The Sun.
London, England, 1857-03-12 00:00:00

Tll E SUN; LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, MARC.FI 12, 1887.

ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE.
Lessee, Mr. C. Dillon.

THIS EVENING, will be performed the romantic drama
of DON' CrESAR DE BAZAN, with new scenery, c),,umes,
&c. Don Caesar, Mr. Dillon.
Followed by the gorgeous burlesque of CONRAD AND
MEDORA. Miss Woolgar, Mr. J. L. Toole, &e.
After which, a new farce, entitled MY FRI SD FROM
LEATHERHEAD. Mr. Toole, Miss Wilton, and Mrs. B.
White.

The box-office open daily, from 11 to 5, under the super
atendenco of Mr. Chatterton, jun.
Carriages conveying parties t a the Private Boxes to set
down at the State entrance in Burleigh-street.

.Inua WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.

rl3lB ;)Al.—Morn. 10 win. aft. 3—Evening 24 mid. aft. 3
l'n-"'oitl4uw—Morn.37 min. aft. 3—Evening 51 min.eft. 3

WEA.THEI).-SoN OFFICE, MAnat 12.
THIZEMOAMER, IN THISI SHADS.
44 - hlgtebi. elute noon yesterday.
33 -:owest this morning and during the night.
45 -this day at noon.
RAnourrsm, 3006.
WIND, Westerly—Light, with dull weather.
Two o'CLocic.—Wind, S. W.—Slight rain.

y • 4
(„1 7ti
4 C §Ult

of the land. A little exertion will also secure the
satisfactory adjustment of Church Rates. We
trust that the necessary steps will not be omitted
to secure these great objects.

Major-General, rather Colonel, THOMPSON, once
more for Bradford ! No announcement of pos-
sille changes will give genuine Reformers, and
grateful Free-traders, more pleasure than tbis.
His failure at the last contest in Bradford was
unhappily due to a piece of Ecclesiastical revenge.
The Catholics, for whom he had laboured so effi-
ciently to procure Emancipation, could not for-
give him his opposition to what went by the name
of " The Papal Aggression." We will not revert
afresh to the discreditable stratagem, by whici),
under archiepiscopal direction, they ejected, on a
petty quarrel, the man who had done so much for
them in the great contest. Suffice it to say that
Catholicism is, we trust, on the one hand not im-
placable and ungrateful, that Liberals are not
unforgiving ; and that an opportunity is now
offered to the Catholic voters of showing that they
remember great services, although, unwisely and
unkindly we think, they resented at the last elec-
tion a then recent affront. As the consequence they
then procured the return of a man who, however
worthy iu other respects, was one of the " No-
Popery school," and who would, certainly, rather
have put some of the old fetters on Catholics
Again than have granted them fresh liberties.

Mr. MILLIGAN, a thoroughly consistent Liberal,
retires, the demand on his health being too
severe ; an opeaing occurs, and the Liberals have
prepared to contest the borough with Taus SALT,
Esq., the noble-minded proprietor of the world-
famous Saltaire manufactory, and Col. THOMPSON,
for their candidates. A more unexceptionable
choice for this great centre of the worsted trade
could scarcely have been made. No one can better
understand the business details and requirements
of the trade of Bradford than Mr. SILT ; while
ao living Free-trader can be mentioned with Col.
THOMPSON, as the philosophical populariser of
Free-trade principles. A better combination of
theory and practice could hardly represent any
business constituency in the kingdom.
Some hints have been dropped of the more Con-
servative Whigs supporting Mr. WICKMAN, the
Tory candidate. We trust that they will not thus,
,o far as Bradford is concerned, set the Example
,)f weakening and dividing the Liberal interest.
The wealthy manufacturer of Saltaire —a Liberal,
-00, as consistent as wealthy—may well satisfy
;he most Conservative of the Liberals ; and in
borough with such a large amount in it of Radi-
calism as Bradford, it is but fair that Radicals
should return one member. When the choice of
the latter rests on a candidate renowned through-
,ut Civilisation for his literary attainments and
writings, even the old-school Whigs may well be
proud to keep all Liberal electors together by
Aiding in the return of a Candidate who will
,to them more honour than they can do him. They
are" nob asked to vote for a demagogue, but for an
.i.uthor to whose writings on Free Trade Bradford
owes perhaps half its present prosperity. Even if
his Reform principles do go further than theirs,
they may comfort themselves with the certainty of
their not being carried out in the new Parliament
elected under the auspices of Lord PALMERSTON ;
while the whole town, and every manufacturing
town in the kingdom, owes him a debt, which
RICHARD COBDEN himself and JOHN BRIGHT
would tell them they could never repay. If they
pass over this opportunity of doing honour to the
A.poetle of Free Trade another may never occur;
the town did well to honour a departed nun, but
it would do better to honour a living TmomrsoN.
Why should death be necessary to open people's
eyes to the merits of men whom they neglected
when living ?

