ÆäÀÌÁö À̹ÌÁö
PDF
ePub
[ocr errors]

commended. They are dated previous to the arrival at Canton.

To all who have considered with attention the proceedings and result of the former British embassy to China, the complete success of the present embassy must seem almost impossible; some even entertain doubts of its reception; my apprehensions do not, however, extend so far; usage, and a certain degree of satisfaction at the compliment intended, will probably induce the Emperor to receive the embassy; unless, as in the case of the last Russian Embassador, Count Golovkin, a dispute in limine upon ceremonial should prove fatal. The Directors themselves, who are to be considered as the authors of the measure, almost disclaim the hope of new concessions; and although redress of grievances enters into their contemplation, yet as that involves complaints against persons possessed of influence at Pekin, success is scarcely to be expected, and ought not to be attempted without the utmost caution. Secure enjoyment of whatever privileges now exist, or, more properly, stability in the regulations for conducting the trade, is the limit of all probable calculations. Should the result of the embassy be confined to a bare reception, the measure cannot be considered as having wholly failed; access will be obtained to the Emperor, and unless complaints be preferred, and redress refused, the local government of Canton cannot acquire the certainty of impunity.

The recent success of the decisive, if not desperate, measures pursued by the select committee in their disputes with the Viceroy of Canton, will, in the opinion of many, recommend a similar tone being adopted in the approaching intercourse with the court of Pekin. A striking difference in the two scenes ought not to be overlooked; at Canton the weapon wielded, the threat of stopping the trade, was at hand, and the enemy within reach; the

injury inflicted, a diminution of revenue, was immediate, and the trauquillity of the province might be endangered by the loss of livelihood to the numerous persons now

employed in the trade. Whatever, therefore, might be the ultimate result of the contest between the factory and the Chinese government, the ruin of the Viceroy under whom it occurred was inevitable. Very different, however, are the circumstances under which a similar policy would be adopted at Pekin. Neither the instructions of his Majesty's ministers, nor the views of the Court of Directors, contem

plate the reception of the embassy being compelled by threats of resenting its rejection. The principles laid down are conciliation and compliment: indeed the sole chance of success to the ulterior objects of the embassy, exists in producing a

favourable impression upon the mind of the Emperor; and this can only be effected by complying with the particular usages of the court and nation, as far as a due sense of our own diguity, combined with considerations of policy, will permit. It would be neither decorous nor politic to render the continuance of the ordinary commercial intercourse dependent upon the proceedings of the embassy; the hands of the Embassador are therefore unarm

ed; and while indefinite threats might. provoke, they would certainly fail of intimidating. Ceremonial observances required, as in the case of the Dutch em bassy, for the obvious purpose of reducing us to a level with missions from Corea and the Lew-chew islands, should be refused, not only as degrading but inexpedient; however, should the reception or rejection of the embassy depend upon an adherence,on the present occasion, to the mode observed in the case of all former European embassadors admitted to an audience, except Lord Macartney, I should have no hesitation in giving up the maintenance of the single exception as a precedent, from a belief that the dismissal of the embassy, without access being obtained to the imperial presence, would be a confirmation to the present and future Viceroys of Canton, that their own interest is the only check to their extortion and injustice. P. 77.

The secondary objects of the expedition were not neglected. The suite of the embassador was composed of men distinguished for their science and skill in different departments, whose researches might add to our knowledge of the natural productions of the country, and the geological composition of its soil. It was intended that the vessels should em

ploy the time which would be spent by the embassy in the interior, in prosecuting a voyage of discovery in the Gulf of Pe-tchelee and the Eastern sea. The command of the naval part of the expedition was intrusted to Capt. Murray Maxwell, whom Lord Amherst selected" from motives. of personal friendship, as well as from the high opinion he entertained of his professional character;" and whose able and decided conduct on several occasions of peculiar difficulty, which occurred during the voyage, most fully jus

tified the choice. The Alceste, a frigate of forty-six guns, and the brig Lyra commanded by Capt. Hall, were appointed to conduct the expedition. The presents, consisting of valuable specimens of our improved manufactures, made by the best hands, were conveyed in the General Hewitt, Indiaman, under the command of Captain Campbell. All expenses attending the embassy were to be defrayed by the East India Company, for whose interest, and at whose solicitation it was undertaken,

