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Title: History of the Pirates Who Infested the China Sea From 1807 to 1810
Author: Various
Language: English
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Transcriber's note:
Inconsistency in hyphenation and spelling is as in the original.
In this etext a 'breve' is represented with:-
a - [)a]
i - [)i]
o - [)o]
u - [)u]
Chapter Sidenotes are placed at head of chapter.
Inline Sidenotes are placed as close as possible, and marked [sn: (2 v.)]
....
[Illustration: frontispeiece]
HISTORY
OF
THE PIRATES
WHO
INFESTED THE CHINA SEA,
FROM 1807 TO 1810.
TRANSLATED FROM THE CHINESE ORIGINAL,
WITH
NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS,
BY
CHARLES FRIED. NEUMANN.
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR THE ORIENTAL TRANSLATION FUND,
And Sold by
J. MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET;
PARBURY, ALLEN, & CO., LEADENHALL STREET;
THACKER & CO., CALCUTTA; TREUTTEL & WÜRTZ, PARIS;
AND E. FLEISCHER, LEIPSIG.
1831.
LONDON
Printed by J. L. Cox, Great Queen Street,
Lincoln's-Inn Fields
TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE.
Conquerors are deemed successful robbers, while robbers are
unsuccessful conquerors. If the founder of the dynasty of the Ming had
failed in his rebellion against the Moguls, history would have called
him a robber; and if any one of the various robber-chiefs, who in the
course of the two last centuries made war against the reigning
Manchow, had overthrown the government of the foreigners, the official
historiographers of the "_Middle empire_" would have called him _the
far-famed, illustrious elder father_ of the new dynasty.
Robbers or pirates are usually ignorant of the principles concerning
human society. They are not aware that power is derived from the
people for the general advantage, and that when it is abused to a
certain extent, all means of redress resorted to are legitimate. But
they feel most violently the abuse of power. The fruit of labour is
too often taken out of their hands, justice sold for money, and
nothing is safe from their rapacious and luxurious masters. People
arise to oppose, and act according to the philosophical principles of
human society, without having any clear idea about them. Robbers and
pirates are, in fact, the opposition party in the despotical empires
of the East; and their history is far more interesting than that of
the reigning despot.[1] The sameness which is to be observed in the
history of all Asiatic governments, presents a great difficulty to any
historian who wishes to write a history of any nation in Asia for the
general reader.
The history of the transactions between Europeans and the Chinese is
intimately connected with that of the pirate chiefs who appeared from
time to time in the Chinese Sea, or Southern Ocean. The Europeans
themselves, at their first appearance in the _middle empire_, only
became known as pirates. Simon de Andrada, the first Portuguese who
(1521) tried to establish any regular trade with China, committed
violence against the merchants, and bought young Chinese to use them
as slaves; and it is known that it was the policy of the _civilized
foreigners_ from the "Great Western Ocean" (which is the Chinese name
for Europe) to decry their competitors in trade as pirates and
outlaws.
The footing which Europeans and Americans now enjoy in China,
originated from the assistance given by the Portuguese to the Manchow
against the Patriots, otherwise called pirates, who would not submit
to the sway of foreigners. Macao, the only residence (or large prison)
in which foreigners are shut up, is not considered by the Chinese
Government as belonging exclusively to the Portuguese. The Dutch, on
not being allowed to remain in Macao, complained to the Chinese
Government, and the authorities of the middle empire commanded the
Portuguese to grant houses to the newly arrived _Holan_ or Hollander,
"since Macao was to be considered as the abode of _all_ foreigners
trading with China." The edicts concerning this transaction are stated
to be now in the archives of the Dutch factory at Macao.
It is one of the most interesting facts in the history of the Chinese
empire, that the various barbarous tribes, who subdued either the
whole or a part of this singular country, were themselves ultimately
subdued by the peculiar civilization of their subjects. The Kitans,
Moguls, and Manchow, became, in the course of time, Chinese people;
like the Ostro, and Visigoths, and Longobards--Romans. But we may
remark, that both the Chinese and the Roman civilization under the
Emperors recommended itself to the conquerors, as connected with a
despotism which particularly suited the views of the conquerors.
Though this large division of the human race, which we are accustomed
to call _Tatars_, never felt a spark of that liberty which everywhere
animated the various German nations and tribes, and the Khakhans, in
consequence of this, were not in need of any foreign policy to enslave
their compatriots; yet it may be said, that neither Moguls nor Manchow
were able to establish a despotic form of government which worked so
well for a large nation as that of the Chinese.
The extremes of both despotism and democracy acknowledge no
intermediary power or rank. The sovereign is the vice-regent of
heaven, and all in all; he is the only rule of right and wrong, and
commands both what shall be done in this world and thought of
concerning the next. It may be easily imagined, that the Jesuits, on
their first arrival in China, were delighted with such a perfect
specimen of government according to their political sentiments. They
tried all that human power could command to succeed in the conversion
of this worldly paradise. The fathers disguised themselves as
astronomers, watchmakers, painters, musicians, and engineers.[2] They
forged inscriptions[3] and invented miracles, and almost went to the
extent of canonizing Confucius. But this cunning deference to Chinese
customs involved the Jesuits in a dispute with their more pious but
less prudent competitors; and notwithstanding all the cleverness of
the Jesuits, the Chinese saw at last, that in becoming Roman Catholic
Christians they must cease to be Chinese, and obey a foreign sovereign
in the _Great Western Ocean_. Toland affirms, that the Chinese and the
Irish, in the time of their heathen monarch Laogirius, were the only
nations in which religious persecutions never existed;[4] this praise
now refers exclusively to Ireland. Roman Catholicism is at this moment
nearly extinguished in China. To become a Christian is considered
high-treason, and the only Roman Catholic priest at Canton at the
present time, is compelled to hide himself under the mask of
shopkeeper. In their successful times, during the seventeenth century,
the Roman Catholic Missionaries published in Europe, that no nation
was more virtuous, nor any government more enlightened than that of
the Chinese; these false eulogies were the source of that high opinion
in which the Chinese were formerly held in Europe.
The merchants and adventurers who came to China "to make money" found
both the government and people widely different from descriptions
given by the Jesuits. They found that the Chinese officers of
government, commonly called Mandarins, would think themselves defiled
by the least intercourse with foreigners, particularly merchants; and
that the laws are often interpreted quite differently before and after
receiving bribes. The Europeans were proud of their civilization and
cleverness in mercantile transactions, and considered the inhabitants
of all the other parts of the world as barbarians; but they found, to
their astonishment and disappointment, the Chinese still more proud
and cunning. We may easily presume that these deluded merchants became
very irritated, and in their anger they reported to their countrymen
in Europe that the Chinese were the most treacherous and abandoned
people in the world,[5] that "they were only a peculiar race of
savages," and required to be chastised in one way or another; which
would certainly be very easy. Commodore Anson, with a single
weather-beaten sixty-gun ship, in fact, set the whole power of the
Chinese Government at defiance.
The Translator of the History of the Pirates ventures to affirm, that
the Chinese system of government is by far the best that ever existed
in Asia; not excepting any of the different monarchies founded by the
followers of Alexander, the government of the Roman Prætors and of
Byzantine Dukes, or that of Christian Kings and Barons who reigned in
various parts of the East during the middle ages. The principles of
Chinese government are those of virtue and justice; but they are
greatly corrupted by the passions and vices of men. The greater part
of their laws are good and just, though the practice is often bad; but
unfortunately this is generally not known to the "Son of Heaven." It
is the interest of the Emperor to deal out justice to the lowest of
his subjects; but, supposing it were possible that one man could
manage the government of such an immense empire, who either could or
would dare to denounce every vicious or unjust act of the officers
employed by government? The Chinese themselves are a clever shrewd
sort of people; deceit and falsehood are, perhaps, more generally
found in the "flowery empire" than any where else; but take them all
in all, they rank high in the scale of nations, and the generality of
the people seem to be quite satisfied with their government; they may
wish for a change of masters, but certainly not for an entire change
of the system of government.
There has existed for a long period, and still exists, a powerful
party in the Chinese Empire, which is against the dominion of the
Manchow; the different mountainous tribes maintain, even now, in the
interior of China, a certain independence of the Tay tsing dynasty.
The Meao tsze, who were in Canton some years ago, stated, with a
proud feeling, that they were _Ming jin_, people of Ming; the title
of the native sovereigns of China before the conquest of the Manchow.
It is said, that the whole disaffected party is united in a
society--generally called the _Triade-Union_--and that they aimed at
the overthrow of the Tatars, particularly under the weak government of
the late Emperor; but the rebels totally failed in their object both
by sea and land.
It has been falsely reported in Europe, that it is not allowed by the
laws of China to publish the transactions of the reigning dynasty. It
is true that the history written by the official or imperial
historians is not published; but there is no statute which prohibits
other persons from writing the occurrences of their times. It may be
easily imagined that such authors will take especial care not to
state any thing which may be offensive to persons in power. There is,
however, no official court in China to regulate the course of the
human understanding, there is nothing like that tribunal which in the
greater part of the Continent of Europe is called the _Censorship_.
Fear alone is quite sufficient to check the rising spirits of the
liberals in the middle empire. The reader, therefore, should not
expect that either the author of the "History of the Rebellions in the
Interior of China," or the writer of the "Pacification of the
Pirates," would presume to state that persons whom government is
pleased to style robbers and pirates, are in reality enemies of the
present dynasty; neither would they state that government, not being
able to quell these rebellions, are compelled to give large
recompenses to the different chiefs who submit. These facts are
scarcely hinted at in the Chinese histories. The government officers
are usually delineated as the most excellent men in the world. When
they run away, they know before-hand that fighting will avail nothing;
and when they pardon, they are not said to be compelled by necessity,
but it is described as an act of heavenly virtue! From what we learn
by the statements of a Chinese executioner, we should be led to form a
bad opinion of the veracity of these historians, and the heavenly
virtue of their government; for it is said, that one Chinese
executioner beheaded a thousand pirates in one year.[6]
The author of the following work is a certain _Yung lun yuen_, called
_Jang sëen_,[7] a native of the city or market town _Shun tih_, eighty
le southerly from Canton. The great number of proper names, of
persons and places, to be found in the "_History of the Pacification
of the Pirates_," together with the nicknames and thieves' slang
employed by the followers of Ching y[)i]h, presented peculiar
difficulties in the translation of _Yuen's_ publication. The work was
published in November 1830 at Canton; and it is to be regretted, for
the fame of the author in the _Great Western Ocean_, that he used
provincial and abbreviated characters. I will not complain that by so
doing he caused many difficulties to his translator, for a native of
_Shun tih_ would not trouble himself on that point; but I have reason
to believe that the head schoolmaster of Kwang tung will think it an
abomination that Yung lun yuen should dare take such liberties in a
historical composition. Schoolmasters have a greater sway in China
than any where else, and they like not to be trifled with. These are
particularly the men, who, above all others, oppose any innovation or
reform; scholars, who presume to know every thing between heaven and
earth: and they may certainly satisfy every man, who will rest
satisfied by mere words. These learned gentlemen are too much occupied
with their own philosophical and literary disquisitions, to have any
time, or to think it worth their notice, to pay attention to
surrounding empires or nations. If we consider the scanty and foolish
notices which are found in recent Chinese publications regarding those
nations with which the Chinese should be well acquainted, we cannot
but form a very low estimate of the present state of Chinese
literature. How far otherwise are the accounts of foreign nations,
which are to be found in the great work of Matuanlin! It will,
perhaps, be interesting to the European reader to learn, what the
Chinese know and report concerning the nations of _Ta se yang_, or the
_Great Western Ocean_. I therefore take an opportunity here to give
some extracts from a Chinese publication relative to European nations,
printed last year at Canton.
The _fifty-seventh book_ of the _Memoirs concerning the South of the
Mei ling Mountains_, contains a history of all the Southern barbarians
(or foreigners); and here are mentioned--with the _Tanka_ people and
other barbarous tribes of Kwang tung and Kwang se--the _Siamese_, the
_Mahometans_, the _French_, _Dutch_, _English_, _Portuguese_,
_Austrians_, _Prussians_, and _Americans_. The work was published by
the command of Yuen, the ex-Governor-General of Canton, who is
considered one of the principal living literary characters of China,
and it consists chiefly of extracts from the voluminous history of
the province Kwang tung, published by his Excellency:--
_The Religion of the Hwy hwy, or Mahometans._
"This religion is professed by various sorts of barbarians who
live southerly beyond _Chen ching_ (Tséamba, or Zeampa), to the
_Se yu_. Their doctrines originated in the kingdom of _Me tih
no_ (Medina). They say that heaven is the origin of all things;
they do not use any images. Their country is close to Tëen choo
(India); their customs are quite different from those of the
Buddhists; they kill living creatures, but they do not eat
indiscriminately all that is killed; they eat not hog's flesh,
and this is the essence of the doctrine of Hwy hwy. They have
now a foreign pagoda (_fan t[)a]_), near the temple of the
compassionate saint (in Canton), which exists since the time of
the Tang. It is of a spiral form, and 163 cubits high.[8] They
go every day therein to say prayers."