LATEST NEWS.

THE OVERLAND MAIL.

CHINA AND INDIA.
TRIESTE, MARCH 11.
The steamer Calcutta arrived here to-day at
3 p.m. in 114 hours from Alexandria.

The India mails had arrived as Alexandria, with
advices from Bombay to the 6th of February ;
Calcutta, 7th of February ; Madras, 13th of
February ; and Hong Kong, 30th of January.
At Hong Kong the attempt to poison the com-
munity. hid caused great consternation. One
partner of the baking establishment had been
arrested and committed for trial with nine other
Chinese.

" Admiral Seymour had withdrawn from the
Gardens and Dutch Folly Fort.
"As a reprisal for the treacherous attempt
against the British, the Western suburbs of Canton
have been burnt down.

" Exchange at Hong Kong, 4s. Bid. to 4s. 91d.
`• At Foochow teas were arriving slowly and
prices were high.
" At Shanghai holders were looking out for a
further rise.

" Silk settlements were 2,000 bales, with $lO

advance.
" Exchange, 6s. Bd.
Tho i.t.UTgence from Bushire is to the 23d of

January.
The general health of the army was good, and
supplies were plentiful.
No further military operations had taken place.
General Outram had not yet arrived.
The Conferences between Sir J. Lawrence and
Dost Mahomed broke up on the 28th of January,
when the Ameer left for Cabul.
It is asserted that a British Residency is about
to be established at Candahar.
The Bombay money market was easier.
Imports were steady. Exchange, 2s. lid.
At Calcutta exchange was 2s. 2id.
The improvement in the import market was well
maintained.
The New Five per Cent. Loan was progressing
very slowly.

It is said that the Emperor Napoleon has offered
the Spanish Government to act as mediator in the
differences with Mexico. Some French ships of
war have been ordered to cruise off Vera Cruz.

The Colombo arrived at Alexandria on the morn-
ing of the 11th inst. At that time the Euxine from
Marseilles was not yet in sight.

A Paris letter, in the Nord of Brussels, says :
" The French squadron in the China seas is about
to be reinforced, and an arrangement has been con-
chided to that effect between Count Walewski,
Lord Cowley, and Admiral Hamelin."

The correspondents of foreign journals (says
the Constitutionnel) speak of what has taken
place at the two sittings held by the Conference
on the Neuchatel question. Their remarks on the
subject can only be mere conjectures, as the pleni-
potentiaries have come to an understanding to keep
secret all the details of the negotiation. The repre-
sentative of Switzerland has not yet taken ary
part in the deliberations, because as long as the
only matter before the Conferenge was the principle
of renunciation the Swiss envoy was not convoked
to the sitting, but he will be called on to take part
in the deliberations as soon as the details of the
question are entered on. The conferences will pro-
bably be resumed this week, 'and there is every
reason to hope that they will lead to a favourable
result."

FRANCE.

PARIS, WEDNESDAY EVENING.

The Moniteur contains a decree allowing a num-
ber of French officers and others to accept and wear
different foreign decorations.
A telegraphic despatch from Constantinople of
the 4th announces that the bank had just been con-
stituted.

BOURSE, Afirch 11.—The following were the las'
quotations :
Cash. fr. c.
44 per Cents
3 per Cents 7O 90
New Loan —
Bank Shares 4,200 Roman
Credit Mobilier 1,420 Austrian
Belgian Fives — Spanish Threes
Pied wontese (5) ...... . 91 50 Home Debt
RAILWAYS—FOR CASH.

