that the Public, in considering
him alone responsible, will receive them with its usual candour.
TRAVELS
IN
_CHINA_.
CHAP. I.
PRELIMINARY MATTER.
_Introduction.--General View of what Travellers are likely to meet with
in China.--Mistaken Notions entertained with regard to the British
Embassy--corrected by the Reception and Treatment of the subsequent
Dutch Embassy.--Supposed Points of Failure in the former, as stated by a
French Missionary from Pekin, refuted_.--Kien Long's _Letter to the_
King _of Holland.--Difference of Treatment experienced by the two
Embassies explained.--Intrigues of Missionaries in foreign
Countries.--Pride and Self-Importance of the Chinese Court.--List of
European Embassies, and the Time of their Abode in Pekin.--Conclusion of
Preliminary Subject_.
It is hardly necessary to observe that, after the able and interesting
account of the proceedings and result of the British Embassy to the
court of China, by the late Sir George Staunton (who was no less amiable
for liberality of sentiment, than remarkable for vigour of intellect) it
would be an idle, and, indeed, a superfluous undertaking, in any other
person who accompanied the embassy, to dwell on those subjects which
have been treated by him in so masterly a manner; or to recapitulate
those incidents and transactions, which he has detailed with equal
elegance and accuracy.
But, as it will readily occur to every one, there are still many
interesting subjects, on which Sir George, from the nature of his work,
could only barely touch, and others that did not come within his plan,
one great object of which was to unfold the views of the embassy, and to
shew that every thing, which could be done, was done, for promoting the
interests of the British nation, and supporting the dignity of the
British character; the Author of the present work has ventured, though
with extreme diffidence, and with the consciousness of the disadvantage
under which he must appear after that "Account of the Embassy," to lay
before the public the point of view in which _he_ saw the Chinese
empire, and the Chinese character. In doing this, the same facts will
sometimes necessarily occur, that have already been published, for
reasons that it would be needless to mention; but whenever that happens
to be the case, they will briefly be repeated, for the purpose of
illustrating some position, or for deducing some general inference.
Thus, for instance, the document given to the Embassador of the
population of China will be noticed, not however under the colour of its
being an unquestionably accurate statement, but, on the contrary, to
shew that it neither is, nor can be, correct; yet at the same time to
endeavour to prove, by facts and analogy, that, contrary to the received
opinion, the country is capable of supporting not only three hundred
and thirty-three millions of people, but that it might actually afford
the means of subsistence to twice that number. The confirmation, indeed,
of new and important facts, though very different conclusions be drawn
from them, cannot be entirely unacceptable to the reader; for as
different persons will generally see the same things in different points
of view, so, perhaps, by combining and comparing the different
descriptions and colouring that may be given of the same objects, the
public is enabled to obtain the most correct notions of such matters as
can be learned only from the report of travellers.
With regard to China, if we except the work of Sir George Staunton, and
the limited account of Mr. Bell of Antermony, which was not written by
himself, it may be considered as unbeaten ground by Britons. We have
heard a great deal of Chinese knavery practised at Canton, but, except
in the two works abovementioned, we have not yet heard the sentiments of
an Englishman at all acquainted with the manners, customs, and character
of the Chinese nation. The voluminous communications of the missionaries
are by no means satisfactory; and some of their defects will be noticed
and accounted for in the course of this work; the chief aim of which
will be to shew this extraordinary people in their proper colours, not
as their own moral maxims would represent them, but as they really
are--to divest the court of the tinsel and the tawdry varnish with
which, like the palaces of the Emperor, the missionaries have found it
expedient to cover it in their writings; and to endeavour to draw such a
sketch of the manners, the state of society, the language, literature
and fine arts, the sciences and civil institutions, the religious
worship and opinions, the population and progress of agriculture, the
civil and moral character of the people, as may enable the reader to
settle, in his own mind, _the point of rank which China may be
considered to hold in the scale of civilized nations_.