By the kindness of Dr. Morrison, the translator had the pleasure to
converse with a member of the Mahometan clergy at Canton. He stated,
that in the Mosque at Canton is a tablet, whereon it is written, that
the religion of the Prophet of Mecca was brought to China, _Tang ching
yuen san nëen_, that is, in the third year of the period called _Ching
yuen_, under the Tang dynasty, _i.e._ 787 of our era.[9] The compilers
of the _Memoirs_, &c. have taken their extract from the historical
work of _Ho_ (4051, M.); they seem not to have any knowledge of
Matuanlin, where the Arabs are spoken of under the name of _Ta she_.
See the notes to my translation of the Chronicle of Vahram, p. 76.
During the time the translator was at Canton, there arrived a pilgrim
from Pekin on his way to Mecca.
_The Fa lan se, Francs and Frenchmen._
"The _Fa lan se_ are also called _Fo lang se_, and now _Fo lang
ke_. In the beginning they adopted the religion of Buddha, but
afterwards they received the religion of the _Lord of Heaven_.
They are assembled together and stay in _Leu song_ (Spain?);
they strive now very hard with the _Hung maou or red-haired
people_ (the _Dutch_), and the _Ying keih le_ (_English_); but
the _Fa lan se_ have rather the worst of it. These foreigners,
or barbarians (_e jin_) wear white caps and black woollen hats;
they salute one another by taking off the hat. Regarding their
garments and eating and drinking, they have the same customs as
the people of Great _Leu song_ and Small _Leu song_ (_Spain_
and _Manilla_)."
This extract is taken from the _Hwang tsing ch[)i]h kung too_, or the
_Register of the Tribute as recorded under the present dynasty_
(_Memoirs_, l. c. p. 10 v., p. 11 r.). I am not sure if _Ke tsew_
(10,869) _keu_ (6,063) _Leu song_, can really be translated by the
words--_they are assembled together and stay in Leu song_. The use of
_tsew_ in the place of _tseu_ (10,826) is confirmed by the authorities
in Kang he; but does Leu song really mean Spain? The Philippinas are
called Leu song (Luzon), from the island whereon Manilla is, and in
opposition to Spain (_Ta Leu song, the great L. s._), _Seao Leu song_,
_the small Leu song_. It may be doubted whether _Leu song_ without
_Ta_, _great_, can be taken for Spain. The Chinese have moreover
learned from Matthæus Ricci the proper name of Spain, and write it
_She pan ya_. The Dutch, the English, and the Germans, are, from a
reddish colour of their hair, called _Hung maou_. This peculiar colour
of the hair found among people of German origin, is often spoken of by
the ancient Roman authors; as for instance in Tacitus, Germania, c.
4. Juvenal says, Sat. XIII. v. 164,
Cærula quis stupuit Germani lumina? _flavam
Cæsariem_, et madido torquentem cornua cirro?
It would carry us too far at present to translate the statements of
the Chinese concerning the Portuguese and Dutch. Under the head of _Se
yang_, or Portugal, may be read an extract of the account of Europe
(Gow lo pa) the Chinese received by Paulus Matthæus Ricci (_Le ma
paou_). The Chinese know that the European Universities are divided
into four faculties; and his Excellency Yuen is aware of the great
similarity between the ceremonies of the Buddhists and those of the
Roman Catholic church (l. c. 17 v). The present Translator of the
"History of the Pirates" intends to translate the whole of the 57th
book of the often-quoted Memoirs, and to subjoin copious extracts of
other works, particularly from the _Hae kw[)o] hëen këen l[)u]h_, or
"Memoirs concerning the Empires surrounded by the Ocean." This very
interesting small work is divided into two books; one containing the
text, and the other the maps. The text consists of eight chapters,
including a description of the sea-coast of China, with a map,
constructed on a large scale, of the nations to the east, the
south-east, and the south; then follows a topography of Portugal and
Europe generally. Concerning England we find:--
_The Kingdom of the Ying keih le, or English._
"The kingdom of the _Ying keih le_ is a dependent or tributary
state[10] to _Ho lan_ (Holland). Their garments and manners in
eating and drinking are the same. This kingdom is rather rich.
The males use much cloth and like to drink wine. The females,
before marriage, bind the waist, being desirous to look
slender; their hair hangs in curls over the neck; they use a
short garment and petticoats, but dress in a larger cloth when
they go out. They take snuff out of boxes made from gold and
threads."
This extract is taken from the "_Register of the Tribute as recorded
under the present dynasty_."
"_Ying keih le_ is a kingdom composed of three islands: it is
in the middle of four kingdoms, called _Lin yin_:[11] _Hwang
ke_, the _yellow flag_ (Denmark), _Ho lan_, and _Fo lang se_.
The _Great Western Ocean_ (Europe) worships the Lord of Heaven;
and there are, firstly, _She pan ya_ (Spain), _Poo ke[)u]h ya_
(Portugal), the _yellow flag_, &c.; but there are too many
kingdoms to nominate them one by one. Ying keih le is a kingdom
which produces silver, woollen cloths,[12] camlets, _peih ke_,
or English cloth, called long ells,[13] glass, and other things
of this kind."
This extract is taken from the _Hae kw[)o] hëen këen l[)u]h_, book i.
p. 34 v. 35 r; and I am sorry to see that in the "Memoirs" it is
abbreviated in such a manner that the sense is materially changed.
"_Ying keih le_," says the author of the _Hae kwo hëen këen
l[)u]h_ (l. c.), "is a realm composed out of three islands. To
the west and the north of the four kingdoms of _Lin yin_, the
_Yellow flag_, _Holan_, and _Fo lang se_, is the ocean. From
Lin yin the ocean takes its direction to the east, and
surrounds _Go lo sse_ (Russia); and from Go lo sse, yet more to
the east, _Se me le_ (Siberia?). Through the northern sea you
cannot sail; the sea is frozen, and does not thaw, and for this
reason it is called the _Frozen Ocean_. From Lin yin, to the
south, are the various empires of the _Woo_ and _Kwei_ (_Crows_
and _Demons_), and they all belong to _the red-haired people_
of the _Great Western Ocean_. On the west and on the north
there are different barbarians under various names;
* * * * *
but they are, in one word, similar to the Go lo sse (Russians),
who stay in the metropolis (Pekin). It is said that the _Kaou
chun peih mow_ (?) are similar to the inhabitants of the
_Middle Empire_; they are of a vigorous body and an ingenious
mind. All that they produce is fine and strong; their
attention is directed to making fire-arms. They make researches
in astronomy and geography, and generally they do not marry.
Every kingdom has a particular language, and they greet one
another by taking off the hat. They worship," &c. (The same as
p. xxx.)
My copy of the _Hae kw[)o] hëen këen l[)u]h_ was printed in the
province _Che keang_, in the year 1794.
"In the narrative regarding foreign countries, and forming part
of the history of the Ming, the English are called _Yen go le_;
in the _Hae kw[)o] hëen këen l[)u]h_, Ying ke le (5272, 6950);
but in the maps the name is now always written _Ying keih le_
(5018, 6947). In expressing the sound of words we sometimes use
different characters. This kingdom lies to the west of _Gow lo
pa_ (Europa), and was originally a tributary state to Ho lan
(Holland); but in the course of time it became richer and more
powerful than _Ho lan_, and revolted. These kingdoms are,
therefore, enemies. It is not known at what time the Ying keih
le grasped the country of North _O m[)o] le kea_ (America),
which is called _Kea no_ (Canada). Great _Ying keih le_ is a
kingdom of Gow lo pa (Europe.)[14] In the twelfth year of _Yung
ching_ (1735), they came the first time to Canton for trade.
Their country produces wheat, with which they trade to all the
neighboring countries. They are generally called _Keang he[)o]_
(that is, English ships from India, or country ships), and
there arrive many vessels."
This extract is taken from the _Tan chay hëen këen l[)u]h_, and it is
all that we find regarding England in the Memoirs concerning the south
of the Mei ling Mountains (p. 18 r. v.). In the latter extract, the
author appears to confound the country trade of India and China with
that of the mother country. England is again mentioned in the notice
regarding Me le keih (America), taken out of Yuen's History of Canton.
It is there said, that the Me le keih passed, in the 52d year of Këen
lung (1788), the Bocca Tigris, and that they then separated from the
Ying keih le (p. 19 r.) At the end of the extract concerning the
Americans (p. 190) we read the following words:
"The characters which are used in the writings of these realms
are, according to the statements of _Ma lo ko_, _twenty-six_;
all sounds can be sufficiently expressed by these characters.
Every realm has large and small characters; they are called _La
ting_ characters, and _La te na_ (Latin) characters."
It is pleasing to observe that his Excellency Yuen had some knowledge
of Dr. Morrison's Dictionary. In the third part of his Dictionary, Dr.
Morrison has given, in Chinese, a short and clear notice concerning
the European alphabet. Yuen seems to have taken his statements from
this notice, and to have written the name of the author, by a mistake,
_Ma lo ko_, for _Ma le so_, as Dr. Morrison is generally called by the
Chinese.
_The Man ying, the Double Eagle, or
Austrians._
"The _Man ying_ passed the Bocca Tigris the first time in the
45th year of Këen lung (1781), and are called _Ta chen_
(_Teutchen_). They have accepted the religion of the Lord of
Heaven. In customs and manners they are similar to the Se yang,
or Portuguese; they are the brethren of the Tan ying, or
_Single eagle kingdom_ (Prussia); in difficulties and distress
they help one another. Their ships which came to Canton had a
white flag, on which an eagle was painted with two heads."
This extract is taken from the History of _Yuen_. I take the liberty
to observe, that the Chinese scholar must be careful not to take the
_Sui chen_, or _Chen kw[)o]_ (the Swedes), for the _Ta chen_ (the
_Teutchen_). In the _Memoirs_, l. c. p. 19 v., we read the following
notice on the _Chen kw[)o]_ (the Swedes):
"The _Chen_ realm is also called _Tan_ (Denmark) realm, and now
the _yellow flag_. This country is opposite to that of the _Ho
lan_, and a little farther off from the sea. There are two
realms called _Sui chen_, and they border both on the _Go lo
sse_, or Russia. They passed the Bocca Tigris the first year of
Këen lung (1765)."
_The Tan ying, the Single Eagle or Prussians._
"The Tan ying passed the Bocca Tigris the 52d year of Këen lung
(1788.) They live to the west and north of the Man ying
(Austrians). In customs and manners they are similar to them.
On their ships flies a white flag, on which an eagle is
painted."
This last extract is also taken from the History of Canton, published
by his Excellency Yuen.
If we consider how easily the Chinese could procure information
regarding foreign countries during the course of the two last
centuries, and then see how shamefully they let pass all such
opportunities to inform and improve themselves, we can only look upon
these proud slaves of hereditary customs with the utmost disgust and
contempt. The ancient Britons and Germans had no books; yet what
perfect descriptions of those barbarian nations have been handed down
to us by the immortal genius of Tacitus! Montesquieu says, that "in
Cæsar and Tacitus we read the code of barbarian laws; and in the code
we read Cæsar and Tacitus." In the statement of the modern Chinese
regarding foreign nations, we see, on the contrary, both the want of
enquiry, and the childish remarks of unenlightened and uncultivated
minds.[15]
YING HING SOO's PREFACE.
In the summer of the year _Ke sze_ (1809),[16] I returned from the
capital, and having passed the chain of mountains,[17] I learned the
extraordinary disturbances caused by the _Pirates_. When I came home I
saw with mine own eyes all the calamities; four villages were totally
destroyed; the inhabitants collected together and made preparations
for resistance. Fighting at last ceased on seas and rivers: families
and villages rejoiced, and peace was every where restored. Hearing of
our naval transactions, every man desired to have them written down in
a history; but people have, until this day, looked in vain for such a
work.
Meeting once, at a public inn in Whampo,[18] with one _Yuen tsze_, we
conversed together, when he took a volume in his hand, and asked me to
read it. On opening the work, I saw that it contained a _History of
the Pirates_; and reading it to the end, I found that the occurrences
of those times were therein recorded from day to day, and that our
naval transactions are there faithfully reported. Yuen tsze supplied
the defect I stated before, and anticipated what had occupied my mind
for a long time. The affairs concerning the robber _Lin_ are described
by the non-official historian _Lan e_, in his _Tsing y[)i]h ke_, viz.
in the _History of the Pacification of the Robbers_.[19] Respectfully
looking to the commands of heaven, _Lan e_ made known, for all future
times, the faithful and devoted servants of government. Yuen tsze's
work is a supplement to the History of the Pacification of the
Robbers, and you may rely on whatever therein is reported, whether it
be of great or little consequence. Yuen tsze has overlooked nothing;
and I dare to say, that all people will rejoice at the publication.