End of Month.
—fr. ---c.
71 25

fr. C. fr c
Orleans 1,450 Western
Northern 982 50 Strasburg .. 853
Lyons 1,480 NOW Ditto
Mediterranean ......1,950 Grand Central
Lyons Geneva
Cette

THE STATJ? OF CHINA.
BY SIR J. BONING.

The following letter, addressed to the Registrar-
General, London, by Sir John Bowring, has been
published in the "Journal of the Statistical So-
ciety :"

"Government house, Hong Kong, July 13, 1855.
"Sir,—l wish it were possible to give a satisfactory
reply to your idquiries as to the real population of
China.

" There has been no official census taken since the
time of Ilia King, 43 years ago. Much doubt has bee❑
thrown upon the accuracy of these returns, which gave
362,447,183 as the total number of the inhabitants of
China I think our greater knowledge of the country
increases the evidence in favour of the apprt ximate cor-
rectness of the official document, and that we may with
tolerable safety estimate the present population of the
Chinese empire as between 350,000,000 and 400,000,000
of human being.% The penal laws of China make provi-
sion for a general Fy3tem of registration ; and corporal
punishments, generally amounting t 100 blows of the
bamboo, are to be inflicted on thi se who iwglect to make
the proper returns. Tho machinery is confided to the
elders of the district, and the census is required to be
annually taken ; but I have no reason to believe that the
law is obeyed or the neglect of it punished.
"In the English translatio❑ of Father Alvares Se-
medo's 'History of China,' published in London,
A.D. 1655, is the following passage :
" This kingdom is so exceedingly populous that,
having lived there 22 years, I was in no less amazement
at my coming away than in the beginning at the multi-
tude of the people. Certainly the truth exceedeth all
hyperboles ; not only in the cities, towns, and public
places, but also in the highway there is as great a con-
course as is usual in Europe ou some great festival.
And if we will refer ourse:ves to the general register-
book wherein only the common men are enrolled, leaving
out women, children, eunuchs, professors of letters and
arms, there are reckoned of them to be fifty-eight mil-
lions fifty-five thouand one hundred and four score.'
The minuteness of the enumeration would seem to show
that the father quoted some official document.
" I forward herewith two tabular statements which I
have copied from Dr. Williams's Middle Kingdom,'
one of the bent bootie on'ehina. The first (No. 1) gives
a list of the various estimates :from A.D. 1393 to 1812,
with the authorities quoted. The second is a rearranged
statement of censuses taken at different periods (No. 2).
"As there are few Men in China more diligent or
better instructed than Dr. Williams, I thought it desir-
able to communicate with him in order to ascertain his
present views as to the credit which may properly be at-
tached to the official statistics of China. I send a copy
of his letter (No. 3).

"I do not know that there is any safer course than
to reason from details; to generals, from the known to
the unknown ; and I have taken every opportunity
which my intercourse with the Chinese I-as afforded me,
to obtain, if not correct, at least approximative, infor-
mation as to the true statistics of the country. It may
be affirmed without any hesitation that, as regards the
Five Ports and the adjacent districts to which we have
access, the population is so numerous as to furnish ar-
guments that the number of inhabitants of the entire
empire is very much greater than is represented by the
official returns. These localities cannot be taken as fair
averages ; for, naturally enough, increased commercial
activity has brought with it a flow of new settlers, and
there can be no doubt that some of the ancient seats of

commerce have lost much of their population in losing
their trade ; but whether ail the causes of decline in par-
ticular spots have much counteracted the fecundity of
the Chinese races, considered as a whole, may well be
questioned.
"Some years ago I had an opportunity of discussing
the subject of Chinese population with the mandarin at
Ningpo, who was charged with making the returns for
that district. Ningpo can scarcely be called a progres-
sive place—it is dec►dedly the least so of the five treaty
ports ; but I found, generally speaking, that the real
returns were considerably in excess of the official esti-