The stability of the Chinese government; the few changes that have been
made in its civil institutions for such a number of ages; the vast
extent of empire and immense population, forming one society, guided by
the same laws, and governed by the will of a single individual, offer,
as Sir George Staunton has observed, "the grandest collective object
that can be presented for human contemplation or research." The customs,
habits and manners, the wants and resources, the language, sentiments
and religious notions, of "the most ancient society and the most
populous empire existing amongst men," are, without doubt most
interesting subjects for the investigation of the philosopher, and not
unworthy the attention of the statesman. But the expectations of the man
of science, the artist, or the naturalist, might perhaps be rather
disappointed, than their curiosity be gratified, in travelling through
this extensive country. It can boast of few works of art, few remains of
ancient grandeur. The great wall, that for a time defended its peaceable
inhabitants against the attacks of the roving Tartars, the walls of its
numerous cities, with their square towers and lofty gates, and here and
there an old pagoda, are its only architectural antiquities; and, when
these are excepted, there is not perhaps a single building in the whole
extent of China that has withstood the action of three centuries. There
are no ancient palaces nor other public edifices, no paintings nor
pieces of sculpture, to arrest the attention of the traveller, unless
it might be from the novelty of their appearance. In travelling over the
continent of Europe, and more especially on the classic ground of Italy
and Greece, every city, mountain, river, and ruin, are rendered
interesting by something on record which concerns them; the theme of
some poet, the feat of some philosopher or lawgiver, the scene of some
memorable action, they all inspire us with the liveliest sensations, by
reviving in the mind those pleasures which the study of their history
afforded in early life. To Europeans the history of China has hitherto
furnished no materials for such recurrence, and the country itself is
therefore incapable of communicating such impressions. In vain should we
here look for the massy and stupendous fabrics that appear in the
pyramids and the pillars of the ancient Egyptians; the beautiful and
symmetrical works of art displayed in the temples of the Greeks; the
grand and magnificent remains of Roman architecture; or that combination
of convenience and elegance of design which characterize the modern
buildings of Europe. In China every city is nearly the same: a
quadrangular space of ground is enclosed with walls of stone, of brick,
or of earth, all built upon the same plan; the houses within them of the
same construction; and the streets, except the principal ones that run
from gate to gate, invariably narrow. The temples are, nearly, all
alike, of the same awkward design as the dwelling-houses, but on a
larger scale; and the objects that are known in Europe by the name of
pagodas, are of the same inelegant kind of architecture, from one
extremity of the empire to the other, differing only in the number of
rounds or stories, and in the materials of which they are constructed.
The manners, the dress, the amusements of the people, are nearly the
same. Even the surface of the country, as far as regards the fifteen
ancient provinces, is subject to little variation, and especially those
parts over which the grand inland navigation is carried; the only parts,
in fact, that foreigners travelling in China have any chance of
visiting.
In this route no very great variety nor number of subjects occur in the
department of natural history. Few native plants, and still fewer wild
animals, are to be expected in those parts of a country that are
populous and well cultivated. Indeed the rapid manner in which the
present journey was made, was ill suited for collecting and examining
specimens even of those few that did occur.
On these considerations it is hoped that the indulgence of the reader
will not be withheld, where information on such points may appear to be
defective. A French critic[1] (perhaps without doing him injustice he
may be called a hypercritic) who happened to visit Canton for a few
months, some fifty years ago, has, with that happy confidence peculiar
to his nation, not only pointed out the errors and defects of the
information communicated to the world by the English and the Dutch
embassies, but has laid down a syllabus of the subjects they ought to
have made themselves completely acquainted with, which, instead of seven
months, would seem to require a residence of seven years in the country.
But the author of the present work rests his confidence in the English
critics being less unreasonable in their demands; and that their
indulgences will be proportioned to the difficulties that occurred in
collecting accurate information. With this reliance, the descriptions,
observations, and comparisons, such as they are, he presents to the
public, candidly acknowledging that he is actuated rather by the hope of
meeting its forbearance, than by the confidence of deserving its
approbation.