Having written these introductory lines to the said work, I returned
it to Yuen tsze.[20]
Written at the time of the fifth summer moon, the tenth year of Tao
kwang, called K[)a]ng yin (September 1830).
A respectful Preface of _Ying hing Soo_, from _Peih keang_.
KING CHUNG HO's[21] PREFACE.
My house being near the sea, we were, during the year _Ke sze_ of Këa
king (1809), disturbed by the Pirates. The whole coast adjoining to
our town was in confusion, and the inhabitants dispersed; this lasting
for a long time, every man felt annoyed at it. In the year _K[)a]ng
yin_ (1830) I met with _Yuen tsze yung lun_ at a public inn within the
walls of the provincial metropolis (Canton). He showed me his
_History of the Pacification of the Pirates_, and asked me to write a
Preface to the work; having been a schoolfellow of his in my tender
age, I could not refuse his request. Opening and reading the volume, I
was moved with recollections of occurrences in former days, and I was
pleased with the diligence and industry of _Yuen keun_[22] The author
was so careful to combine what he had seen and heard, that I venture
to say it is an historical work on which you may rely.
We have the collections of former historians, who in a fine style
described things as they happened, that by such faithful accounts the
world might be governed, and the minds of men enlightened. People may
learn by these vast collections[23] what should be done, and what not.
It is, therefore, desirable that facts may be arranged in such a
manner, that books should give a faithful account of what happened.
There are magistrates who risk their life, excellent females who
maintain their virtue, and celebrated individuals who protect their
native places with a strong hand; they behave themselves valiantly,
and overlook private considerations, if the subject concerns the
welfare of the people at large. Without darkness, there is no light;
without virtue, there is no splendour. In the course of time we have
heard of many persons of such qualities; but how few books exist by
which the authors benefit their age!
This is the Preface respectfully written by _King chung ho_, called
_Sin joo min_,[24] at the time of the second decade, the first month
of the autumn, the year _K[)a]ng yin_ (September 1830) of Tao
kwang.[25]
THE
HISTORY
OF
THE CHINESE PIRATES.
BOOK FIRST.
[sd: (1 r.)] There have been pirates from the oldest times in the
eastern sea of Canton; they arose and disappeared alternately, but never
were they so formidable as in the years of Këa king,[26] at which time,
being closely united together, it was indeed very difficult to destroy
them. Their origin must be sought for in Annam.[27] [sd: (1 v.)] In the
year fifty-six of Këen lung (1792), a certain Kwang ping yuen, joined by
his two brothers, Kwang e and Kwang kw[)o], took Annam by force, and
expelled its legitimate king Wei ke le.[28] Le retired into the province
Kwang se, and was made a general by our government. But his younger
brother Fuh ying came in the sixth year of Këa king (1802) with an army
from Siam and Laos,[29] and killed Kwang ping in a great battle. The son
of the usurper, called King shing, went on board a ship with the
minister Yew kin meih, and Meih joined the pirates, Ching tsih, Tung hae
pa, and others, who rambled about these seas at this time. The pirate
Ching tsih was appointed a king's officer, under the name of _master of
the stables_. [sd: (2 r.)] King shing, relying on the force of his new
allies, which consisted of about two hundred vessels, manned with a
resolute and warlike people, returned in the twelfth moon of the same
year (1803) into that country with an armed force, and joined by Ching
tsih, at night time took possession of the bay of Annam. The legitimate
king Fuh ying collected an army, but being beaten repeatedly, he tried
in vain to retire to Laos.
Ching tsih being a man who had lived all his life on the water, behaved
himself, as soon as he got possession of the bay of Annam, in a
tyrannical way to the inhabitants; he took what he liked, and, to say it
in one word, his will alone was law. His followers conducted themselves
in the same manner; trusting to their power and strength, they were
cruel and violent against the people; they divided the whole population
among themselves, and took their wives and daughters by force. The
inhabitants felt very much annoyed at this behaviour, and attached
themselves more strongly to Fuh ying. [sd: (2 v.)] They fixed a day on
which some of the king's officers should make an attack on the
sea-side, while the king himself with his general was to fight the van
of the enemy, the people to rise _en masse_, and to run to arms, in
order that they should be overwhelming by their numbers. Fuh ying was
delighted at these tidings, and on the appointed day a great battle was
fought, in which Ching tsih not being able to superintend all from the
rear-guard to the van, and the people pressing besides very hard towards
the centre, he was totally vanquished and his army destroyed. He himself
died of a wound which he received in the battle. His younger brother
Ching y[)i]h, the usurper, King shing, and his nephew Pang shang, with
many others ran away. Ching y[)i]h, their chief, joined the pirates with
his followers, who in these times robbed and plundered on the ocean
indiscriminately. This was a very prosperous period for the pirates. So
long as Wang pëaou remained admiral in these seas, all was peace and
quietness both on the ocean and the sea-shore. [sd: (3 r.)] The admiral
gained repeated victories over the bandits; but as soon as Wang pëaou
died, the pirates divided themselves into different squadrons, which
sailed under various colours. There existed six large squadrons, under
different flags, the _red_, the _yellow_, the _green_, the _blue_, the
_black_, and the _white_. These wasps of the ocean were called after
their different commanders, _Ching y[)i]h_, _Woo che tsing_, _Meih yew
kin_, _O po tai_, _Lëang paou_, and _Le shang tsing_. To every one of
these large squadrons belonged smaller ones, commanded by a deputy. Woo
che tsing, whose nick-name was _Tung hae pa_, the _Scourge of the
Eastern Sea_,[30] was commander of the _yellow_ flag, and Le tsung hoo
his deputy. Meih yew kin and Nëaou shih, who for this reason was called
_Bird_ and _stone_, were the commanders of the _blue_ flag, and their
deputies Meih's brethren, Yew kwei and Yew këe. [sd: (3 v.)] A certain
Hae kang and another person Hwang ho, were employed as spies. O po tai,
who afterwards changed his name to _Lustre of instruction_,[31] was the
commander of the _black_ flag, and Ping yung ta, Chang jih këaou, and O
tsew he, were his deputies. Lëang paou, nicknamed Tsung ping paou, The
_jewel of the whole crew_, was the commander of the _white_ flag. Le
shang tsing, nicknamed _The frog's meal_, was the commander of the
_green_; and Ching y[)i]h of the _red_ flag. Every flag was appointed to
cruise in a particular channel. There was at this time a gang of robbers
in the province Fo këen, known by the name of Kwei këen (6760, 5822);
they also joined the pirates, who became so numerous that it was
impossible to master them. We must in particular mention a certain
_Chang paou_, a notorious character in after-times. Under Chang paou
were other smaller squadrons, commanded by Suh ke lan (nicknamed _Both
odour and mountain_) Lëang po paou, Suh puh gow, and others. Chang paou
himself belonged to the squadron of Ching y[)i]h saou, or the _wife of
Ching y[)i]h_,[32] so that the red flag alone was stronger than all the
others united together.
[sd: (4 r.)] There are three water passages or channels along the
sea-shore, south of the Mei ling mountains;[33] one goes eastward to
_Hwy_ and _Chaou_[34]; the other westward to _Kao_, _Lëen_, _Luy_,
_Këung_, _Kin_, _Tan_, _Yae_ and _Wan_;[35] and a third between these
two, to _Kwang_ and _Chow_.[36] The ocean surrounds these passages, and
here trading vessels from all the world meet together, wherefore this
track is called "_The great meeting from the east and the south_." The
piratical squadrons dividing between them the water passages and the
adjoining coasts, robbed and carried away all that fell into their
hands. [sd: (4 v.)] Both the eastern and the middle passage have been
retained by the three piratical squadrons, Ching y[)i]h saou, O po tae,
and Leang paou; the western passage was under the three others,
nicknamed _Bird and stone_, _Frog's meal_, and the _Scourge of the
eastern sea_. Peace and quietness was not known by the inhabitants of
the sea-coast for a period of ten years. On the side from _Wei chow_ and
_Neaou chow_[37] farther on to the sea, the passage was totally cut off;
scarcely any man came hither. In this direction is a small island,
surrounded on all sides by high mountains, where in stormy weather a
hundred vessels find a safe anchorage; here the pirates retired when
they could not commit any robberies. This land contains fine paddy
fields, and abounds in all kinds of animals, flowers, and fruits. This
island was the lurking-place of the robbers, where they stayed and
prepared all the stores for their shipping.
[Sidenote: 1807.]
[sd: (5 r.)] Chang paou was a native of Sin hwy, near the mouth of the
river,[38] and the son of a fisherman. Being fifteen years of age, he
went with his father a fishing in the sea, and they were consequently
taken prisoners by Ching y[)i]h, who roamed about the mouth of the
river, ravaging and plundering. Ching y[)i]h saw Paou, and liked him so
much, that he could not depart from him. [sd: (5 v.)] Paou was indeed a
clever fellow--he managed all business very well; being also a fine
young man, he became a favourite of Ching y[)i]h,[39] and was made a
head-man or captain. [sd: (5 v.)] It happened, that on the seventeenth
day of the tenth moon, in the twentieth year of Këa king (about the end
of 1807), Ching y[)i]h perished in a heavy gale, and his legitimate wife
_Sh[)i]h_ placed the whole crew under the sway of Paou; but so that she
herself should be considered the Commander of all the squadrons
together,--for this reason the division Ching y[)i]h was then called
_Ching y[)i]h saou_, or _the wife of Ching y[)i]h_.[40] Being chief
captain, Paou robbed and plundered incessantly, and daily increased his
men and his vessels. He made the three following regulations:--
First:
_If any man goes privately on shore, or what is called
transgressing the bars, he shall be taken and his ears be
perforated in the presence of the whole fleet; repeating the
same act, he shall suffer death._
Second:
[Sidenote: 1807.]
_Not the least thing shall be taken privately from the stolen
and plundered goods. All shall be registered, and the pirate
receive for himself, out of_ _ten parts, only two; eight parts
belong to the storehouse, called the general fund; taking any
thing out of this general fund, without permission, shall be
death._
Third:
[sd: (6 r.)] _No person shall debauch at his pleasure captive women
taken in the villages and open places, and brought on board a
ship; he must first request the ship's purser for permission, and
then go aside in the ship's hold. To use violence against any woman,
or to wed her without permission, shall be punished with death._[41]
[Sidenote: 1807.]
That the pirates might never feel want of provisions, Chang paou
gained the country people to their interest. It was ordered, that
wine, rice, and all other goods, should be paid for to the villagers;
it was made capital punishment to take any thing of this kind by force
or without paying for it. For this reason the pirates were never in
want of gunpowder, provisions, and all other necessaries. By this
strong discipline the whole crew of the fleet was kept in order.
The wife of Ching y[)i]h was very strict in every transaction; nothing
could be done without a written application. Anything which had been
taken, or plundered, was regularly entered on the register of the
storehouse. [sd: (6 v.)] The pirates received out of this common fund
what they were in need of, and nobody dared to have private possessions.
If on a piratical expedition any man left the line of battle, whether by
advancing or receding, every pirate might accuse him at a general
meeting, and on being found guilty, he was beheaded. Knowing how
watchful Chang paou was on every side, the pirates took great care to
behave themselves well.
The pirates used to call the purser, or secretary of the storehouse,
_Ink and writing master_; and they called their piratical plunder only
_a transhipping of goods_.
[Sidenote: 1807.]
There was a temple in _Hwy chow_ dedicated to the _spirits of the three
mothers_,[42] near the sea-coast, and many came thither to worship. The
pirates visited this place whenever they passed it with their vessels,
pretending to worship; but this was not the case--they thought of
mischief, and had only their business to attend. Once they came with the
commander at their head, as if to worship, but they laid hold on the
image or statue to take it away. [sd: (7 r.)] They tried in vain from
morning to the evening,--they were all together not able to move it.
Chang paou alone[43] was able to raise the image, and being a fair wind,
he gave order to bring it on board a ship. All who were concerned in
this transaction feared to find, from the wrath of the spirit, their
death in the piratical expeditions. They all prayed to escape the
vengeance of heaven.
[Sidenote: 1808.]
