LXII.
Canton, China, Aug. 20, 1851.
We arrived at Whampoa, where the foreign shipping lies, some fourteen miles below this city, and where we cast anchor. We were immediately surrounded by a multitude of boatmen, and amongst the rest a host of washerwomen, neatly dressed, with flowing pantaloons and a loose vest which falls over the hips, and is made of blue or black cotton or silk. They crowd around with commendations in their hands, and solicit the preference at the extremely low rate of one dollar and a half per hundred. You can judge of my surprise, who had paid five dollars for the single dozen in California, which of itself was the strongest evidence of the great disparity of population. The hair of the married women is put up in an artistic manner, and the young girls wear the long queue braided, but their heads are not shaved like those of the men. The following day I came up to this city through a perfect fleet of junks, and other boats, with their teeming population, the study of whose habits and modes of life would occupy much time. It is computed that there are eighty thousand boats, with a floating population of four hundred thousand souls, upon the waters of the Canton River.
I was particularly struck with the appearance of the large junks with their painted eyes at the bow, as the Chinese say, “Suppose no have eyes, no can see.” The Mandarin War Boats carry fifty oarsmen, and their broad-brimmed conical bamboo hats answer as a shield from the sun and spears. The peculiar open stern which incloses the rudder and place for ingress and egress, and the sudden manner in which they turn the boats, surprised me; the neatness displayed on board the small ferry and passenger boats, where families are born, live, and die upon their native element, is without example. They are covered by permanent and also sliding roofs of bamboo matting, and propelled mostly by women with a scull-oar on a pivot at the stern. Some are nicely fitted up and gilded, for parties of pleasure, and are really fine.
The foreign population of Canton is made up of about fifty persons of different nations, mostly occupying a fine range of buildings, called Factories, fronting a beautiful garden of about two acres square, with high walls at the ends, and extending to the river; it is filled with every variety of tropical trees, plants, and flowers, and affords a delightful lounge upon Chinese settees, or a fine promenade upon its cemented walks. In the centre is a neat Episcopal Chapel, and the flags of three nations, ours being one of the number, are flying from elevated flag-staffs. Adjoining the grounds is an extended boat-house which contains the finest collection of race-boats of the most delicate construction in the world, for the regattas of the English and American residents, and for daily exercise, as it is not safe to penetrate into the country; there are no drives, and in fact horses are rarely seen or used, the dense population and low price of labor with the use of the buffalo, supplying their places. The latter animal is nearly amphibious, and gets a portion of his supplies in low grounds unfit for cultivation; in fact the Chinese, being the most laborious, economical, and indefatigable people perhaps in the world, cultivate every inch of ground, as far as I can perceive in my excursions up and down the river, and along the paddy or rice fields. I arrived opportunely for the Festival of the Dead, but it reminded me more of the Fourth of July at home, from the constant discharge of crackers and fireworks. The flower boats, which are eighty to one hundred feet in length, with cabins beautifully decorated, and literally overhung and festooned with large, beautiful, vari-colored lanterns at night in long processions, with the beating of gongs, and the playing of instruments, in sound not unlike the Scotch bagpipe, produced a most singular effect. The offerings, which are made to the deceased friends and burned in the streets, are made to represent clothes, money, and other articles; and the consumption of prepared folded paper of different colors, some of gold and silver gilt, which are placed together by the masses and then fired, is not a slight tax upon the people. An exhibition of this kind took place at the angle of our house, and our coolies and servants were among the group, after which copper coins, called cash, one thousand two hundred to the dollar, were thrown out to the beggars who were scrambling among the embers. I am indebted to the hospitalities of Wm. Buckler, Esq., to whom I had letters, there being no hotel deserving of the name, and have received many invitations and civilities at the hands of other parties. The servants here are excellent, and anticipate your every want.