mates.
"And I would remark that, in taking the area of the
18 provinces of China at 1,318,870 square miles, toe
census of 1812 would give 268 persons to a square mile,
which is considerably less than the population of the
densely peopled countries of Europe.
"According to ancient usage the population in China
is grouped under four heads-1, Scholars ; 2, Husband-
men • 3, Mechanics ; 4, Merchants. There is a numer-
ous class who are considered almost as social outcasts,
such as stags players, professional gamblers, beggars,
convicts, outlaws, and others ; and these probably form
no part of the population returns. In the more remote
' rural districts, on the otber band, the returning officer
most probably contents himself with giving the average
of more accessible and better-peopled localities.
"I have no means of obtaining any satisfactory tables
to show the proportions which different ages bear to one
another in China, or the average mortality at different
periods of human life ; yet to every decade of life the
Chinese apply some special designation. The age of 10
is called the Opening Degree ; 20, Youth Expired ;'
30. Strength and Matriage ;' 40, Officially Apt ; 50,
' Error-knowing ; 60, 'Cycle-closing ;' 70, Rare Bird
of Age ;' 80, Rusty-visaged ;' 90, Dtlayed ;' 100,
Age's Extremity.' Among the Chinese the amount of
reverence grows with the number of years. I made,
some years ago, the acquaintance of a Buddhist priest
living in the . convent of Tien Tang, near Ning,
po, who was more than a century old, and whom`
people of rank were in the habit of visiting, in order to
show their respect and to obtain his autegrapb. He had
the civility to give me a fair specimen of his handwriting.
There are not only many estab:ishments for the recep-
tion of the aged, but the penal code provides severe pu-
nishments for those who refuse to relieve the poor in
their declining years. Age may also be pleaded in ex-
tenuation of crime and in mitigation of punishment.
Imperial decrees sometimes order presents to be given to
all indigent old people in the empire. I am not aware of
any detailed statistics giving the number of such recipi-
ents since a return published in the time of Kanghi
(1657). Kienlung (1785) directed that all those claim-
ants whose age exceeded 60 should receive 5 bushels of
rice and a piece of linen ; those above 80, 10 bushels of
rice and two pieces of linen ; those above 90, 30 bushels
of rice and two pieces of common silk ; and those above
100, 50 bushels of rice and two pieces, one of fine and
one of common silk. He ordered all the elders to be
enumerated who were at the head of five generations, of
whom there were 192, and, 'in gratitude to heaven,'
summoned 3,000 of the oldest men of the empire to re-
ceive Imperial presents, which consisted principally of
embroidered purses, and badgc3 bearing the character
skau, meaning longevity.
"The Kanghi tables show the numbers of those who
enjoyed the benefit of the edict ; but as the returns
bear no proportion to the general population of the
country or to the relative extent of the various provinces,
many fortuitous and local circumstances must have
caused the obvious incongruities. For example, in the
adjacent provinces of Kwantung and Kwangse, in which
the whole mass of population is in the proportion of two
to one, the recipients are as 46 to 1 ; and as regards age,
while the propoi don of those above 80 is represent- d at
19 to 1, those above 90 are only a little more than 5 to
1. In all these matters the greater or less co-operation
of the local authorities is one of the most important ele-
ments in producing a result. Kwangse is extremely
mountainous, and bordered on the north-west by the
countr; of the Meant -•az, or aborigines, the districts
adj fining which are but in a half-reclaimed state, and
governed by officers of a character and denomination
distinct from thae of the provinces. But it is inexpli,
sable that the prov!nce of Pechile, in which Pekin is
situated, should exhibit but a small proportional return,
especially as c onspared with the adjacent province of
Shantung. Hookwang, wi h a Opulation of 26,250,000
has 37,354 indigent persons above 70, while Szschuen,
the population of which is 21,500,000, presents only 176
persons in that category.
" I think there is abundant evidence of redundant popu-
lation pressing more and more heavily upon, and suffering
more and more severely from an inadequate supply of hood.
Though there are periods when extraordinary harvests
enable the Chin( to to transport rice, the principal food of
the people, from one province to another, and sometimes
even to foreign countries, yet of late the importations
from foreign eounOies have been enormous, and China
has drawn largely on the Straits, the Philippines, Siam,
and other p!aces, to fill up a vast deficiency in supply.
Famine has, notwithstanding, committed dreadful
ravages, and the provisions of the Imperial granaries
'have been whilly inadequate to provide for the public
wants. It is true that cultivation has been greatly in-
terfered with by intestinal disorders, and that there has
been much destruction by inundations, incendiarism,
and other accidental or transitory causes ; but without
reference to these, I am disposed to believe that there
is a greater increase in the numbers of the population
than in the home production of food for their use. It
must be remembered, too, that while the race is thus
augmenting, We causes which lead to the destruction of
food,—such as the overflow of rivers, fires, ravages of '
locusts, bad seasons, and other calamities—are to a great
extent beyond the control of human prudence or human
exertion. It would be difficult to show what new ele-
ment could be introduced which would raise up the
native supply of foot beyond its present productivene 8,
considering that hand husbandry has given to cultiva-
tion more of a horticultural than an agricultural cha-