On the seventh moon of the thirteenth year, the naval officer of the
garrison at the Bocca Tigris,[44] Kw[)o] lang lin, sailed into the sea
to fight the pirates.[45] Chang paou was informed by his spies of this
officer's arrival, and prepared an ambush in a sequestered bay. [sd: (7
v.)] He met Kw[)o] lang on a false attack, with a few vessels only; but
twenty-five vessels came from behind, and the pirates surrounded Kw[)o]
lang's squadron in three lines near Ma chow yang.[46] There followed a
fierce battle, which lasted from the morning to the evening; it was
impossible for Kw[)o] lang to break through the enemy's lines, and he
determined to die fighting. Paou advanced; but Lang fought exceedingly
hard against him. He loaded a gun and fired it at Paou, who perceiving
the gun directed against him, gave way. Seeing this, the people thought
he was wounded and dying; but as soon as the smoke vanished Paou stood
again firm and upright, so that all thought he was a spirit. The pirates
instantly grappled Kw[)o] lang's ship; Paou was the foremost, and Leang
po paou the first to mount the vessel; he killed the helmsman, and took
the ship. The pirates crowded about; the commander Kw[)o] lang engaging
with small arms, much blood was shed. [sd: (8 r.)] This murderous
battle lasted till night time; the bodies of the dead surrounded the
vessels on all sides, and there perished an immense number of the
pirates. Between three and five o'clock the pirates had destroyed or
sunk three of our vessels. The other officers of Kw[)o] being afraid
that they also might perish in the sea, displayed not all their
strength; so it happened that the pirates making a sudden attack,
captured the whole remaining fifteen vessels. Paou wished very much that
Kw[)o] lang would surrender, but Lang becoming desperate, suddenly
seized the pirate by the hair, and grinned at him. The pirate spoke
kindly to him, and tried to soothe him. Lang, seeing himself deceived in
his expectation, and that he could not attain death by such means,
committed suicide,--being then a man of seventy years of age. Paou had
really no intention to put Kw[)o] lang to death, and he was exceedingly
sorry at what happened. [sd: (8 v.)] "We others," said Paou, "are like
vapours dispersed by the wind; we are like the waves of the sea, roused
up by a whirlwind; like broken bamboo-sticks on the sea, we are floating
and sinking alternately, without enjoying any rest. Our success in this
fierce battle will, after a short time, bring the united strength of
government on our neck. If they pursue us in the different windings and
bays of the sea--they have maps of them[47]--should we not get plenty to
do? Who will believe that it happened not by my command, and that I am
innocent of the death of this officer? Every man will charge me with the
wanton murder of a commander, after he had been vanquished and his ships
taken? And they who have escaped will magnify my cruelty.[48] [sd: (9
r.)] If I am charged with the murder of this officer, how could I
venture, if I should wish in future times, to submit myself? Would I not
be treated according to the supposed cruel death of Kw[)o] lang?"
[Sidenote: 1808.]
At the time that Kw[)o] lang was fighting very bravely, about ten
fisher-boats asked of the major Pang noo of the town Hëang shan,[49] to
lend them the large guns, to assist the commander; but the major being
afraid these fishermen might join the pirates,[50] refused their
request. And thus it happened, that the commander himself perished with
many others. There were in the battle three of my friends: the
lieutenant Tao tsae lin, Tse[)o] tang hoo, and Ying tang hwang, serving
under the former. Lin and Hoo were killed, but Hwang escaped when all
was surrounded with smoke, and he it was who told me the whole affair.
[Sidenote: 1808.]
On the eighth moon the general Lin fa went out as commander to make war
against the pirates; but on seeing that they were so numerous, he became
afraid, and all the other officers felt apprehensions; he therefore
tried to retire, but the pirates pursued after, and came up with him
near a place called Olang pae.[51] [sd: (9 v.)] The vessels in the
front attacked the pirates, who were not able to move, for there
happened to be a calm. But the pirates leaped into the water, and came
swimming towards our vessels. Our commander not being able to prevent
this by force, six vessels were taken; and he himself, with ten other
men, were killed by the pirates.
[Sidenote: 1808.]
A very large trading vessel called Teaou fa, coming back laden with
goods from Annam and Tung king,[52] had a desperate skirmish with the
pirates. Chang paou, knowing very well that he could not take her by
force, captured two ferry boats, and the pirates concealed themselves
therein. [sd: (10 r.)] Under the mask of ferrymen the pirates pursued
after, and called upon Teaou fa to stop. Fa, confident in her strength,
and that victory would be on her side, let the ferrymen come near, as if
she had not been aware of the deceit. But as soon as the pirates laid
hold of the ropes to board her, the trader's crew made a vigorous
resistance, and the pirates could not avail themselves of their knives
and arrows--guns they had not--the vessel being too large. There were
killed about ten hands in attacking this vessel, and the pirates retired
to their boat; a circumstance which never happened before.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the second moon of the fourteenth year, the admiral _Tsuen mow sun_
went on board his flag vessel, called Mih teng, and proceeded with about
one hundred other vessels to attack the pirates. They were acquainted
with his design by their spies, and gathered together round Wan
shan;[53] the admiral following them in four divisions. [sd: (10 v.)]
The pirates, confident in their numbers, did not withdraw, but on the
contrary spread out their line, and made a strong attack. Our commander
looked very lightly on them, yet a very fierce battle followed, in which
many were killed and wounded. The ropes and sails having been set on
fire by the guns,[54] the pirates became exceeding afraid and took them
away. The commander directed his fire against the steerage, that they
might not be able to steer their vessels. Being very close one to the
other, the pirates were exposed to the fire of all the four lines at
once. The pirates opened their eyes in astonishment and fell down; our
commander advanced courageously, laid hold of their vessels, killed an
immense number of men, and took about two hundred prisoners. There was a
pirate's wife in one of the boats, holding so fast by the helm that she
could scarcely be taken away. [sd: (11 r.)] Having two cutlasses, she
desperately defended herself, and wounded some soldiers; but on being
wounded by a musket-ball, she fell back into the vessel and was taken
prisoner.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
About this time, when the red squadron was assembled in Kwang chow wan,
or the Bay of Kwang chow, Tsuen mow sun went to attack them; but he was
not strong enough. The wife of Ching y[)i]h remained quiet; but she
ordered Chang paou to make an attack on the front of our line with ten
vessels, and Leang po paou to come from behind. Our commander fought in
the van and in the rear, and made a dreadful slaughter; but there came
suddenly two other pirates, Hëang shang url, and Suh puh king, who
surrounded and attacked our commander on all sides. [sd: (11 v.)] Our
squadron was scattered, thrown into disorder, and consequently cut to
pieces; there was a noise which rent the sky; every man fought in his
own defence, and scarcely a hundred remained together. The squadron of
Ching y[)i]h overpowered us by numbers; our commander was not able to
protect his lines, they were broken, and we lost fourteen vessels.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
Our men of war, escorting some merchant vessels, in the fourth moon of
the same year, happened to meet the pirate nicknamed _The Jewel of the
whole crew_, cruizing at sea near a place called Tang pae ke[)o],
outside of Tsëaou mun. The traders became exceedingly frightened, but
our commander said: "This not being the red flag, we are a match for
them, therefore we will attack and conquer them." Then ensued a battle;
they attacked each other with guns and stones, and many people were
killed and wounded. [sd: (12 r.)] The fighting ceased towards the
evening, and began again next morning. The pirates and the men of war
were very close to each other, and they boasted mutually about their
strength and valour. It was a very hard fight; the sound of cannon and
the cries of the combatants were heard some le[55] distant. The traders
remained at some distance; they saw the pirates mixing gunpowder in
their beverage,--they looked instantly red about the face and the eyes,
and then fought desperately[56] This fighting continued three days and
nights incessantly; at last becoming tired on both sides, they
separated.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (12 v.)] On the eighth day of the fifth moon the pirates left their
lurking place, attacked Kan chuh han, and burned and plundered the
houses. On the tenth they burned and plundered Kew këang, Sha kow, and
the whole sea-coast; they then turned about to Këe chow, went on shore,
and carried away fifty-three women by force. They went to sea again the
following day, burned and plundered on their way about one hundred
houses in Sin hwy and Shang sha, and took about a hundred persons of
both sexes prisoners.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the sixth moon, the admiral Ting kwei heu went to sea. Wishing to
sail eastward, but falling in with heavy rains for some days, he stopped
near Kwei këa mun,[57] and engaged in settling concerning his ballast.
On the eighth day of this moon, Chang paou, availing himself of the bad
weather, explored the station in a small boat and passed the place. Ting
kwei was right in thinking that the pirates would not undertake any
thing during these heavy rains; but he was careless regarding what might
happen after it. [sd: (13 r.)] Indeed, as the weather cleared up on the
morning of the ninth, Chang paou appeared suddenly before the admiral,
and formed a line of two hundred vessels. Ting kwei having no sails
ready, and all the ships being at anchor, could by no means escape the
pirates. The officers, being afraid of the large number of the enemy,
stood pale with apprehension near the flagstaff, unwilling to fight. The
admiral spoke to them in a very firm manner, and said: "By your fathers
and mothers, by your wives and children, do your duty; fight and destroy
these robbers. Every man must die: but should we be so happy as to
escape, our rewards from government will be immense. Should we fall in
the defence of our country, think that the whole force of the empire
will be roused, and they will try by all means to destroy these
banditti." [sd: (13 v.)] They now all united together in a furious
attack, and sustained it for a long time: Ting kwei fired his great
guns,[58] and wounding the ringleader, nicknamed _The Jewel of the whole
crew_, he fell down dead.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The pirates were now at a loss how to proceed; but they received
succour, while the force of our commander diminished every moment. About
noon Paou drew nearer to the vessel of Ting kwei, attacked her with
small arms, and sustained a great loss. But Leang po paou suddenly
boarded the vessel, and the crew was thrown into disorder. Ting kwei
seeing that he was unable to withstand, committed suicide; while an
immense number of his men perished in the sea, and twenty-five vessels
were lost.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (14 r.)] Our former deputy-governor Pih ling was about this time
removed from his situation in the three _Këang_ to become
governor-general of the two Kwang.[59] People said, now that Pih comes
we shall not be overpowered by the pirates. Old men crowded about the
gates of the public offices to make enquiries; the government officers
appeared frightened and held consultations day and night, and the
soldiers were ordered by a public placard to hold themselves ready to
march. "Since the death of Wang pëaou," it was said, "all commanders
were unfortunate. Last year _Kw[)o] lang lin_ was killed in the battle
at _Ma chow_; _Tsuen mow sun_ was unlucky at _Gaou kow_, _Url lin_ ran
away like a coward at _Lang pae_, and now _Ting kwei_ has [Sidenote: (14
v.)] again been routed at _Kwei këa_. If the valiant men let their
spirits droop, and the soldiers themselves become frightened at these
repeated defeats, the pirates will certainly overpower us at last; we
can really not look for any assistance to destroy them. We must try to
cut off all provisions, and starve them." In consequence of this, all
vessels were ordered to remain, or to return into harbour, that the
pirates might not have any opportunity to plunder, and thus be destroyed
by famine. The government officers being very vigilant about this
regulation, the pirates were not able to get provisions for some months;
they became at last tired of it, and resolved to go into the river
itself.[60]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The pirates came now into the river by three different passages.[61]
[sd: (15 r.)] The wife of Ching y[)i]h plundered about Sin hwy, Chang
paou about Tung kwan,[62] and O po tae about Fan yu[63] and Shun tih,
and all other smaller places connected with Shun tih; they were together
explored by the pirates, who guarded the passage from Fan to Shun.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the first day of the seventh moon, O po tae came with about a hundred
vessels and burnt the custom-house of Tsze ne. On the second day he
divided his squadron into four divisions, extending to Peih këang, Wei
yung, Lin yo, Sh[)i]h peih, and other villages. The _Chang lung_
division[64] surrounded the whole country from Ta wang yin to Shwy sse
ying. The _Ta chow_, or large-vessel division, blockaded Ke kung
sh[)i]h, which is below the custom-house of Tsze ne. The pirates sent to
the village Tsze ne, demanding ten thousand pieces of money[65] as
tribute; and of San shen, a small village near Tsze ne on the right
side, they demanded two thousand. [sd: (15 v.)] The villagers differed
in opinion; one portion would have granted the tribute, another would
not. That part who wished to pay the tribute said: "The pirates are very
strong; it is better to submit ourselves now, and to give the tribute
that we may get rid of them for awhile; we may then with leisure think
on means of averting any misfortunes which may befall us. Our villages
are near the coast, we shall be surrounded and compelled to do what they
like, for no passage is open by which we can retire. How can we, under
such circumstances, be confident and rely on our own strength?"
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The other part, who would not grant the tribute, said: "The pirates will
never be satisfied; if we give them the tribute now, we shall not be
able to pay it on another day. If they should make extortions a second
time, when should we get money to comply with their demands? Why should
we not rather spend the two thousand pieces of money to encourage
government officers and the people? [sd: (16 r.)] If we fight and happen
to be victorious, our place will be highly esteemed; but if, what heaven
may prevent, we should be unlucky, we shall be everywhere highly spoken
of." The day drew to its end, and they could not agree in what they
should determine on, when one villager arose and said: "The banditti
will repeatedly visit us, and then it will be impossible to pay the
tribute; _we must fight_."
[Sidenote: 1809.]
As soon as it was resolved to resist the demands of the pirates, weapons
were prepared, and all able men, from sixteen years and upwards to
sixty, were summoned to appear with their arms near the palisades. They
kept quiet the whole of the second day, and proceeded not to fighting;
but the people were much disturbed, and did not sleep the whole night.