[1] Monsieur (I beg his pardon) _Citoyen_ Charpentier Cossigny.
Perhaps it may not be thought amiss, before he enters on the more
immediate subject of the work, to correct, in this place, a very
mistaken notion that prevailed on the return of the embassy, which was,
that an unconditional compliance of Lord Macartney with all the
humiliating ceremonies which the Chinese might have thought proper to
exact from him, would have been productive of results more favourable to
the views of the embassy. Assertions of such a general nature are more
easily made than refuted, and indeed unworthy of attention; but a letter
of a French missionary at Pekin to the chief of the Dutch factory at
Canton is deserving of some notice, because it specifies the reasons to
which, according to the writer's opinion, was owing the supposed failure
of the British embassy. In speaking of this subject he observes, "Never
was an embassy deserving of better success! whether it be considered on
account of the experience, the wisdom, and the amiable qualities of Lord
Macartney and Sir George Staunton; or of the talents, the knowledge, and
the circumspect behaviour of the gentlemen who composed their Suite; or
of the valuable and curious presents intended for the Emperor--and yet,
strange to tell, never was there an embassy that succeeded so ill!
"You may be curious, perhaps, to know the reason of an event so
unfavourable and so extraordinary. I will tell you in a few words.
These gentlemen, like all strangers, who know China only from books,
were ignorant of the manner of proceeding, of the customs and the
etiquette of this court; and, to add to their misfortune, they brought
with them a Chinese interpreter still less informed than themselves. The
consequence of all which was that, in the first place, they came without
any presents for the Minister of State, or for the sons of the Emperor.
Secondly, they refused to go through the usual ceremony of saluting the
Emperor, without offering any satisfactory reason for such refusal.
Thirdly, They presented themselves in clothes that were too plain, and
too common. Fourthly, They did not use the precaution to fee (graisser
la patte) the several persons appointed to the superintendance of their
affairs. Fifthly, Their demands were not made in the tone and style of
the country. Another reason of their bad success, and, in my mind, the
principal one, was owing to the intrigues of a certain missionary, who,
imagining that this embassy might be injurious to the interests of his
own country, did not fail to excite unfavourable impressions against the
English nation."
The points of failure enumerated in this letter of Monsieur Grammont,
were so many spurs to the Dutch factory to try their success at the
court of Pekin the following year. No sooner did Mr. Van Braam receive
this dispatch, by the return of the English embassy to Canton, than he
prepared a letter for the Commissaries General at Batavia, in which he
informed them, that as it was the intention of the different nations who
had factories established in Canton, to send embassadors to the
Capital, for the purpose of congratulating the Emperor on his attaining
the age of eighty-four years, which would be in the sixtieth year of his
reign, he had resolved to proceed on such a mission on the part of the
Batavian Republic, and requested that he might be furnished, without
delay, with suitable credentials. To this application the Commissaries
General, who had been sent out the same year to retrench the expences of
the Company in their Indian settlements, and to reform abuses, returned
for answer, That, "however low and inadequate their finances might be to
admit of extraordinary expences, yet they deemed it expedient not to
shew any backwardness in adopting similar measures to those pursued by
other Europeans trading to China; and that they had, accordingly,
nominated Mr. Titsingh as chief, and himself (Mr. Van Braam) as second
Embassador to the Court of China."