racter.
" The constant flow of emigration from China, con-
trasted with the complete absence of emigration into
China, is striking: evidence of the redundancy of the
population ; for though that emigration is almost wholly
confined to two provinces, namely, Kwantung and Foo-
kien, representing together a population of probably
from 34,000,000 to 35,000,000, I am disposed to think
that a number nearer 3,000,000 than 2,000,000, from
these provinces alone, are located in foreign countries.
In the kingdom of Siam it is estimated that there are at
least 1,500,000 Chinese, of which 200,000 are in the
capital (Bangkok). They crowd all the iihr.ris of the
Indian Archipelago. In Java, we know IT a correct
census there are 136,000. Cochin Chien. teems with
Chinese. In this colony we are seldom without one,
two, or three vessels taking Chinese emigrants to Cali-
fornia and other pllces. Multitudes go to Australia, to
the Philippines, to the Sandwich Islands, to the western
coast of Central and Southern America ; some h tve
made their way to British India. The emigration to the
Brithh West Indies has been considerable—to the Ha
vannah greater still. The annual arrivals in Singapore
are estimated at an average of 10,000, and 2,000 is the
number that are said annually to return to China.
"There is not only this enormous maritime emigra-
tion, but a considerable inland efflux of Chinese towards
Mantchouria and Thibet ; and it may I e added, that
the large and fertile islands of Formo.a and'Hainan haN e
been to a great extent won from tho aborigines by suc-
cessive inroadi of Chinese settlers. Now, these are all
males ; there is not a woman to 10,000 men ; hencf.s
perhaps, the small soci4 value of tho female infant,
Yet this perpetual outflowing of people seems in

no respect to diminish the another of those who are left
behind. Few Chinamen leave their country, without a
fixed purpose to return to worship in the DJ, cestni /3tll
—to bring sacrifices to the tombs of their fedi, rs : but
it may he denbted if one ie ten revisits his netive las&
The loss of life from disesse, from bad arraegseeenfe,
from shipwreck, and oth•r casuellie, amounts to a fright- .
ful percentage on those who emigrate.
" The multitudes of persons who live by the fisheries
in China afford evidence not only that the land is culti-
vated to the greatest possible extent, but that it is insuffi-
cient to supply the necessities of the overflowing popula-
tion ; for agriculture is hell in high honour in China,
and the husbandman stands next in rank to the sage or
literary man in the social hierarchy. It has been sup-
posed that neatly a tenth of the population derive their
means of support from fisheries. hundreds and thou-
swede of boats crowd the whole coast of China—some
daises acting in communities, sometimes independent end
isolated. There is no species of craft by which a fish can
be inveigled which is not practised with success in China
—every variety of net, from vast seines, embracing
miles, to the smallest hanefilet in the case of a child.
Fishing by night end 11,Ling by day—fishing in moon-
light, by torchlight, arid In utter darkness—fishieg in
boats of all sizes—fishing by those who are sta-
tionary o❑ the rock by the seaside, and by those who
are absent for reeks on the wildest of seas,—fishing by
cormorants,—fishing by divers,—fishing with lines, with
baskets,—by every imaginable decoy and device. There
is no river which is not staked to assist the fisherman in
his craft. There is no lake, no pond, which is not
crowded with fish. A. piece of water is nearly as valuable.
as a field of fertile land. At daybreak every city is
crowded with sellers of live fish, who carry their com-
modity in buckets of water, saving all they do not sell
to be returned to the pond or kept for another day's ser-
vice. And the lakes and ponds of China not only supply
large provisions of fish—they produce considerable quan-
tities of edible roots and seeds, which are largely con-
sumed by the people. Among these the esculent arum,
the water chestnut (sciipus tuberosus ) and the lotus
( nelum,bium) are the most remarkable.
" The enormous river population of China, who live
only in boats, who are born and educated, who marry,
rear their families, and die—who, in a word, begin and
end their existence on the water, and never have or
dream of: any shelter other than the roof, and who
seldom tread except on.. the deck or boards of their
sampans—show to what an extent the land is crowded,
and how inadequate it is to maintain the cumberers
of the soil. In 'the city of Canton alone it is esti-
mated that 3Q9,000 persons dwell upon the surface of
the river ; the boats, sometimes twenty or thirty deep,
cover some miles, and have their wants supplied by
ambulatory salesmen, who wend their way through
every accessible passage, Of this vast population some
dwell in decorated river boats used for every purpose of
liceese and festivity—for theatres—for concerts—for
feasts—for gambling—for lust—for solitary and social
recreations ; some craft are employed in conveying goods
and passengers, and are in a state of constant activity ;
others are moored, and their owners are engaged as ser-
vant sor labourers on shore. Indeed, their pursuits are
probably nearly as various as those of the land popula-
tion, The immense variety of boats which are found i❑
Chinese waters has never been adequately described.
Some are of enormous size, and are ufed as magazines
for salt or rice—others have all domestic accommoda-
tions, and are employed for the transfer of whole famil'e,,
with al their domestic attendants and accommodations,
from one place to another,—some, called centipedes, from
their being supposed to have 100 rowers, convey with
extraordinary rapidity the more valuable cargoes from
the inner warehouses to the foreign shipping in the ports
—all these from the huge and cumbrous junks, which
remind one of Noah's ark, and which represent the rude
and coarse constructions of the remotest ages, to the
fragile planks upon which a solitary leper hangs upon
the outskirts of society —boats of every form and applied
to every purpose—exhibit an incalculeb!e amount of
population, which may be called amphibious, if not
aquatic.

