The hills along this southern coast of the gulph of Pe-tche-lee have a very peculiar character. They are all of the same form and nearly of the same size, being regular cones with smooth sides as if fashioned by art, and entirely detached, each standing on its proper base, resembling in their shapes the summer caps worn by the officers of government; and having, as yet, no European names, they were noticed in the journals by the appellation of the first, second, third, &c., mandarin's bonnets.
Determining now to avail ourselves of the advice given by the magistrate of Chu-san, and to navigate from port to port, we here procured two new pilots to carry the ships to Mee-a-taw. They brought us indeed to this place, but, instead of a harbour, we found only a narrow strait, with a rapid tide setting through it, and rocky anchoring ground. On the shore of the continent was a city of considerable extent, under the walls of which next the sea was a bason or dock, filled with vessels whose capacity might be from ten to one hundred tons.
The Governor of this city (the name of which we learned to be Ten-tchoo-foo) paid his respects to the embassador on board the Lion, and observed in the course of conversation that his orders from court were to render all the service in his power to the embassy, and to provide proper means of conveyance, either by land or by sea. He seemed to be about the age of five and thirty, a man of frank and easy manners, courteous, intelligent, and inquisitive. He stood higher in the opinion of all of us than any we had yet seen. The following morning he sent off what he was pleased to call a trifling refreshment, which consisted of four bullocks, eight sheep, eight goats, five sacks of fine white rice, five sacks of red rice, two hundred pounds of flour, and several baskets of fruit and vegetables.
We have always been taught to believe that the Chinese consider us as barbarians; but we have hitherto no reason to say that they treated us as such. At all events it was obvious that the expected arrival of the British embassy had made no slight impression on the court of Pekin.
Here we once more ventured on another pilot to carry the ships across the gulph of Pe-tche-lee to Tien-sing. He was an old man of 70 years, and seemed to possess a perfect knowledge of all the bays and harbours in the gulph. He drew on paper the sketch of a port on the western coast to which he undertook to carry the ships. Fortunately, however, for us, it was considered more safe to send the small brigs a-head to sound, than to place any confidence in men who had already so often deceived us. They had scarcely departed before the signal of danger was made; a new course was steered for the night, and early the following morning, the same signal was repeated. No land was now in sight, yet the water had shallowed to six fathoms; it was therefore deemed prudent to come to an anchor. It was a very unusual situation for such large ships to ride thus at anchor in the middle of a strange sea, and out of sight of land, yet liable, in case of blowing weather, to strike against the bottom.
The commanders of the ships were exasperated against the pilots, and these on their part were almost petrified with fear. The poor creatures had done their best, but they possessed neither skill nor judgment, or, perhaps, it may be more charitable to suppose that they were confused by the novelty of their situation. It was in vain to endeavour to make them comprehend the difference in the draught of water between their own ships and ours, which, in the latter, was as many fathoms as feet in the former, although they were palpably shewn, by a piece of rope, the depth that was required.
As it was evidently impracticable to proceed farther with our own ships towards the land, which was now from twelve to fifteen miles distant, and so very low as not to be visible the deck, one of the tenders was dispatched to the mouth of the Pei-ho or white river to report our arrival. Here two officers from the court had already embarked to wait on the Embassador, carrying with them a present of refreshments, consisting of bullocks, hogs, sheep, poultry, wine, fruit, and vegetables, in such quantities, as to be more than sufficient for a a week's consumption of the whole squadron, amounting nearly to six hundred men. It consisted in twenty small bullocks, one hundred hogs, one hundred sheep, one thousand fowls, three thousand pumpkins, as many melons, apples, pears, plumbs, apricots, and other fruits, with an abundance of culinary vegetables. The wine was contained in large earthen jars whose covers were closely luted. Numbers of the hogs and the fowls had been bruised to death on the passage, which were thrown overboard from the Lion with disdain, but the Chinese eagerly picked them up, washed them clean and laid them in salt.
The number of vessels they had dispatched to take on shore the presents and the baggage was between thirty and forty, the capacity of each not being less, and many of them more, than two hundred tons; so imperfect a judgment had these people formed of the quantity of articles to be transhipped. These were the vessels whose holds were divided into thirteen distinct compartments, separated by partitions of two inch plank, the seams of which were caulked with a preparation of fine lime made from shells, and fibres of bamboo, in order to render them water-tight. Their sails, cables, rigging and cordage were all made of bamboo; and neither pitch nor tar was used on these or any part of the wood-work.
We detained about fifteen of these vessels to take on shore the Embassador's suite, the presents for the Emperor, and the baggage; after which the British ships returned to Chu-san without the assistance of the Chinese pilots, whose skill in navigation was held very cheap, by the lowest seamen on board.
On entering the Pei-ho we observed a number of buildings erected on the right bank, with roofs of matting, but decorated in the most fantastical manner, with different coloured ribbands and variegated silks; and about three hundred soldiers in their uniforms (which appeared to our eye not much adapted to military purposes) were drawn out, with a band of music, near a temporary landing-place constructed of wood; all of which we understood had been hastily prepared for the reception of the Embassador; but as his Excellency was desirous of reaching the capital without delay, he declined going on shore, preferring to step into the accommodation yachts at once, that were ready to receive him, a little higher up the river, the moment that the presents should be transhipped into the river-craft. The officers who were deputed to conduct him to the capital observed, that so much haste was not at all necessary, as the Emperor's birth-day was yet distant; these people having no other idea of an embassy, as it seemed, than that of its being a mere compliment to their Sovereign. The yellow flags displayed at the mast-heads of the river fleet, laden with the presents, and consisting of seventeen sail, gave, indeed, a more extended meaning of such a mission. These flags, in broad black characters, bore the following inscription; The English Embassador carrying Tribute to the Emperor of China.