Mr. Titsingh lost no time in repairing to Canton, and these two
Embassadors, determining to avail themselves of the hints thrown out in
Monsieur Grammont's letter, and thereby to avoid splitting on the same
rock which, they took for granted, the British Embassador had done,
cheerfully submitted to every humiliating ceremony required from them by
the Chinese, who, in return, treated them in the most contemptuous and
indignant manner. At Canton they were ordered to assist in a solemn
procession of Mandarines to a temple in the neighbourhood, and there,
before the Emperor's name, painted on cloth, and suspended above the
altar, to bow their heads nine times to the ground, in token of
gratitude for his great condescension in permitting them to proceed to
his presence, in order to offer him tribute. They submitted even to the
demands of the state-officers of Canton, that the letter, written by the
Commissaries General at Batavia to the Emperor of China, and translated
there into the Chinese language, should be broke open, and the contents
read by them; and that they should further be allowed to make therein
such alterations and additions as they might think proper. The
Embassador, resolving not to be wanting in any point of civility,
requested to know when he might have the honour of paying his respects
to the Viceroy; and received for answer, that the customs of the country
did not allow a person in his situation to come within the walls of the
Viceroy's palace, but that one of his officers should receive his visit
at the gate; which visit _to the gate_ was literally made. Mr. Van
Braam, in relating this circumstance in his journal, observes, that the
Viceroy "assured his Excellency, he ought not to take his refusal amiss,
as the same terms had been prescribed to Lord Macartney the preceding
year." Mr. Van Braam knew very well that Lord Macartney never subjected
himself to any such refusal; and he knew too, that the same Viceroy
accompanied his Lordship in a great part of his journey from the
Capital: that he partook of a repast, on the invitation of Lord
Macartney, at the British factory; when, for the first time, both Mr.
Van Braam and the supercargoes of all the European nations had been
permitted to sit down in the presence of one of his rank.
At Pekin they were required to humiliate themselves at least thirty
different times, at each of which they were obliged, on their knees, to
knock their heads nine times against the ground, which Mr. Van Braam,
in his journal, very coolly calls, performing the salute of honour,
"_faire le salut d'honneur_." And they were finally dismissed, with a
few paltry pieces of silk, without having once been allowed to open
their lips on any kind of business; and without being permitted to see
either their friend Grammont, or any other European missionary, except
one, who had special leave to make them a visit of half an hour, the day
before their departure, in presence of ten or twelve officers of
government. On their arrival in this Capital they were lodged,
literally, in a stable; under the same cover, and in the same apartment,
with a parcel of cart-horses. Mr. Van Braam's own words are, "_Nous
voilà donc à notre arrivée dans la célèbre residence impériale, logés
dans une espèce d'écurie. Nous serions nous attendus à une pareille
avanture!_"
After such a vile reception and degrading treatment of the Dutch
Embassy, what advantages can reasonably be expected to accrue from a
servile and unconditional compliance with the submissions required by
this haughty government? It would rather seem that their exactions are
proportioned to the complying temper of the persons with whom they have
to treat. For it appears, not only from Mr. Van Braam's own account of
the Embassy, but also from two manuscript journals in the Author's
possession, one kept by a Dutch gentleman in the suite, and the other by
a native Chinese, that the Embassadors from the Batavian Republic were
fully prepared to obviate every difficulty that might arise from the
supposed points of failure in the British Embassy, as directed to their
notice by M. Grammont. In the first place, they not only carried
presents for the Ministers of State, but they calmly suffered these
gentlemen to trick them out of the only curious and valuable articles
among the presents intended for the Emperor, and to substitute others,
of a mean and common nature, in their place. Secondly, they not only
complied with going through the usual ceremony of saluting the Emperor,
but also of saluting the Emperor's name, painted on a piece of silk, at
least fifty times, on their journey to and from the Capital: which
degrading ceremony they even condescended to perform before the person
of the Prime Minister. With regard to the third point, it certainly
appears that no expence had been spared in providing themselves with
splendid robes for the occasion; but, unfortunately, they had but few
opportunities of making use of them, their baggage not arriving at the
Capital till many days after they had been there. Nor does it seem that
the dress of a foreign Embassador is considered of much consequence in
the eyes of the Chinese; for, when these gentlemen wished to excuse
themselves from going to court, on account of their dusty and tattered
clothes, in which they had performed a most painful journey, the Master
of the Ceremonies observed, that it was not their _dress_, but their
_persons_, which the Emperor, his master, was desirous to see. And, it
can hardly be supposed, they would omit observing the fourth article,
which, Mr. Grammont is of opinion, was neglected by Lord Macartney. And,
in the last place, they stand fully acquitted of any want of _humility_
in the tone and style of their communications, after having allowed
their credentials to be new modelled by the officers of Government at
Canton; from which city they had also an interpreter, a very proper one,
no doubt, appointed to attend them.