"Not only are land and water crowded with Chinese,
but many dwell on artificial islands which float upon the
lakes—islands with gardens and houses raised upon the
rafters which the occupiers have bound together, and on
which they cultivate what is needful for the supply of
life's daily wants. They have their poultry and their
vegetable 3 for use, their le wers and their scrolls for or-
nament, their household gods for protection and worship.
In all parts of China to which we have access we
find not only that every foot of ground is cultivated
which is capable of producing anything, but that, from
the value of land and the surplus of labour, cultivation
is rather that of gardeners than of husbandmen. The
sides of hills, in their natural declivity often unavailable,
are, by a succession of artificial terraces, turned to pro-
fitat•'s account. Every little bit of soil, though it be
only a few feet in length and breadth, is turned to ac-
couat ; and not only is the surface of the land thus cared
for , but every device is employed for the gathering toge-
ther of every article that can serve for manure. Scaven-
gers are constantly clearing the streets of the stercorace•
oas filth ; the cloacae are farmed by speculators in human
ordures ; the most populous places are often made
offensive by the means taken to prevent the precious de-
posits from being lost. The fields in China have almost
always large earthenware vessels for the reception of the
contributions of the peasant or the traveller. You can-
not enter any of their great cities without meeting mul-
titudes of men, women, and children conveying liquid
manure into the fields and gardens around. The stiruu-

!ants to production are applied with most untiring in-
dustry. In this colony of flung Kong I scarcely ever
ride out without finding some little bit of ground either
newly cultivated or clearing for cultivation.
"Attention to the soil—not only to make it produc-
...

tive, but as much productive as possible—is inculcated
as a political and social duty. One of the most ad•
mired sages of China (Yung•chin) says Let there
be no uncultivated spot in the country—no unem•
ployed person in the city ;' and the fourth maxim of
the sacred edict of pang-hi, which is required to be
read through the empire on the Ist and 15th day of
every moon, in the presence of all the officers of
State, is to the ful!owirg effect Let husbandry
occupy the principal ilace, and the culture of the
mulberry-tree, so that there may be sufficient supply
of food and clothing.' Shin Nung, the name of one of
the most ancient and honoured of the Chinese Empe-
rors, means the Divine Husbandman.'