On the 9th of February 1816 the ships sailed from Spithead, and proceeded in company until they reached the latitude 20° 4 south, where they separated, the Lyra and General Hewitt continuing their voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, while the Alceste directed its course to Rio Janeiro, where she arrived on the 21st of March. The superiority of that ship in sailing assured Captain Maxwell that the deviation from the direct course could occasion no ultimate delay in the arrival of the expedition, and he was glad to seize this opportunity of visiting the seat of a government, which even now occupies a respectable rank in the political system of Europe, and which at former periods has been pre-eminent for enterprise, and with very small means has extended its authority over every quarter of the globe.

The death of the queen, which happened the day previous to their arrival, had given a melancholy appearance to the city of St. Sebastian. Five-minute guns were fired by the ships and the batteries in the harbour, all public amusements were suspended, and the mourning among the inhabitants was universal, in obedience to an order of the government, which none dared under the severest penalties to disobey. The unfavorable impression which the general gloom tended to create, was

probably not diminished by the failure in the customary attentions to the ambassador and his suite, for which the solemnity of the occasion was alleged as an excuse, but which the rank of the individual, and the close political connection which has of late subsisted between the two nations, seemed at any time to require. But we bclieve the opinion that was formed was not unjust, and under no circumstances would the visitors at a Portuguese settlement take a favorable view of the character of the people. Destitute of all energy, bodily and mental, they retain no resemblance to their great progenitors; it seems as though the force of their genius had been expended in the heroic achievements of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and their present exhaustion were the consequence of their former excitement. The glories of their forefathers reflect no honor on their degenerate offspring,. but rather heighten by contrast the meanness of their present degradation. It would be interesting, were it not foreign to our subject, to enquire into the various causes of this deterioration, but at present we can only notice as one of them, the blighting influence of a government, which is despotic and oppressive in the extreme. The Portuguese government, too indolent to engage the energies of the people in the promotion of the public prosperity, is also too jealous of individual eminence to allow them to be employed in the accumulation of private wealth, or the attainment of honor and reputation. Prompted by absurd fears, it imposes innumerable restrictions on private intercourse, which are not less useless than vexatious: all conversation on affairs of state is strictly prohibited, and the very name of Bonaparte, who from his vicinity to the Brazilian shore is peculiarly an object of terror, is forbidden to

as

be uttered; and so rigidly are these regulations enforced, that even English frequently lose from long residence their natural free dom of conduct, and, if any enquiry is made relative to public transactions, look cautiously around, and then whisper their reply. In subservience to that policy by which the inquisition has always been actuated, all liberality of sentiment is checked, and the diffusion of knowledge obstructed, the government sacrificing the prosperity of the nation to the maintenance of its own authority, and choosing rather to tyrannize in its little sphere, even though it should itself be eventually subjected to foreign domination. Its interference extends to the domestic affairs of families, which are regulated, as the imaginary interests of the state, or the views of the favorites of the court, may dictate. In short, no class seems exempt from its oppression except the priesthood, who are described " occupying every avenue to the palace, and hanging in clusters on the staircases," and who never prevail but to the exclusion of knowledge and civilization; whose avarice is constantly diverting the capital of the country into unprofitable channels, and whose very charity only operates to the encouragement of idleness and beggary. The consequence of this system is such as might be expect ed: with advantages from local situation, from the fertility of the soil, the salubrity of the climate, the number of their harbours, and the insurgent state of the neigh bouring Spanish provinces, which were scarcely ever equalled by any nation, the Portuguese know not how to make use of them; and instead of erecting a powerful empire on the ruins of the Spanish possessions, are themselves in dan ger of being swallowed up in those convulsions by which the neighbouring states are agitated. The trade is almost exclusively in the Asiatic Journ.-No. 29.

