The Cadiz sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 184?-1851, 1851-01-08
NOTES On CHINA.

o
mouth Of the Boca rigris, Huge masses OF
gtaniie, surmounted by dark red sandy
soil in some places entirely bare, in other
places few shrubs and blades Of grass,
widely separated. Yet there is a consider
able population on these islands; and when.
ever gorge or valley separatesj the rocky
mountains, large village has stood for ages.
A few Vegetables are all that The poor inhab-
lIlants can gather form the sterile earth, and
their means OF subsislencenre gathered from
the waters. Innumeable fishing boats pen>
Ielrate every iuIet, ard invest every shoal,
iadopling every conceivable means Of secu-
! riHg the great variety OF fish that abound in
Chinese waters. The common, deceitfuI
tprpclice ol enlangling them with hook and
line, is pfaciiced in all It's forms. In shoal
water, they have q round baskoI, with hole
IN tue side, large outside, and diminishing
until The angles almost meet, about hall way
inside. The sharp pjiffs Of the split bam-
!. boo, pointing upward, prevents the fish from
getting out. These are generally small
fish, which they get alive, and putin small
water-tight compartment, forwards, snd used
for their own oud as occasion requires. Ali
Chinese boats, large and small, are divided
into several waler>tigth apartments, They
( have another method OF catching fish, much
prscliced on these islands, by fastening one
end Of their net, in horizontal position, TO
stakes about one hundred yards from shore
| A line ia made fast tG the other end, ant at
tached to a winGlass on shore. The net
is then lowered down in tho middle, and by
Iheasing on The windlass several times day,
they bring the mel TO ibe surface of the wat>
er, and gafber the fsa into small boat.
The conlrivance oa shore is generally
I placed on ledge of rocks projecting into
the sea. A rich bamboo hui serves as a
shelter to The ishermsn's family; his wants
are few, the climate il mild, his diet is sim
jple, rice, come coarse dishes, the indispen-
sable chopsucks. beach and few mats.
Great mpltitudes Of tbe Chinese are fishers
Imen, principally those Of the Franka race
llfthey accumulate, and are a3le TO buy lar
ger boat, they eusiiy caIabne the trade Of
| fisherman with that Of piracy. Scarcely 4
week passes bat some passage boat is robbed
between Hong Kong aud Macoa or Canton.
Murders is otten added TO pillage, and Eu
lropeans aud Americans sometimes lore their
Hives within sight of the harb0t Of Hong
Kong,
Al 'he Bngue, the entrance TO the Canton
River. there IS GONNA ding position which
scientific Skill migIli render almost rmpreg-
nable, But the Chinese Only erect plain
waits, itiiek below, suPetiaesras 4hag ascend,
and about brest high above where the guns
are placed. There are plenty d gnns at
B9gue. but most ot them old and il wretch
ed condition; and 80 miserable is the pow
der Of the Chinese, that oflen the shrt has
not impetus enough TO do any iajary al a
cables length. The guns are mostly en-
bedded in logs of wood, or in solid stone,
and they FIRE away in one direction, ncapa-
Bile oflhe simplest art in gunnery.
As we advance past the miserable foItif
cations, rice fields begin to open on The view,
and the ridges along the low lands nre covers
ed with piaialans, Further up, the view
lis eaeautiiail; pngOdas, built on gentle ele-
valions, the decliyities on these detached
rising spots OF ground, covered by the neat,
carefully attended graves Of The Chinese, and
in some spots surrounded by luxurious veg
citation ofeyergiecus. notwithstanding the
immou,e number OF boats that pass TO and
from CoaloH, you may pass every trip with
in rifle shot Of large fgcks OF wild geese.
It may moi be universally known, that no
foreign SHIPS 60 up the river as far as Cans
ton. They anchor at Whgmpoa, and the
cargo is brought down in lighters, or chops,
as they are called by the Chinese. Great
dispatch is used in loading ships, and per-
lestial Empire, work with so much alertnessi
asthose who LOAD ships at Wampoa. The ox-
istence of foreign commerce for a long time,
has made The ths Chinese about Wampoa
familiar with outside bQrbauans, and no soon
er is the anchor down, than crowds cone on
board 10 trade The first that succeeds ini
striking bargain, is the washerwoman---
She has one uniform price for Jack, one
dollar while the ship lies there. Next come
ihe shocmakers and lanors, with shoes made
well enoggh, 20 appearance, without close
inspection. The upper leather is made OIL
sheepskin, badly tanned, with one stitch all
the heel, another at the toes, and one in the
middle. Three and four pairs for dollar,
At Whampoa there are a few ship-chand- |
lcrs' stores, Of. chops, kept by white men,
IN old hulks on the liver, where vessels get
supplied with stores. There ale three large
villages, Bamboo town, New town,and Wham-
poa town Banihoo town is built ihe mar
gjn Of the river, on the larbourd side going
up, and The farlhest down stream. Smnll
bamboo and wooden houses, filthy in The
extreme. Varions trades are carried on here,
bIacksmhs, hrasslounders, shoemakers, tai
Tors, and dcqblnet-makers, are the most cons
spicuous. They exhibit the mos. perseye,
ring assidnity ia trying TO seil rheirmerehnn-
disc, and al tho cunning Of a jew in driving
a bargain, All the Intercourse is carried
on in broken English, and the store eepers
at Whampoa know we'll lhe pechliayitles Of
the sailor customers. Some amusing scenes
vely often occur, and a. Chinaman win spend
whole days ia studying The weak poin.s in
jack $ character, if he thinks he can make
a dollar BY him,
A great proportion Of the popala>tion
along ihe sea coast, on tho rivers and.
OH .he canals, live IA boats. Whole fami.I
lies are born, reared, and spend all their
lives III boats going ashore occasionally for
fresh water and provisions. The bottom ofI
their slnpll boats are round, with lille Or no
keel, great shell, and can he turned round
IN any direction extremely quick, with the
lafge steering oat, which is placed aloft on
one side
b Cue pair u rats with Their progeny, will
IN three years. produce as many as U46.SO8
rats, which will consume day hy day asmuch