" The arts of draining and irrigating—of preserving,
preparing,, and applying manure in a great variety of
shapes, of fertilising seeds, indeed, all the details of
Chinese agriculture, are well deserving of note, and all
display evidence of" the inadequate proportion which
the produce of the soil bears to the demands for the con-
sumption of the people.*
"The Chinese, again, have no prejudice whatever as
regards fuod ; they eat anything and everything Pram
which they can derive nutrition. Dogs,- especially
puppies, are habitually sold for food ; and I have seen
in the butchers' shops, large dogs skinned and hanging
with their viscera by the side of pigs and goats. Even
to rats and mice the Chinese have no objection—neither
to the flesh of monkeys and snakes ; the sea slug is an
aristocratical and costly delicacy which is never wanting
and. mere than the edible birds' nests, at a feast where
honour is intended to be done to the guests. Unhatched
ducks and chickens are a. favourite dish. Nor do .the
early stages of putrefaction create' any disgust ; rotten
eggs are by no meanie condemned to perdition ; fish is
the more acceptable when it hes a strong fragrance and
flavour to give more gusto to the rice.
" As the food the Chinese eat is for the most part hard,
coarse, and of little cost, so their beverages are singu-
larly economical. Drunkenness is a rare vice in China,
and fermented epirits or strong drinks are seldom used.
Tea; ixay be said to be the national, the universal beve-
rage; and though that employed by the multitude does
not cost more than from 3d, to 6d. per lb., an infusion
of liss costly leaves is commonly employed, especially in
localities remote from the tea districts. Bath in eating
and thinking the Chinese are temperate, and are satisfied
with two daily meals—' the morning rice' at about 10
a.m., and the evening rice' at 5 p.m. The only repug-
nance I have observed in China is to the use of.miik—
all extraordinary prejudice, especially considering the
Tartar influences which have been long dominant in the
land ; but I never saw or heard of butter, cream,, milk,
,or whey bring introduced at any tiative Chinese table.
While so many elements of vitality are in a state of
activity for the production and sustenance of the human
race, there is probably no part of the world in which the
harvests of mortality are more sweeping and destructive
than in China, producing voids which require no ordi-.
„nary appliances to fill up. • Multitudes perish absolutely
from want of the rneans of existence—inundations destroy
towns and villages and all their inhabitants ; it would
not be easy to calculate the loss of life by the typhoons
or hurricanes which visit the' coasts of China, in which
boats and junks are sometimes sacrificed by hundreds
and by thousands. The late civil wars in China must
have led to the loss of millions of lives. The sacrifice's
of human beings by executions alone are frightful. At
the moment at which I write it is believed that from
400 to 500 victims fall daily by the hands of the
headsman in the province of Kwang-tong alone.
Reverence for life. there is none as life exists in
superfluous abundance. A dead body is an object of so
little concern that it is sometimes not thought worth
while to remove it frern the spot where it putrefies on
the sueace of the earth. Often have I seen a corpse
under the table of gamblers ; often have I trod aver a
putrid body at the threshold of a door. In many parts
of China there are towers of brick or stone where tooth-
less--sprincipaly female—children are thrown by their
parents into a hole made in the side of the wall. There
are various .opinions as to the extent of infanticide in
China, but that it is a common practice in many pro-
vinces admits of doubt. One of the most elo-
quent Caisese writers against Infanticide, Kwei Chung
Fin professes to have been specialiy inspired by 'the
God of literature' to call upon the Chinese peel le to re-
frain from the inhuman practice, and declares. that the
Gad' hid filed his house with honours, and given him
literary descendants as the recompense for his exertions.
n
Yet his denunciations scarcsly go further than to -
nounce it wicked in those to destroy their female
children who have the moans of bringing them up ;
and some of his arguments are strange enough ; fp
destroy daughters' he says,
is to make war upon
Hea-
ven's harmony' (in the equal number of the rax,a) • the
more daughters you drown, the wore you
havewill ; and never was
it
known that the daughters drowning of
daug'ite I's led to the birth of sous, lie recommends
abandoning children to tirir fate r on the wayside,' as
preferable to drowning them, and thun says, 'There are
instances of children so exposed having been nursed ais3
reared by tigers.' `Whereshould we have been,' he asks,
fthief
their
rur infancy.'gra m
And he q,u
°*"B
and mothers had been dr)wned in
oOs two instaneee of the pu•
nishment of mothers who had destroyed their infants,
one of whom bad a blood-red serpent fastened to her
thigh, and the other her four extremities turned into

" * See a valuable paper on Chinese Agriculture in the
Ohhiese Repository,' vol. iii,, pp, 121.27.