[sd: (16 v.)] On the following day they armed and posted themselves on
the sea-coast. The pirates, seeing that the villagers would not pay the
tribute, became enraged, and made a severe attack during the night; but
they could not pass the ditch before the village. On the morning of the
fourth, O po tae headed his men, forced the ditch, took the provisions,
and killed the cattle. The pirates in great numbers went on shore; but
the villagers made such a vigorous resistance that they began to
withdraw. O po tae therefore surrounded the village on both sides, and
the pirates took possession of the mountain in the rear; they then threw
the frightened villagers into disorder, pursued them, and killed about
eighty. After this the pirates proceeded with their van to the
sea-shore, without encountering any resistance from the front. [sd: (17
r.)] The villagers were from the beginning very much alarmed for their
wives and daughters; they collected them in the temple and shut it up.
But the pirates being victorious, opened the temple, and carried the
women by force all away on board ship. One pirate set off with two very
fine women; a villager, on seeing this, pursued after and killed him in
a hidden place. He then took the women and carried them safe through the
water,--this was a servant. A great number of the pirates were killed
and wounded, and the villagers lost about two thousand persons. What a
cruel misfortune! it is hard indeed only to relate it.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the third day of the moon the people of Ta ma chow, hearing that the
pirates were coming near, ran away. The pirates plundered all that was
left behind, clothes, cattle, and provisions. [sd: (17 v.)] On the sixth
day they came so far as Ping chow and San shan. On the eighth they
retired to Shaou wan, made an attack upon it on the ninth, but could not
take it. On the tenth they ascended the river with the tide, went on
shore, and burned Wei shih tun. On the eleventh day they came to our
village, but retired again at night on command. On the twelfth they
attacked Hwang yung, and left it again on the thirteenth. They retired
on the fourteenth, and stopped at Nan pae. On the fifteenth they sailed
out of the Bocca Tigris,[66] and on the twenty-sixth attacked the ships
which bring the tribute from Siam,[67] but were not strong enough to
capture them. [sd: (18 r.)] On the twenty-ninth they attacked the places
Tung hwan and Too shin, and killed nearly a thousand men.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The pirates tried many stratagems and frauds to get into the villages.
One came as a country gentleman to take charge of the government guns;
another came in a government vessel as if to assist the village; after
which they on a sudden attacked and plundered all, when people were not
aware of them. One pirate went round as a pedlar, to see and hear all,
and to explore every place. The country people became therefore at last
enraged, and were in future always on their guard. If they found any
foreigner, they took him for a pirate and killed him. So came once a
government officer on shore to buy rice; but the inhabitants thought he
was a pirate and killed him. There was every where a degree of
confusion, which it is impossible to explain.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the sixteenth day of the seventh moon, the pirates attacked a
village near Tung kwan. [sd: (18 v.)] The villagers knowing what would
happen, made fences and palisades, and obstructed the passage with large
guns. Armed with lances and targets they hid themselves in a secret
place, and selected ten men only to oppose the pirates. The pirates
seeing that there were so few people, went on shore to pursue them. As
soon as they came near the ambuscade the guns were fired; the pirates
became alarmed and dared not advance farther. Not being hurt by the
fire, they again advanced; but three pirates presuming that there was an
ambush, thought of retreating, and being very hard pressed by the enemy,
they gave a sign to their comrades to come on shore. The ten villagers
then retired near the ambush, and when the pirates pursued them, about a
hundred were killed by their guns, and the whole force of the banditti
was brought into disorder. [sd: (19 r.)] The villagers pursued them
killing many; those also who had been taken alive were afterwards
beheaded. They captured one small and two large vessels.[68]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the eighteenth day of the eighth moon the wife of Ching y[)i]h came
with about five hundred vessels from Tung kwan and Sin hwy, and caused
great commotion in the town Shun tih, Hëang shan, and the neighbouring
places. The squadron stopped at Tan chow, and on the twentieth Chang pao
was ordered to attack Shaou ting with three hundred vessels. He carried
away about four hundred people, both male and female; he came also to
the palisades of our village, but could not penetrate inside. [sd: (19
v.)] The twenty-first he came to Lin tow, and the twenty-second to Kan
shin; he made an attack, but could not overpower the place; he then
returned to Pwan pëen jow, and lay before its fence. The inhabitants of
Chow po chin, knowing that the pirates would make an attack, assembled
behind the wall to oppose them. The pirates fired their guns and wounded
some, when the villagers ran away. The pirates then went on shore, but
the villagers crowded together and fired on them; the pirates cast
themselves on the ground, and the shots passed over their heads without
doing any harm. Before the gunners could again load, the pirates sprang
up and put them to death. Out of the three thousand men who were in the
battle, five hundred were carried away by the pirates. One of the most
daring pirates, bearing the flag, was killed by the musket of a
villager; a second pirate then took the flag, and he also was killed.
The pirates now pressed against the wall and advanced. [sd: (20 r.)]
There was also a foreign pirate[69] engaged in the battle with a
fowling-piece. The pirates assembled in great numbers to cut the wall
with their halberts, but they were disappointed on seeing they could not
attain their object in such a manner. The pirates lost their hold, fell
down, and were killed. The engagement now became general, and great
numbers were killed and wounded on both sides. The villagers at last
were driven from their fortifications, and the pirates pursued them to
_Mih ke_, or _the rocks about Mih_, where they were hindered from going
farther by foggy weather; they retired and burned about twenty houses,
with all they contained. On the following day the pirates appeared again
on the shore, but the inhabitants made a vigorous resistance, and being
driven back, they retired to the citadel _Chih hwa_, where a thousand of
them fought so hard that the pirates withdrew. [sd: (20 v.)] It was
reported that ten of them were killed, and that the villagers lost eight
men. On the twenty-third the wife of Ching y[)i]h ordered O po tae to go
up the river with about eighty vessels: he stopped at Show ke and Kung
shih. On the twenty-fourth Chang paou and Po tae divided this district
between themselves, and robbed and burned all. Pao had to plunder the
north part to Fo shin; he carried away about ten thousand stones of
rice,[70] and burned down about thirty houses; on the twenty-fifth he
went to Se shin. O po tae came and burnt San heung keih; he then
plundered Hwang yung, and came to Këen ke, but did not make an attack
against it. He afterwards returned and laid waste Cha yung.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (21 r.)] On the twenty-sixth Chang paou went up the river to Nan
hae[71] and Lan sh[)i]h. In the harbour of the place were six rice
vessels; and as soon as Paou was in Lan sh[)i]h he made preparations to
capture these vessels. The military officer, seeing that the pirates
were numerous, remained however on his station, for the instant he would
have moved, Paou would have attacked and captured him. Paou proceeded
then against the village itself; but the officer Ho shaou yuen headed
the inhabitants, and made some resistance. The pirates, nevertheless,
mounted the banks; and the villagers seeing their strength, did not stay
to fight--they became frightened and ran away: all the others ran away
without making any resistance: [sd: (21 v.)] Ho shaou yuen alone opposed
the banditti with a handful of people; but he at last fell fighting, and
the pirates burnt four hundred shops and houses, and killed about ten
persons. After the pirates had retired, the inhabitants held in high
esteem the excellent behaviour of Ho shaou yuen; they erected him a
temple, and the deputy-governor Han fung performed sacrifices to his
memory.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
Shaou yuen was commanding officer in the citadel of Lan shih; he was of
an active spirit, and erected strong fences. Before the pirates arrived,
this was his daily discourse when he spoke to the people: "_I know that
I shall be glorified this year by my death_." Half the year being
already passed, it could not be seen how this prophecy was to be
fulfilled. When the pirates came, he encouraged the citizens to oppose
them vigorously; he himself girded on his sword and brandished his
spear, and was the most forward in the battle. He killed many persons;
but his strength failed him at last, and he was himself killed by the
pirates. The villagers were greatly moved by his excellent behaviour;
they erected him a temple, and said prayers before his effigy. It was
then known what he meant, that "he would be glorified in the course of
the year." Now that twenty years are passed, they even honour him by
exhibiting fire-works. I thought it proper to subjoin this remark to my
history.[72]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the twenty-seventh, Lin sun mustered about forty vessels, and went
out to fight with the pirates in order to protect the water passage.
[sd: (22 r.)] He remained at Kin kang (which is near Shaou wan hae), hid
himself westerly of that place the whole day, and removed then to Tsze
ne. Chang paou ordered his vessels to remove to Shaou ting, and his men
to go on shore in the night-time. Sun, seeing with sorrow that the
pirates were so numerous, and that he could not make any effectual
resistance, ran away eastwards and hid himself at Peih keang. At
daylight the following morning the pirates sailed to Tsze ne to attack
our commander, but not finding him, they stopped at Shaou ting; for
this being the time when the autumnal winds begin to blow, they were
afraid of them, and made preparations to retire. But we shall soon find
the different flags returning to the high sea to fight both with
extraordinary courage and great ferocity.[73]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (22 v.)] On the twenty-ninth they returned to plunder Kan shin;
they went into the river with small vessels, and the inhabitants
opposing them, wounded two pirates, which all the pirates resented. They
next came with large vessels, surrounded the village, and made
preparations to mount the narrow passes. The inhabitants remained within
the intrenchments, and dared not come forward. The pirates then divided
their force according to the various passes, and made an attack. The
inhabitants prepared themselves to make a strong resistance near the
entrance from the sea on the east side of the fence; but the pirates
stormed the fence, planted their flag on the shore, and then the whole
squadron followed. The inhabitants fought bravely, and made a dreadful
slaughter when the pirates crossed the entrance at Lin tow. The
boxing-master, Wei tang chow, made a vigorous resistance, and killed
about ten pirates. The pirates then began to withdraw, but Chang paou
himself headed the battle, which lasted very long. The inhabitants were
not strong enough. [sd: (23 r.)] Wei tang was surrounded by the pirates;
nevertheless that his wife fought valiantly by his side. On seeing that
they were surrounded and exhausted, the father of the lady[74] rushed
forward and killed some pirates. The pirates then retired in opposite
directions, in order to surround their opponents in such a manner that
they might not escape, and could be killed without being able to make
any resistance; and thus it happened, the wife of Wei tang being slain
with the others.
The pirates now pursued the inhabitants of the place, who cut the bridge
and retired to the neighbouring hills. The pirates swam through the
water and attacked the inhabitants, who were unable to escape. [sd: (23
v.)] The whole force of the pirates being now on shore, the inhabitants
suffered a severe loss,--it is supposed about a hundred of them were
killed; the loss of the pirates also was considerable.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The pirates went in four divisions to plunder; they took here an immense
quantity of clothes and other goods, and carried away one thousand one
hundred and forty captives of both sexes. They set on fire about ten
houses; the flames could not be extinguished for some days; in the whole
village you could not hear the cry of a dog or a hen. The other
inhabitants retired far from the village, or hid themselves in the
fields. In the paddy fields about a hundred women were hidden, but the
pirates on hearing a child crying, went to the place and carried them
away. [sd: (24 r.)] _Mei ying_, the wife of Ke choo yang, was very
beautiful, and a pirate being about to seize her by the head, she abused
him exceedingly. The pirate bound her to the yard-arm; but on abusing
him yet more, the pirate dragged her down and broke two of her teeth,
which filled her mouth and jaws with blood. The pirate sprang up again
to bind her. Ying allowed him to approach, but as soon as he came near
her, she laid hold of his garments with her bleeding mouth, and threw
both him and herself into the river, where they were drowned, The
remaining captives of both sexes were after some months liberated, on
having paid a ransom of fifteen thousand leang or ounces of silver.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
Travelling once to Pwan pëen jow I was affected by the virtuous
behaviour of _Mei ying_, and all generous men will, as I suppose, be
moved by the same feelings. I therefore composed a song, mourning her
fate:
Ch[.e]n k[.e] k[=i]n se[=a]ou hë[)e],
Chúy sz[=e] ch[=u]ng soó mëèn.
T[=a]ng sh[=e] shw[)u]y fàn le[)i]h,
Y[=e]w nèu t[)u]h n[=a]ng ts[=u]y;
Tsë[)e]n h[=e]u[)e] y[=i]ng kwáng në[)e],[75]
Yu[=e]n ke[)u] yu[=e]n shw[)u]y we[=i].
Shw[=u]y hw[)a]n p[=o] shàng heà,
Y[=i]ng lëe sháng pèi hw[=u]y.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
Cease fighting now for awhile!
Let us call back the flowing waves!
Who opposed the enemy in time?
A single wife could overpower him. [sd: (24 v.)]
Streaming with blood, she grasped the mad offspring of guilt,
She held fast the man and threw him into the meandering stream.
The spirit of the water, wandering up and down on the waves,
Was astonished at the virtue of _Ying_.
My song is at an end!
Waves meet each other continually.