[ocr errors]

hands of English houses: the aqueduct, and the botanical garden, with a few other establishments, remain as memorials of the more enterprising spirit of former years, but derive no support from the government, and will it is to be feared soon fall into decay. Although the climate and exuberance of the soil would admit of the cultivation of the fruits of almost any country, the natives are too indolent to produce them. The tea plant flourishes here, and might, no doubt, with proper encouragement, be cultivated to an extent most beneficial to the colony itself, and to the revenues of the state; but the court is too careless to pay that attention to it which would be requisite.

From this view of the moral de-. gradation of the people, we turn with pleasure to the natural beauties of the country, which are described by Mr. Ellis in the most glowing colours. We will present our readers with his own delineation of the scenes, as it contains on the whole a favorable specimen of his style.

Speaking of the entrance into the harbour of Rio Janeira, he says:

[ocr errors]

The morning found us nearly in the centre of an amphitheatre of mountains, at the distance of seven miles. An opening between two extremes of land marked the entrance of the harbour; on the right is the fort of Santa Cruz, on the left that of Saint Lucie. The ranges presented in most places conical summits, and although one has especially obtained the appellation of Sugar Loaf, it is rather from its superior precipitous height, than form its being the beauty of the scenery is principally singular in its shape. At this distance. derived from the extent and impressive variety of the forms assumed by the dif ferent ranges. The entrance to the harbour seemed about three quarters of a mile in breadth; and ranges of mountains, whose relative distances were marked by the position of the clouds resting upon their summits, formed the back ground. On approaching nearer to the

entrance the scene became indescribably

sublime and beautiful; the mountains that had formed the amphitheatre, on a nearer view divided themselves into isVOL.V. 3 R

lands and separate headlands; several were covered with thick though not lofty woods. Fortifications, detached houses, villages, and convents, occupied different positions; the eye wandered over an endless variety of picturesque combinations, presenting a mass of wondrous scenery, of which although detached parts might be within the reach of the painter, the general effect must equally defy pictorial and verbal description. In variety of expression the scene somewhat resembled the harbour of Constantinople, but the features of nature are here on a grander

scale.-P. 3.

administration which is there contained, without most fully concurring in the sentiment of Mr. Ellis, "that the history of the colonial policy of Europeans can scarcely present an instance of greater mismanagement than the administration of Java by the Dutch EastIndia Company." While from feelings of humanity we cannot but lament the restoration of the island to hands so unworthy of holding it, policy leads us to regret the loss of a possession so sin

Again, he describes an excursion to the house of Mr. Langsdorf, the Russian consul, in the follow-gularly adapted, from its geograing words:

:

The whole of the road, from the commencement of the ascent to the summit, presented a succession of beautiful scenery. An immense ravine, richly and imperviously wooded, occupied the bottom, and the ascent rose in undiminished verdure and fertility to all the sublimity

of mountain magnificence. The total failure of the rains this season has taken much from the brilliancy of the verdure and the variety of the flowers, with which the earth and trees are usually covered

;

enough, however, still remained to gratify the unaccustomed eye. The rexia, mimosa, acacia, and fern grow to the size of large trees; and the shrubs, which in England are the reward of labour and

artificial aid, here swarm in all the wild

profusion of bounteous nature. The air, earth, and water, are in this country ever teeming with new productions, the elements are ever generating, and nature

never rests from the exercise of her creative faculties. Here and there a house was seen peeping from the midst of the woody ravine, as if to show that no place was secure from the tread of adventurous man.-P. 7.

On the 31st of March, the Alceste proceeded on her voyage, and after touching at the Cape, where she remained nearly three weeks, anchored in Anjere Roads on the 9th of June, two days after the arrival of the Lyra.