Their mission, it is true, was not well calculated for making terms or
rejecting proposals. The Chinese were not unacquainted with the
declining finances of the Dutch; they knew very well that the embassy
had originated in Canton, and that it was accredited only from their
superiors in Batavia. In their journey they were harassed beyond
measure; sometimes they were lodged in wretched hovels, without
furniture and without cover; sometimes they were obliged to pass the
night in the open air, when the temperature was below the freezing
point; frequently for four and twenty hours they had nothing to eat. Van
Braam observes that, owing to the fatigues of the journey, the badness
of the victuals, their early rising and exposure to the cold, he lost
about five inches in the circumference of his body. Being rather
corpulent, and not very expert in performing the Chinese ceremony at
their public introduction, his hat happened to fall on the ground, upon
which the old Emperor began to laugh. "Thus," says he, "I received a
mark of distinction and predilection, such as never Embassador was
honoured with before. I confess," continues he, "that the recollection
of my sufferings from the cold in waiting so long in the morning, was
very much softened by this incident." No man will certainly envy this
gentleman's happy turn of mind, in receiving so much satisfaction in
being laughed at.
The tone of the Emperor's letter, with which they were dismissed, while
it speaks the vain and arrogant sentiments of this haughty government,
shews at the same time how well acquainted they were with the
circumstances that gave rise to the mission, and the degree of
estimation in which they held it. It was written in the Tartar,
Chinese, and Latin languages, from the last of which, as rendered by the
missionaries, the following is a literal translation. The contents were
addressed to the Council of India, but on the outside wrapper, "_To the
King of Holland_." It may serve at the same time as a specimen of
Chinese composition.
"I have received from heaven the sceptre of this vast empire. I have
reigned for sixty years with glory and happiness; and have established
the most profound peace upon the four seas[2] of the said empire, to the
benefit of the nations bordering upon them. The fame of my majesty and
proofs of my magnificence have found their way into every part of the
world, and they constitute the pride and the pleasure of my vast
domains.
[2] This expression alludes to the ancient opinion that China was
surrounded by the sea, and that the rest of the world was made up of
islands. Yet though they now possess a tolerable notion of geography,
such is their inveterate adherence to ancient opinion, that they prefer
retaining the most absurd errors, rather than change one single
sentiment or expression that Confucius has written.
"I consider my own happy empire, and other kingdoms, as one and the same
family; the princes and the people are, in my eye, the same men. I
condescend to shed my blessings over all, strangers as well as natives;
and there is no country, however distant, that has not received
instances of my benevolence. Thus, all nations send to do me homage, and
to congratulate me incessantly. New and successive Embassadors arrive,
some drawn in chariots over land, and others traverse, in their ships,
the immensity of the seas. In fact, I attend to nothing but the good
administration of my empire. I feel a lively joy in observing the
anxiety with which they flock together from every quarter to contemplate
and admire the wise administration of my government. I experience the
most agreeable satisfaction in participating my happiness with foreign
states. I applaud therefore your government, which, although separated
from mine by an immense ocean, has not failed to send me congratulatory
letters, accompanied with tributary offerings.
"Having perused your letters, I observe that they contain nothing but
what I consider as authentic testimonies of your great veneration for
me, from whence I conclude that you admire my mode of governing. In
fact, you have great reason to applaud me. Since you have carried on
your trade at Canton, (and it is now many years,) strangers have always
been well treated in my empire; and they have individually been the
objects of my love and affection. I might call to witness the
Portuguese, the Italians, the English, and others of the same sort of
nations, who are all equally esteemed by me, and have all presented me
with precious gifts. All have been treated, on my part, after the same
manner, and without any partiality. I give abundantly even when those
things I received from them are of no value. My manner of doing these
things is undoubtedly known in your country.
