Who moved first on the deep, the Spirit, said,
“Whom the Lord loves he chastens, nor will spare.”
ARRIVAL AT HONG KONG. YAT MOON PASS.
The wind did not serve to bring us round Great Lema Island. After tacking several times, and beating about the headland from early in the morning till two o’clock, the prospect of our being kept in a dangerous position till after sunset, induced the captain to venture into Yat Moon Pass, where we should have a direct run into Hong Kong harbor.
The pass between Great Lema and Ya Chou Island was narrow; in some parts not more than two lengths of the vessel in width. A hidden rock in the middle of the narrow passage led the captain to deliberate long before he concluded to enter. Finally it seemed best to make the venture, rather than beat around the point day after day. The wind was blowing directly through the pass, the weather was fair, a run of half an hour would bring us into open sea, beyond the reach of danger. Accordingly we entered, keeping close to the starboard side, throwing the lead all the way. The sailors amused themselves with trying to throw pieces of coal ashore, which now and then they succeeded in doing. The captain went aloft with his spy glass; we listened with breathless interest to hear the result of his observation from step to step, the word “steady” every few moments keeping up our courage. Everything depended on our meeting a favorable wind at the other end. Should it be blowing into the pass, or die away and leave us becalmed, we should not prove to have mended our prospect. We gratefully acknowledged the good hand of God in causing us to find that the wind which brought us through the narrows blew in the same direction when we reached the open sea.
Five miles out, two pilots hailed us from opposite points, each in his rude sampan, their sails of matting and their oars combining to bring each first to the ship. The wind favored one, who came astern and caught a rope, which he nimbly climbed and came aboard. There was a woman with an oar, sculling and steering, while her husband and one or two boys and girls managed the sails. On her back her infant was strapped, a boy sixteen months old, as we were informed. The little fellow had to endure all the motions of his mother at the oar, peeping over each of her shoulders by turns, and holding her neck with his hands. This, we found, is the common mode of life among infants here, children eight years old being harnessed to the employment of thus carrying about their infant brothers and sisters.
Hong Kong, or Sweet Waters, is an island off the coast of China, east of the entrance of the Canton river. It came into the possession of the British by a treaty with China June 25, 1843. Its length from east to west is eight miles; its breadth varies from two to six miles. The surface is mountainous. There are good places of anchorage in its waters. Violent winds are frequent. The population, which is not far from forty thousand, is mostly Chinese. It is a free port. Among the people in the streets are Parsees from Persia, who deal in the productions of their country; and Sepoys from Hindostan, and elsewhere. These are police officers and soldiers, intensely black, so much so that one accustomed to the sight of an African negro with a tinge of yellow in his complexion, looks at these Sepoys with admiration at the unqualified blackness of their skin. They are, moreover, tall, straight, well proportioned men. Some of the districts of Hong Kong are Stanley, Pokfalum, Aberdeen, Victoria, of which the latter is the principal, being the seat of government. Victoria Peak, overlooking the harbor and vicinity, is about eighteen hundred feet high.
We went on shore to church, after our service with the sailors in the morning, and attended worship at Rev. Dr. Legge’s chapel, known as “Union Church.” It is a beautiful building, on an elevated spot, with foliage of the bamboo trees around it. Over the speaker a punka of blue silk was kept in motion by a coolie out of sight, making it comfortable for the preacher. Good Dr. Duff protested against punkas in the church as luxurious and worldly. After being in the East India climate a while, he said, “I must have a punka over me when I preach here.” I preached for Dr. Legge the next Sabbath morning, and five or six other times, and went ashore again in the afternoon occasionally to the chapel and once heard the Rev. Mr. Turner, a missionary sustained by a British society, preach to a congregation of Chinese. I was struck with their devout appearance in prayer. All was unintelligible till the doxology, in Old Hundred.
English schools for Chinese youth, maintained here by the government, one of them with over one hundred and fifty young men, taught by Mr. Stuart, I had the pleasure of visiting, and was interested to hear the native youths read well in English, with little Chinese accent.
One of the boys about fifteen years of age was pointed out to me as a Japanese youth. The teacher told me that the custom of Japan obliged a boy of his rank to wear a short sword in public. I saw the sword of this youth in his desk, it being laid aside in the school room. One could not help fancying that such an instrument would not generally be a recommendation of the wearer as a playmate.