It would be useless to repeat the observations of Mr. Ellis on the country and people of Java, as the same opinions have been detailed more at length by Sir Thos. Raffles in his admirable history of that island. We believe none can peruse the account of the Dutch

phical situation, and its frequent communication with China, to be of essential service in any dispute with that capricious country.

On the 10th of July the Alceste arrived at the Lemma islands, which was the place of rendezvous appointed for the reinforcement from the factory at Macao. Here they found Sir Geo. Staunton and the other gentlemen who were exThe appected to join them. proach of the embassy had been communicated to the Foo-yuen at Canton, and the gracious manner in which the intelligence was received, as well as the tranquillity with which the trade had been carried on for fourteen months previously, were calculated to give an impression that the dispositions of the court were amicable. George Staunton, however, did not consider the period of its arrival as favorable to the attainment of its objects; the personal alarms of the Emperor, produced by the attempt to assassinate him, and the general belief that the late disturbances were fermented by the Christian converts, a belief which does not appear to have been wholly unfounded, were calculated to increase the usual jealousy of foreigners, forming such a peculiar feature in Chinese policy.

Sir

On the 12th, while the ships were getting under weigh, a copy of an imperial edict, in answer to the report of the Foo-yuen, was

received, declaring that "as the English nation offered presents (or tribute,) and tendered its sincere good-will with feelings and in language respectful and complaisant, it was doubtless right to allow them a gracious reception." What appeared to be offensive in the style was forgiven in consideration of the satisfactory nature of the matter, and the ships proceeded without delay to the mouth of the Pei-ho.

After a short and prosperous passage they entered on the 24th the gulf of Petchelee, and on the 25th the Lyra was dispatched to announce their approach, and to require the same number of boats as were supplied on the former occasion, for the accommodation of the embassador and his suite, and the conveyance of the presents. A Tartar named Kwang, with the temporary rank of Chin-chae or imperial commissioner, and a Chinese of the name of Soo, formerly Hoppo at Canton, had been appointed to conduct the embassy to Pekin; but the rapidity of their passage had outstripped the expectations of the Chinese, and no arrangements were as yet made for their reception. From the unsettled state of the weather, and the preliminary ceremonies which were necessary, the disembarkation did not take place until the 9th of August, when Lord Amherst left the ship and had an interview with the Chin-chae in his barge on the river. The regularity which was preserved in the transhipment of the baggage excited the admiration of Mr. Ellis. He found that the remuneration to the owners of the boats, for the service in which they were engaged, would depend upon satisfaction being given; and that if the report of their conduct should be favorable, they would be liberally rewarded by the Emperor; if otherwise, they would be punished. In ordinary mercantile adventures, it is customary for the crew to have

shares in the cargo, and to be paid partly in direct wages and partly in the profits of the voyage. This arrangement seems to mark that the greater part of the commerce of the country is not in the hands of large capitalists.

The attention of Lord Amherst was early called to the great question of Ko-tou. Whether from suspicion that the intention of the English was to resist the performance of it, or from the desire of subjecting them to frequent humiliation, the mandarins alluded to the subject in their first interview, observing that practice was required to secure its being decorously performed before the Emperor. The discussion was considered as premature, and an evasive answer was returned; but when it was announced that an imperial banquet would be prepared for them at Tien-sing, it was evident that the subject could no longer be avoided, and it became necessary to determine what line of conduct should be pursued.

The Ko-tou is a ceremony consisting of three prostations, and nine times striking the forehead against the ground, which was introduced into China by its Tartar conquerors, and has been since tenaciously maintained as a part of the etiquette of the court. It appears to be a religious rite used to the Emperor, though denied to some of the inferior deities; and to be a part of that system which secures the universal veneration of the sovereign, by exalting him into a being of a nature superior to that of his subjects. Its performance is required not only in the imperial presence, but on many other occasions also, in which his presence is supposed by a fiction. Thus when a banquet is given by his orders, his place is supplied by a table which has the front covered with yellow silk, and a lighted censer placed upon it; and the Kotou is customarily performed before this symbol of the imperial

« ÀÌÀü°è¼Ó »