"Concerning your Embassador, he is not, properly speaking, sent by his
King; but you, who are a company of merchants, have supposed yourselves
authorized to pay me this respect. Your Sovereign, however, having
directed you to chuse a favourable moment of my reign, you have now sent
to felicitate me accordingly in the name of your said Sovereign. The
sixtieth year of my reign was about to be completed. You, a company, too
distant from your Sovereign, could not announce it to him. Interpreting
this to be his pleasure, you have undertaken to send, in his name, to do
me homage; and I have no doubt this prince is inspired towards me with
the same sentiments which I have experienced in you. I have, therefore,
received your Embassador as if he had been sent immediately by his King.
And I am desirous you should be made acquainted that I have remarked
nothing in the person of your Embassador, but what bore testimony of his
respect for me, and of his own good conduct.
"I commanded my great officers to introduce him to my presence. I gave
him several entertainments, and permitted him to see the grounds and the
palaces that are within my vast and magnificent gardens of
_Yuen-min-yuen_. I have so acted that he might feel the effects of my
attention, dividing with him the pleasures which the profound peace of
my empire allows me to enjoy. I have, moreover, made valuable presents,
not only to him, but also to the officers, interpreters, soldiers, and
servants of his suite, giving them, besides what is customary, many
other articles, as may be seen by the catalogue.
"Your Embassador being about to return to the presence of his sovereign,
I have directed him to present to this Prince pieces of silk and other
valuable articles to which I have added some antique vases.
"May your King receive my present. May he govern his people with wisdom;
and give his sole attention to this grand object, acting always with an
upright and sincere heart: and, lastly, may he always cherish the
recollection of my beneficence! May this King attentively watch over the
affairs of his kingdom. I recommend it to him strongly and earnestly.
"The twenty-fourth day of the first moon of the sixtieth year of the
reign of Kien Long."
The very different treatment which the English embassy received at the
court of Pekin is easily explained. The Chinese are well informed of the
superiority of the English over all other nations by sea; of the great
extent of their commerce; of their vast possessions in India which they
have long regarded with a jealous eye; and of the character and
independent spirit of the nation. They perceived, in the manly and open
conduct of Lord Macartney, the representative of a sovereign in no way
inferior to the Emperor of China, and they felt the propriety, though
they were unwilling to avow it, of exacting only the same token of
respect from him towards their sovereign, that one of their own
countrymen, of equal rank, should pay to the portrait of his Britannic
majesty. It must, however, have been a hard struggle between personal
pride, and national importance, before they resolved to reject so fair a
proposal, and consent to wave a ceremony which had never, on any former
occasion, been dispensed with. It is easy to conceive how strong an
impression the refusal of an individual to comply with the ceremonies of
the country was likely to make on the minds of the Emperor and his
court; how much they must have suffered in their own opinion, and how
greatly must their pride have been mortified, to find that by no trick,
nor artifice, nor stretch of power, could they prevail on an English
Embassador to forego the dignity and respect due to the situation he
held at their court, whither they were now convinced he had not come, as
was signified in painted letters on the colours of the ships that
transported the embassy up the _Pei-ho_, "_to offer tribute to the
Emperor of China_."
With regard to the intrigues of the Portugueze missionary, mentioned in
Mr. Grammont's letter, Lord Macartney was sufficiently aware of them
long before his arrival in the capital, and took such measures, in
consequence of the information, as were most likely to be effectual in
counteracting any influence that he might secretly exert, injurious to
the interests of the British nation. But the intrigues of churchmen are
not always easily obviated, especially where they are suspicious of
their errors being exposed or their ignorance detected. It is a painful
truth (and is noticed here with reluctance, on account of the many
worthy members of the society) that the ministers of a certain branch of
a religion whose distinguishing feature is meekness and forbearance,
should have so far perverted the intention of its benevolent author, as
to have produced more intrigues, cabals, and persecutions, than even the
relentless Mahomedans, whose first article of faith inculcates merit in
destroying those of a different persuasion. Their political intrigues
and interference in state affairs, have done material injury to the
cause of Christianity in almost every country into which their missions
have extended.