I see the water green as mountain Peih,
But the brilliant fire returns no more![76]
How long did we mourn and cry![77]
BOOK SECOND.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (1 r.)] On the thirteenth day of the ninth moon our Admiral Tsuen
mow sun mustered about eighty vessels to go to Shaou wan, and obstruct
the passage. The pirates heard of these preparations, and on the night
of the fourteenth every vessel of the different flags was ordered to go
to Shaou wan. Their order was, that being within ten le from the place,
they should stop and prepare themselves to begin the battle when it was
dark. [sd: (1 v.)] From the first night watch the cannon began to fire,
and only ceased with daylight. At the end of the day the cannon were
again roaring without any intermission, and the country people mounted
on the green Lo shang, to look at the progress of the fight. They saw
the wrecks of vessels floating on the sea, the waves were rolling, the
bullets flying, and the cries of dying people mounted to the skies. The
vallies re-echoed the noise; beasts and birds[78] started alarmed, and
found no place where they might repose themselves. The vessels were
thrown into disorder, and our army was pressed down by the overpowering
force of the enemy. Our commander lost four vessels, but the palisade
before the village could not be taken, by which means it was protected
against pillage. Our admiral said, "Since I cannot conquer these wicked
pirates, I will blow myself up." [sd: (2 r.)] In this manner the admiral
and many other officers met their death.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
On the twenty-fifth the pirates went to Hëang shan and to great Hwang
po;[79] they took possession of the inside and the outside passage of
Hwang po, so that the boat-people,[80] who stay outside on the coast,
retired and came up to the town with their boats. The military officer
Ting gaou ho being made acquainted with the arrival of the pirates,
requested ten fishing boats from the town Hëang shan to assist the
citizens and to help them in opposing the enemy. He posted himself
before the town to protect it. [sd: (2 v.)] Ting gaou behaved valiantly
on the river; he headed his small fleet of fishing boats and opposed the
pirates. There was incessant fighting day and night; but at last the
numerous vessels of the pirates surrounded him on all sides, and Ting
gaou ho received a severe wound in the back. He then addressed his
comrades in the following words:
"Being on the military station before this town, it was my intention
to destroy the pirates, and for this reason I united with all the
principal men to oppose them, without considering my own
safety;--joyful I went to oppose the enemy. But not being able to
destroy this immense number of banditti, I am now surrounded with
all my principal men; and being deficient in power, I will die.
Death could not move me, but I fear the cruel behaviour of the
banditti; I fear that if the battle come to its highest summit, our
fathers and mothers, our wives and sons, will be taken captives.
[sd: (3 r.)] United with the principal men of the town, we cannot
destroy the pirates, neither protect the country, our families, nor
our own firesides,--but the circumstances being desperate, we must
do our utmost."[81]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
They now again rushed against the pirates and killed many of them; but
their strength being exhausted, the ten fishing boats were taken, and
great Hwang po given up to be plundered. The citizens retired to their
intrenchments, and made such vigorous resistance that the pirates
could not make them captives. Chang paou therefore ordered O po tae
and Leang po paou to make an attack on both sides, on the front and
the rear at once; so the citizens sustained a great defeat, and about
a hundred of them were killed. A placard was then posted up in the
town, admonishing the citizens that they being unable to resist the
enemy, must, under these cruel circumstances, send messengers to make
terms with the pirates. [sd: (3 v.)] This being done, the pirates
withdrew.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The wife of Ching yih then ordered the pirates to go up the river; she
herself remaining with the larger vessels in the sea to blockade the
different harbours or entrances from the sea-side; but the government
officers made preparations to oppose her. There were about this time
three foreign vessels returning to Portugal.[82] Y[)i]h's wife attacked
them, took one vessel, and killed about ten of the foreigners; the two
other vessels escaped. The Major Pang noo of Hëang shan about this time
fitted out a hundred vessels to attack the pirates; he had before hired
six foreign vessels, and the two Portuguese ships, which had before run
away, united also with him. Y[)i]h's wife, seeing that she had not
vessels enough, and that she might be surrounded, ordered a greater
number to her assistance. [sd: (4 r.)] She appointed Chang paou to
command them, and sail up the river; but to keep quiet with his squadron
till he saw the Chang lung, or government vessels come on. On the third
of the tenth moon the government vessels went higher up the river, and
Chang paou following and attacking them, the foreign vessels sustained a
great loss, and all the other vessels then ran away. The foreigners
showed themselves very courageous; they petitioned the mayor of Hëang
shan to place himself at the head of the foreign vessels, to go and
fight the pirates. [sd: (4 v.)] Pang noo having for some time considered
their request, inspected on the tenth of the same month the six foreign
vessels, their arms and provisions, and went out into the sea to pursue
the pirates.
About this time Chang paou had collected his force at Ta yu shan near
Chih leih ke[)o], and the foreign vessels went thither to attack him.
About the same time the admiral, Tsuen mow sun, collected a hundred
vessels, and joined the foreigners to attack the pirates. On the
thirteenth they spread out their lines, and fought during two days and
two nights, without either party proving victorious. On the fifteenth
one of the officers went forward with some large vessels to attack the
pirates, but he was very much hurt by the fire of the guns; his vessel
was lost, and about ten men were killed and many others wounded,--after
this, the whole fleet retired. They however again commenced fighting on
the sixteenth, but being unable to withstand the pirates, one vessel
more was lost.[83]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (5 r.)] The Admiral Tsuen mow sun was exceedingly eager to destroy
the pirates, but he was confident that he was not strong enough to
vanquish them, and he spoke thus to his people: "The pirates are too
powerful, we cannot master them by our arms; the pirates are many, we
only few; the pirates have large vessels, we only small ones; the
pirates are united under one head, but we are divided,--and we alone are
unable to engage with this overpowering force. We must therefore now
make an attack, when they cannot avail themselves of their number, and
contrive something besides physical strength, for by this alone it is
impossible for us to be victorious. [sd: (5 v.)] The pirates are now all
assembled in Ta yu shan, a place which is surrounded by water. Relying
on their strength, and thinking that they will be able to vanquish us,
they will certainly not leave this place of retirement. We should
therefore from the provincial city (Canton) assemble arms and soldiers
as many as we can, surround the place, and send fire-vessels among their
fleet. It is probable that in such a manner we may be able to measure
our strength with them."
[Sidenote: 1809.]
In consequence of this determination all commanders and officers of the
different vessels were ordered to meet on the seventeenth at Chih leih
ke[)o], to blockade the pirates in Ta yu shan, and to cut off all
supplies of provisions that might be sent to them. To annoy them yet
more, the officers were ordered to prepare the materials for the
fire-vessels. These fire-vessels were filled with gunpowder, nitre, and
other combustibles; after being filled, they were set on [Sidenote: (6
r.)] fire by a match from the stern, and were instantly all in a blaze.
The Major of Hëang shan, Pang noo, asked permission to bring soldiers
with him, in order that they might go on shore and make an attack under
the sound of martial music, during the time the mariners made their
preparation. On the twentieth it began to blow very fresh from the
north, and the commander ordered twenty fire-vessels to be sent off,
when they took, driven by the wind, an easterly direction; but the
pirate's entrenchments being protected by a mountain, the wind ceased,
and they could not move farther on in that direction; they turned about
and set on fire two men of war. The pirates knowing our design were
well prepared for it; they had bars with very long pincers, by which
they took hold of the fire-vessels and kept them off, so that they could
not come near. [sd: (6 v.)] Our commander, however, would not leave the
place; and being very eager to fight, he ordered that an attack should
be made, and it is presumed that about three hundred pirates were
killed. Pao now began to be afraid, and asked the _Spirit of the three
Po_, or old mothers, to give a prognostic. The _P[)u]h_, or lot for
fighting, was disastrous; the _P[)u]h_, or lot to remain in the easterly
entrenchment, was to be happy. The _P[)u]h_, or lot for knowing if he
might force the blockade or not on leaving his station to-morrow, was
also happy,[84] three times one after another.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
There arose with the day-light on the twenty-second a light southerly
breeze; all the squadrons began to move, and the pirates prepared
themselves joyfully to leave their station. About noon[85] there was a
strong southerly wind, and a very rough sea on. As soon as it became
dark the pirates made sail, with a good deal of noise, and broke through
the blockade, favoured by the southerly wind. About a hundred vessels
were upset, when the pirates left Ta yu shan. But our commander being
unaware that the pirates would leave their entrenchments, was not
prepared to withstand them. [sd: (7 r.)] The foreign vessels fired their
guns and surrounded about ten leaky vessels, but could not hurt the
pirates themselves; the pirates left the leaky vessels behind and ran
away. After this they assembled outside at Hung chow in the ocean.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
Notwithstanding that the pirates had broken through the blockade, Tsuen
mow sun desisted not from pursuing them; he followed the pirates into
the open sea in order to attack them. On the fifth of the eleventh moon
he met the pirates near Nan gaou, and prepared his vessels[86] to attack
them. The pirates spread out all their vessels one by one, so that the
line of their fleet reached the forces of our commander; they then tried
to form a circle and surround our admiral. [sd: (7 v.)] Our commander,
in order to prevent this, divided his force,--he separated from him
eighty vessels, which had orders to join him afterwards. Before they
united again, a great battle took place between the two fleets; the
firing lasted from three till five in the afternoon; our crew fought
exceedingly hard and burnt three pirate-vessels. The pirates retreated,
and our navy declined pursuing them, because it would carry them too far
out of the way. Our crew being still elated at this transaction, the
pirates on a sudden returned, roused them out of their sleep and
constrained them to fight a second time. The commander had no time to
make preparations, so that two vessels were burnt by the fire of the
pirates, and three were captured.
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (8 r.)] At the time when Chang paou was blockaded in Chih leih
ke[)o], and was afraid that he should not be able to come out again, he
sent to O po tae, who was at Wei chow, to rescue him. His message was in
the following words:--"I am harassed by the government's officers
outside in the sea; lips and teeth must help one another, if the lips
are cut away the teeth will feel cold. How shall I alone be able to
fight the government forces? You should therefore come at the head of
your crew, to attack the government squadron in the rear, I will then
come out of my station and make an attack in front; the enemy being so
taken in the front and rear, will, even supposing we cannot master him,
certainly be thrown into disorder."
Ever since the time Paou was made chieftain there had been altercations
between him and O po tae. Had it not have been out of respect for the
wife of Ching y[)i]h they would perhaps have [Sidenote: (8v.)] made war
against each other. Till now they only showed their mutual dislike in
their plundering expeditions on the ocean, and in consequence of this
jealousy Po tae did not fulfil the orders of Paou. Paou and his whole
crew felt very much annoyed at this conduct, and having been able to
break through the blockade, he resolved to measure his strength with
Tae. He met him at Neaou chow, and asked him: "Why did you not come to
my assistance?"
[Sidenote: 1809.]
O po tae answered: "You must first consider your strength and then act;
you must consider the business and then go to work. How could I and my
crew have been sufficient against the forces of the admiral. [sd: (9
r.)] I learnt your request, but men being dependent upon circumstances,
I could not fulfil it; I learnt your request, but I was dependent on
circumstances, and men cannot act otherwise.[87] And now concerning this
business--to give or not give assistance--am I bound to come and join
your forces?"
Paou became enraged and said: "How is this, will you then separate from
us?"
Tae answered: "I will not separate myself."
Paou: "Why then do you not obey the orders of the wife of Ching y[)i]h
and my own? What is this else than separation, that you do not come to
assist me, when I am surrounded by the enemy? I have sworn it that I
will destroy thee, wicked man, that I may do away with this soreness on
my back."
[Sidenote: 1809.]
There passed many other angry words between them, till they at length
prepared to fight and destroy each other. Chang paou was the first to
begin the battle; but having fired his guns, and being deficient in
strength, Tae went against him with all his well prepared forces. [sd:
(9 v.)] Paou was not able to make any effectual resistance to his enemy;
he received a severe defeat, he lost sixteen vessels, and three hundred
men were taken prisoners. The prisoners were all killed from mutual
hatred.
O po tae remained then at the head of his forces without any opposition,
since Paou withdrew. There was now a meeting held under these banditti;
when Chang jih kao arose and said:
[Sidenote: 1809.]
"If Paou and we should again measure our strength against each other,
our force will not be found sufficient; we are only one to ten. It is
to be feared that they will collect all their forces together to
exterminate us. They may on a sudden come against us and make an
attack,--our small body must certainly be in fear of their vast number.
There is _Leang po paou_, an experienced pirate on the sea; if he should
on a sudden turn his vessels against us, there is not one among us who
would be able to resist him. [sd: (10 r.)] He is a very zealous
worshipper of the spirit of the three Po or Mothers, and protected by
them; nay, and protected by them in a supernatural manner. But if we
perform sacrifices, they remain without shadow and echo.[88] And then it
may also be added that we are no more able to withstand with our short
arms their long ones, than dogs are able to chase fierce tigers. But do
we not every where see government placards inviting us to submit, why do
we not then send somebody to make the offer? The government will pardon
and not destroy us sea-monsters,[89] and we may then reform our previous
conduct. Why should we not therefore come to a determination to that
effect?"
Fung yung fa said: "How then if government should not trust our word?"