I must describe mine to you. His face, as also the skin around his eyes and ears, and his head to the crown, is well shaved; his long, black hair falls plaited nearly to his ankles; his white frock or long vest with sleeves, flows over his flowing pants of white grass linen; he has white leggings attached to his turned up and embroidered shoes, and tied at the knee, and they are perfect patterns of cleanliness, although droll-looking objects.
The usual hour for tiffin, or lunch, is three in the afternoon, and dinner is at seven in the evening. In accepting invitations out, custom demands and admits in this hot climate, a full dress of white, the round jacket included, and your servant to accompany you.
Canton contains probably a million of inhabitants. Ingress cannot be obtained within the walls. I effected an entrance for a short distance, but was soon expelled. The town outside is probably more interesting than within, as the streets run parallel with the walls, and the houses are built close up against them. They are ordinarily one or two stories high, the latter class forming a hollow square inside, with galleries surrounded by merchandise, and arranged for the display of goods. The signboards run up and down, are gaudily painted in various colors in Chinese characters, with tasteful lanterns at the entrance, and in the narrow streets have a gay appearance.
The merchants, mechanics, and artisans, in their many occupations, can hardly be described on paper. The latter are well clad in the costume of the country, and mostly in black, and carry fans or umbrellas. The laborers at this season have the upper part of the body exposed; they carry their burdens suspended from the extreme end of a pliable round shoulderpole, and cry out for space as they thread the dense throng in the narrow passages. At certain hours at night, the gates of the different quarters are closed, and the district is liable for any robbery committed within it. If the culprit is found, his head is taken off at the execution ground, in the open space within the heart of the town outside the walls. Their punishments are most severe, some victims being chopped in pieces, and some flayed alive. The ground was red with gore as I passed through that quarter, from the recent execution of fifteen men for treason; a revolt has lately taken place in one of the provinces, and the rebels succeeded in destroying five hundred of the celestial troops, with the exception of ten who escaped the ambuscade.
The object is to change the present dynasty. Since the late opium war and treaty with the English, with the privileges of trading, many advantages have been gained, and gradually the country will be penetrated, and we shall know more of this peculiar and interesting people, who boast of the highest civilization, and consider all outsiders as barbarians. The maxims of Confucius, who is held in great veneration, teach affection, and obedience towards parents, respect for elder brothers, and esteem on their part for younger brothers. The people are Boodhists in religion, and the doors and entrances of all the shops have figures and offerings suspended, and incense tapers burning night and morning, to keep off the evil spirits.
Temples and Joss Houses, where are placed the figures of their gods, are seen frequently along the river bank, and the great Temple of Honan on the opposite side of the river is extensive and very curious. On entering the gate from the river side you pass under a line of shade trees, and enter three temples in succession, with colossal figures of Joss, seven in number, of giant form, in sitting postures, and in size reminding me of the figures Gog and Magog, in London. The architecture of the buildings is strikingly Chinese, with figures of lions and dragons at the angles. The priests have their heads clean shaved, and the beating of the kettle-drums of huge size, and the sound of their instruments at hours of worship, are almost deafening. The contents of some of the temples remind one of a museum, from the great variety of armor and figures. The grounds attached to the temple of Honan contain a pond for the cultivation of the sacred lotus, or water lily, and granite monuments wherein repose the ashes of the priests, who are buried in a small stone structure, which is inclosed on three sides, within shady bamboo trees; the blackened and smoky chimney betokened recent use. Eight noble fat hogs are within the inclosure of the temple, and are represented to the faithful as immortal; in the event of accident, however, others are in reserve.
Opium is freely used by the people, and the trade in it has increased to a frightful extent, although contraband, the officials being engaged in the traffic, so that the consumption has increased to twenty-five millions of dollars per annum. This, in a population of three hundred millions, is considered not to be a great excess, but it tells a sad story on the constitution of an habitual smoker. The use of tea is of course general, and spirit is distilled from rice. The Houqua gardens belonging to the great merchant deceased, some few miles above the city, are in good taste, with fish-ponds, artificial cascades and grottoes, and a vast number of fruit trees, plants, and flowers, peculiar to the climate.