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (10 v.)] Chang jih kao answered: "If government should learn that
we recently fought Chang paou, and destroyed the banditti,--it would be
hard indeed if that were not enough to make them trust us?"
Go tsew he said: "If government should not act towards us, as it is
stated in the placard, after having made our submission, we may then
again use violence. But they will hear, that we attacked the others,
like fishes their food; that we alone made a beginning in destroying the
pirates, and then tendered our submission,--they will feel that they can
employ us to destroy the other pirates. He who is not of the same
opinion as mine may let his hand hang down."
O po tae was of the same opinion, and the purser was ordered to frame
the offer of submission to government. The petition concerning the offer
was couched in the following terms:
[Sidenote: 1809.]
[sd: (11 r.)] "It is my humble opinion that all robbers of an
overpowering force, whether they had their origin from this or any
other cause, have felt the humanity of government at different
times. Leang shan who three times plundered the city, was
nevertheless pardoned and at last made a minister of state.[90] Wa
kang often challenged the arms of his country and was suffered to
live, and at last made a corner-stone of the empire. Joo ming
pardoned seven times Mang hw[)o]; and Kwan kung three times set
Tsaou tsaou at liberty.[91] Ma yuen pursued not the exhausted
robbers; and Y[)o] fei killed not those who made their submission.
[sd: (11 v.)] There are many other instances of such transactions
both in former and recent times, by which the country was
strengthened and government increased its power. We now live in a
very populous age; some of us could not agree with their relations,
and were driven out like noxious weeds. Some after having tried all
they could, without being able to provide for themselves, at last
joined bad society. Some lost their property by shipwrecks; some
withdrew into this watery empire to escape from punishment. In such
a way those, who in the beginning were only three or five, were in
the course of time increased to a thousand or ten thousand, and so
it went on increasing every year. Would it not have been wonderful
if such a multitude, being in want of their daily bread, should not
have resorted to plunder and robbery to gain their subsistence,
since they could not in any other manner be saved from famine? It
was from necessity that the laws of the empire were violated, and
the merchants robbed of their goods. [sd: (12 r.)] Being deprived
of our land and of our native places, having no house or home to
resort to, and relying only on the chances of wind and water, even
could we for a moment forget our griefs, we might fall in with a
man-of-war, who with stones, darts and guns, would blow out our
brains."
"Even if we dared to sail up a stream and boldly go on with anxiety
of mind under wind, rain, and stormy weather, we must every where
prepare for fighting. Whether we went to the east, or to the west,
and after having felt all the hardships of the sea, the night dew
was our only dwelling, and the rude wind our meal. But now we will
avoid these perils, leave our connexions, and desert our comrades;
we will make our submission. The power of government knows no
bounds; it reaches to the islands in the sea, and every man is
afraid and sighs. Oh we must be destroyed by our crimes, none can
escape who opposeth the laws of government. [sd: (12 v.)] May you
then feel compassion for those who are deserving of death; may you
sustain us by your humanity!"
[Sidenote: 1809.]
The chief officers of government met joyfully together at Canton. The
governor-general of the southern district ever loved the people like
himself; and to show his benevolence he often invited them by public
placards to make submission:--he really felt compassion for these
lower sort of men, who were polluted with crimes. The way of
compassion and benevolence is the way of heaven, which is pleased with
virtue; it is the right way to govern by righteousness. Can the bird
remain quiet with strong wings, or will the fish not move in deep
water? Every person acts from natural endowments, and our general
would have felt compassion even for the meanest creature on earth, if
they would have asked for pardon. He therefore redeemed these pirates
from destruction, and pardoned their former crimes.[92]
[Sidenote: 1809.]
After this period the country began to assume a new appearance. [sd: (13
r.)] People sold their arms and bought oxen to plough their fields; they
burned sacrifices, said prayers on the top of the hills, and rejoiced
themselves by singing behind screens during day-time. There were some
people who endeavoured to act with duplicity, and wished to murder the
pirates, but the general on seeing the petition said to his assistants:
"I will pull down the vanguard of the enemy to use it for the
destruction of the remaining part. I may then employ it against the
over-spreading power of the pirates; with the pirates I will destroy the
pirates. Y[)o] fu mow destroyed in this manner Yang tay: let us not act
with duplicity, that we may the better disperse their comrades and break
their power; let us therefore accept their submission."
[Sidenote: Jan. 1810.]
In the agreement it was stipulated that the ships should assemble
together in the open sea near Kwei shen hëen[93] to make their
surrender. The Governor-general was to come to that place[Sidenote: (13
v.)] to receive O po tae, his vessels, his men, and all other things
which were pointed out in the petition. The Governor-general being
exceedingly pleased, ordered his adjutant Kung gaou to examine the list.
He found eight thousand men, one hundred and twenty-six vessels, five
hundred large guns, and five thousand six hundred various military
weapons. The towns Yang keang and Sin gan were appointed for this people
to live in.[94]--This happened in the twelfth month of the fourteenth
year of Këa king--and so the black squadron was brought into subjection.
O po tae changed his name to _He[)o] bëen_, "The lustre of instruction,"
and the general made him a Pa tsung[95] to reward his services in
defeating Chang paou.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (14 r.)] On the twelfth moon Chang paou went with his different
squadrons into the river and attacked Ke chow. It was near the end of
the year, and the pirates assembled along the mountain ridge Laou ya[96]
to make a festival: they made a great noise during the night with
crackers, and their gongs were heard at a great distance.[97] At
daybreak the flags were spread out, and the drums sounded; they were
cheerful the whole day; they eat and drank and made a great noise, which
was heard many les off.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
On the second day of the same month they attacked the village, and on
the third day about ten men went on shore. The villagers made their
escape, so that the pirates could not take them. [sd: (14 v.)] Having
some time before made preparations to fortify Ma king yun.[98] they now
retired to it. The pirates knowing that the villagers were well provided
for defence, waited until they had every thing ready. On the fourth the
pirates landed; it was in vain that the villagers opposed them, they had
two men wounded, and were finally defeated. The Governor-general ordered
Ching chuy loo to proceed at the head of a large body of soldiers to the
town Shun tih, and prepare for an attack. Meeting the pirates at Ke
chow, the Major attacking them on a sudden, the pirates sustained a
great loss, and returned to their vessels. The Major also was struck by
a shot from a musket. There were daily skirmishes at the neighbouring
places; the inhabitants were generally defeated and ran away. The Major
Loo came with his forces and placed them on the sea-coast behind the
intrenchments of Sin ne, to protect them against the fire of the enemy.
The guns of the pirates were directed against the place, the bullets
fell in Sin ne, but without hurting any one, which again calmed and
encouraged the inhabitants. [sd: (15 r.)] The pirates coming a second
time before Ke chow and Ta leang, and not being able to accomplish their
designs, thought fit to retire.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
The wife of Ching y[)i]h, on seeing that O po tae was made a government
officer after his submission, and that he did well, thought also of
making her submission. "I am," said she, "ten times stronger than O po
tae, and government would perhaps, if I submit, act towards me as they
did with O po tae." But remembering their former crimes, and the
opposition they made to many officers, these pirates were apprehensive
and felt undetermined in their resolutions. [sd: (15 v.)] A rumour went
about, that the red squadron wished to tender their submission, and, in
consequence, the vigilant magistrates hearing of this, invited them to
do so. The magistrate of Tsze ne, Yu che chang, ordered a certain Fei
hëung chow to make enquiries about the matter. Fei hëung chow was a
physician of Macao, and being well acquainted with the pirates, he was
not in need of any introduction to obtain access to them. This was the
ground on which Yu chi chang particularly selected him, when he tried to
bring the pirates to submission.
When Fei hëung chow came to Paou, he said: "Friend Paou, do you know why
I come to you?"
Paou.--"Thou hast committed some crime and comest to me for protection?"
Chow.--"By no means."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
Paou.--"You will then know, how it stands concerning the report about
our submission, if it is true or false?"
Chow.--"You are again wrong here, Sir.[99] What are you in comparison
with O po tae?"
Paou.--[sd: (16 r.)] "Who is bold enough to compare me with O po tae?"
[Sidenote: 1810.]
Chow.--"I know very well that O po tae could not come up to you, Sir;
but I mean only, that since O po tae has made his submission, since he
has got his pardon and been created a government officer,--how would it
be, if you with your whole crew should also submit, and if his
Excellency should desire to treat you in the same manner, and to give
you the same rank as O po tae? Your submission would produce more joy
to government than the submission of O po tae. You should not wait for
wisdom to act wisely; you should make up your mind to submit to the
government with all your followers. I will assist you in every
respect,--it would be the means of securing your own happiness and the
lives of all your adherents."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
_Chang paou_ remained like a statue without motion, and Fei hëung chow
went on to say: [sd: (16 v.)] "You should think about this affair in
time, and not stay till the last moment. Is it not clear that O po tae,
since you could not agree together, has joined government. He being
enraged against you, will fight, united with the forces of the
government, for your destruction; and who could help you, so that you
might overcome your enemies? If O po tae could before vanquish you quite
alone, how much more can he now when he is united with government? O po
tae will then satisfy his hatred against you, and you yourself will soon
be taken either at Wei chow or at Neaou chow. [sd: (17 r.)] If the
merchant-vessels of Hwy chaou, the boats of Kwang chow, and all the
fishing-vessels unite together to surround and attack you in the open
sea, you will certainly have enough to do. But even supposing they
should not attack you, you will soon feel the want of provisions, to
sustain you and all your followers. It is always wisdom to provide
before things happen; stupidity and folly never think about future
events. It is too late to reflect upon events when things have happened;
you should, therefore, consider this matter in time!"
Paou held a deliberation with the wife of Ching y[)i]h, and she said:
"The Doctor Chow is certainly right in all that he says; Paou may agree
with him." Paou then asked the Doctor: "Have you any commission about
this matter, or not?" The Doctor answered, "How could I trifle with the
sentiments of government; this would be declared an improper behaviour.
[sd: (17 v.)] Neither can I see through the intentions of the wife of
Ching y[)i]h nor through those of the officers of government; you can
clear up all doubts, if you will collect your vessels about Shao kë[)o],
outside the Bocca Tigris, you may yourself hear the orders."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
Paou consented to this proposal, and the Doctor returned to Yu che
chang. Yu che chang acquainted the Governor-general with this matter.
The general was anxious to meet the pirates and to clear the western
passage, as he had already cleared the eastern passage; he therefore was
very happy at hearing the offer of surrender. The magistrate of Tsze ne,
Yu che chang, took the government proclamation and went to the pirates
to see how things stood. The wife of Ching y[)i]h on seeing Yu che
chang, ordered Chang paou to prepare a banquet. Chang paou explained his
intentions. Yu che chang remained the whole night on board ship, and
stated that government was willing to pardon them, and that they had
nothing to fear after having made their submission. [sd: (18 r.)] Paou
was very much rejoiced at this; and on the next morning he went with Yu
che chang to inspect the vessels, and ordered all the captains to pay
their respects to the government officer. The wife of Ching y[)i]h
stated to Yu che chang that it was her earnest wish to submit to
government; and Chang paou himself assured the officer of his firm
intention to surrender without the least deceit. The governor then
ordered Yu che chang to visit the pirates a second time, accompanied by
Pang noo, in order to settle all with them regarding their submission.
Chang paou requested that those pirates who had been condemned to death
should be placed in ten vessels, in order that he might ransom them. Yu
che chang reported this, and the Governor said: "It shall be so, whether
Chang paou submit himself or not. But being exceedingly desirous that
the pirates may surrender, I will go myself and state my intentions, to
clear up all doubts."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (18 v.)]He ordered the Doctor Fei hëung chow to acquaint the
pirates with his design. The Governor-general then embarked in a vessel
with Pang noo and Yu che chang to meet the pirates, where they were
assembled;--their vessels occupied a space of about ten le. On hearing
that the Governor-general was coming, they hoisted their flags, played
on their instruments, and fired their guns, so that the smoke rose in
clouds, and then went to meet him. From the other side the people all
became alarmed, and the Governor-general himself was very much
astonished, being yet uncertain what could be the meaning of all this
alarm. Chang paou, accompanied by the wife of Ching y[)i]h, by Pang
chang ching, Leang po paou, and Soo puh gaou, mounted the governor's
ship, and rushed through the smoke to the place where the governor was
stationed. [sd: (19 r.)] The Governor-general on seeing Paou and his
followers falling on their hands and knees, that they shed tears on
account of their former crimes, and sued penitently for their lives, was
induced by his extreme kindness to declare that he would again point out
to the rebels the road to virtue. Paou and his followers were extremely
affected, knocked their heads on the ground, and swore that they were
ready to suffer death. But the Governor replied: "Since you are ready to
submit yourselves with a true heart, I will lay aside all arms and
disperse the soldiery; to say it in one word, I give you three days to
make up a list of your vessels and all your other possessions. Are you
satisfied with this proposal or not?" Paou and his followers said "_yes,
yes_," and retired accordingly.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
It happened that about the same time some Portuguese vessels were about
to enter the Bocca Tigris, and that some large men-of-war took their
station at the same place. The pirates became exceedingly alarmed at
this fleet, and apprehended that the Governor had made an agreement with
the foreign vessels to destroy them. [sd: (19 v.)] They immediately
weighed their anchors and steered away. On seeing the pirates running
away, Pang noo, Yu che chang, and the others, not knowing what could be
the reason of all this, became afraid that they might have changed their
mind, and that an attack on the Governor was contemplated. All parties
became frightened that the meeting had failed, and made preparations to
go off. The inhabitants of the neighbouring country hearing of this, ran
away, and the Governor-general himself went back to Canton.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
When the pirates ascertained that the foreign vessels were traders going
into the river, and that the Governor-general had no communication with
them, they again became pacified. But considering that the
Governor-general went back to Canton without the business of their
submission being quite settled, they held a consultation together and
Paou said: [sd: (20 r.)] "His Excellency is gone back, and probably in
doubt about our intentions; if we tender our submission again, his
Excellency will not trust us, and if we do not submit we shall insult
the good intentions of government. What is to be done under these
circumstances?"
The wife of Ching y[)i]h said: "His Excellency behaved himself towards
us in a candid manner, and in like manner we must behave towards him. We
being driven about on the ocean, without having any fixed
habitation;--pray let us go to Canton to inform government, to state the
reason of the recoiling waves, to clear up all doubts, and to agree on
what day or in what place we shall make our submission. His Excellency
may then explain to us whether he will come a second time to accept our
submission, or whether he will decline it."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
The whole crew was of opinion, that "the designs of government were
unfathomable, and that it would not be prudent to go so hastily on." But
the wife of Ching y[)i]h replied: [sd: (20 v.)] "If his Excellency, a
man of the highest rank, could come quickly to us quite alone, why
should I a mean woman not go to the officers of government? If there be
any danger in it, I will take it on myself, no person among you will be
required to trouble himself about it."
Leang po paou said: "If the wife of Ching y[)i]h goes, we must fix a
time when she shall return. If this time be past without our obtaining
any certain information, we should collect all our forces and go before
Canton.[100] This is my opinion; if you think otherwise, let us retire;
but let me hear your opinion?" They all answered: "Friend Paou, we have
heard thy opinion, but we think it rather better to wait for the news
here on the water, than to send the wife of Ching y[)i]h alone to be
killed." This was the result of the consultation.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (21 r.)] Yu che chang and Fei hëung chow, on seeing that nothing
was settled about the submission to government, became alarmed, and sent
Chao kaou yuen to Chang paou to enquire what was the reason of it. On
learning that they ran away from fear of the foreign vessels, Yu che
chang and Fei hëung chow made another visit to the pirates, in order to
correct this mistake.
"If you let slip this opportunity," said they, "you will not be
accepted, perhaps, should you even be willing to make your submission.
The kindness of his Excellency is immense like the sea, without being
mixed with any falsehood; we will pledge ourselves that the wife of
Ching y[)i]h, if she would go, would be received with kindness."
The wife of Ching y[)i]h said: "You speak well, gentlemen; I will go
myself to Canton with some other ladies, accompanied by Yu che chang."
Chang paou said, laughingly: [sd: (21 v.)] "I am sorry his Excellency
should have any doubt regarding us, for this reason, therefore, we will
send our wives to settle the affair for us."
When the wives and children appeared before him, the Governor-general
said to them: "You did not change your mind, but ran away, being
deceived by a false impression; for this reason I will take no notice of
it. I am commanded by the humanity of his Majesty's government not to
kill but to pardon you; I therefore now pardon Chang paou."
[Sidenote: 1810.]
In consequence of this, Chang paou came with his wives and children, and
with the wife of Ching y[)i]h, at Foo yung shao near the town of Hëang
shan to submit himself to government. Every vessel was provided with
pork and wine, and every man received at the same time a bill for a
certain quantity of money. Those who wished it, could join the military
force of government for pursuing the remaining pirates; and those who
objected, dispersed and withdrew into the country. This is the manner by
which the red squadron of the pirates was pacified.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (22r.)] After the submission of Chang paou, the Governor-general
said: "Now that we have cleared, both the eastern and the middle
passage, we are ready to reduce the pirates of the western passage." He
held a consultation about this matter with the deputy-governor Han fung,
and then ordered the principal officer of the public granary, Mwan ching
che, and the military commandant of Luy chow foo, Kang chow foo, and
Këung chow foo, called Chuh url kang g[)i]h,[101] to proceed at the head
of the forces and drive the pirates away. It was presumed that they
would retire more westerly to Annam; a message was therefore sent to the
king of that country to have ready an armed force to repulse the
pirates, whenever they should appear on the rivers or on the
mainland.[102] Chang paou was ordered on the vanguard.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
By the tenth day of the fourth moon the vessels and the crew were quite
ready, and fell in on the twelfth of the same month with the yellow flag
quite alone at Tse sing yang. Our commander valiantly attacked this
squadron, and defeated it entirely. [sd: (22 v.)] The captain Le tsung
chaou, with three hundred and ninety of his people, were taken
prisoners. Meeting a division of the green flag, consisting of ten
pirate vessels, our commander attacked them. The pirates being afraid,
ran away; but our commander pursued after and killed them. Those who
were taken alive were beheaded.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
On the tenth day of the fifth moon the Governor-general went to Kaou
chow to make preparations for fighting. Our commander pursued after the
pirates with a great and strong body of troops; he met Neaou sh[)i]h url
at Tan chow, and they fought a great battle. Neaou sh[)i]h url saw that
he was not strong enough to withstand them, and tried to escape; but the
Major, Fei teaou hwang,[103] gave orders to surround the pirates. [sd:
(23 r.)] They fought from seven o'clock in the morning till one at noon,
burnt ten vessels, and killed an immense number of the pirates. Neaou
sh[)i]h url was so weakened that he could scarcely make any opposition.
On perceiving this through the smoke, Chang paou mounted on a sudden the
vessel of the pirate, and cried out: "I Chang paou am come," and at the
same moment he cut some pirates to pieces; the remainder were then
hardly dealt with. Paou addressed himself in an angry tone to Neaou
sh[)i]h url, and said: "I advise you to submit, will you not follow my
advice, what have you to say?" Neaou sh[)i]h url was struck with
amazement, and his courage left him. Leang po paou advanced and bound
him, and the whole crew were then taken captives.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (23 v.)] Seeing that Neaou sh[)i]h url was taken, his elder brother
Yew kwei would have run away in all haste; but the admirals Tung and
Tsuen mow sun pursued, attacked, and took him prisoner. The government
officers Kung gao and Hoo tso chaou took the younger brother of Neaou
sh[)i]h url, called Mih yew keih, and all the others then made their
submission. Not long after this the _Scourge of the eastern ocean_
surrendered voluntarily, on finding himself unable to withstand; the
_Frog's meal_ withdrew to Luzon or Manilla. On the twentieth of the same
month, the Governor-general came to Luy chow, and every officer was
ordered to bring his prizes into the harbour or bay of Man ke. There
were taken fighting five hundred pirates, men and women; three thousand
four hundred and sixty made their submission; there were eighty-six
vessels, two hundred and ninety-one guns, and one thousand three hundred
and seventy-two pieces of various military weapons. [sd: (24 r.)] The
Governor-general ordered one of his officers to kill[104] the pirate
Neaou sh[)i]h url with eight others outside the northern entrance of Hae
k[)a]ng hëen,[105] and to behead Hwang h[)o] with one hundred and
nineteen of his followers. The _Scourge of the eastern sea_ submitting
himself voluntarily was not put to death.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
There was much talk concerning a man at Hae k[)a]ng hëen, whose crime
was of such a nature that it could not be overlooked. When this man was
carried away to suffer death, his wife pressed him in her arms, and said
with great demonstration of sorrow, "Because thou didst not follow my
words, it is even thus. I said before what is now come to pass, that
thou fighting as a pirate against the officers of government would be
taken and put to death. This fills my mind with sorrow. [sd: (24 v.)] If
thou hadst made thy submission like O po tae and Chang paou, thou
wouldst have been pardoned like them; thou art now given up to the law,
not by any power of man, but by the will of fate." Having finished these
words, she cried exceedingly. The Governor-general was moved by these
words, and commuted the punishment of that pirate into imprisonment.
In this manner the western passage was cleared from the green, yellow,
and blue squadrons, and smaller divisions. The rest of the pirates, who
remained about Hae k[)a]ng, at Hae fung, at Suy ke and H[)o] poo, were
gradually destroyed.[106] The Governor-general ordered Chuh url kang
g[)i]h and Mwan ching che to go with an armed force and sweep away those
pirates, who hid themselves in the recesses of Wei chow and Neaou chow.
And thus finished this meritorious act of the _Pacification of the
pirates_.
[Sidenote: 1810.]
[sd: (25 r.)] By an edict of the "Son of Heaven," the Governor-general
of Kwang tung and Kwang se _Pih, ling_ was recompensed for his merits.
He was created a secondary guardian of the Prince, allowed to wear
peacock's-feathers with two eyes, and favoured with an hereditary title.
The services of the different officers and commanders were taken into
consideration, and they received adequate recompenses. Chang paou was
appointed to the rank of Major; Tung hae pa, or, the Scourge of the
eastern sea, and all others, were pardoned, with the permission to
retire wherever they wished. From that period till now ships pass and
repass in tranquillity. All is quiet on the rivers, the four seas are
tranquil, and people live in peace and plenty.
APPENDIX.
The Translator supposing that the readers of the _History of the
Chinese Pirates_ might perhaps find it interesting to compare the
account of the followers of _The wife of Ching y[)i]h_, drawn up by an
European, with the statements of the non-official Chinese historian;
he has therefore thought fit to subjoin a _Narrative of the captivity
and treatment amongst the Ladrones_, written by Mr. Richard
Glasspoole, of the Hon. Company's ship _Marquis of Ely_, and published
in _Wilkinson's Travels to China_. The Translator in vain endeavoured
to obtain another Narrative, regarding the Chinese pirates, which is
said to be printed in an English periodical.
_A brief Narrative of my captivity and treatment amongst the
Ladrones._
On the 17th of September 1809, the Honourable Company's ship Marquis
of Ely anchored under the Island of _Sam Chow_, in China, about twelve
English miles from Macao, where I was ordered to proceed in one of
our cutters to procure a pilot, and also to land the purser with the
packet. I left the ship at 5 P.M. with seven men under my command,
well armed. It blew a fresh gale from the N. E. We arrived at Macao at
9 P.M., where I delivered the packet to Mr. Roberts, and sent the men
with the boat's-sails to sleep under the Company's Factory, and left
the boat in charge of one of the Compradore's men; during the night
the gale increased.--At half-past three in the morning I went to the
beach, and found the boat on shore half-filled with water, in
consequence of the man having left her. I called the people, and baled
her out; found she was considerably damaged, and very leaky. At
half-past 5 A.M., the ebb-tide making, we left Macao with vegetables
for the ship.
One of the Compradore's men who spoke English went with us for the
purpose of piloting the ship to _Lintin_, as the Mandarines, in
consequence of a late disturbance at Macao, would not grant chops for
the regular pilots. I had every reason to expect the ship in the
roads, as she was preparing to get under weigh when we left her; but
on our rounding Cabaretta-Point, we saw her five or six miles to
leeward, under weigh, standing on the starboard-tack: it was then
blowing fresh at N. E. Bore up, and stood towards her; when about a
cable's-length to windward of her, she tacked; we hauled our wind and
stood after her. A hard squall then coming on, with a strong tide and
heavy swell against us, we drifted fast to leeward, and the weather
being hazy, we soon lost sight of the ship. Struck our masts, and
endeavoured to pull; finding our efforts useless, set a reefed
foresail and mizen, and stood towards a country-ship at anchor under
the land to leeward of Cabaretta-Point. When within a quarter of a
mile of her she weighed and made sail, leaving us in a very critical
situation, having no anchor, and drifting bodily on the rocks to
leeward. Struck the masts: after four or five hours hard pulling,
succeeded in clearing them.
At this time not a ship in sight; the weather clearing up, we saw a
ship to leeward, hull down, shipped our masts, and made sail towards
her; she proved to be the Honourable Company's ship Glatton. We made
signals to her with our handkerchiefs at the mast-head, she
unfortunately took no notice of them, but tacked and stood from us.
Our situation was now truly distressing, night closing fast, with a
threatening appearance, blowing fresh, with hard rain and a heavy sea;
our boat very leaky, without a compass, anchor or provisions, and
drifting fast on a lee-shore, surrounded with dangerous rocks, and
inhabited by the most barbarous pirates. I close-reefed my sails, and
kept tack and tack 'till day-light, when we were happy to find we had
drifted very little to leeward of our situation in the evening. The
night was very dark, with constant hard squalls and heavy rain.
Tuesday the 19th no ships in sight. About ten o'clock in the morning
it fell calm, with very hard rain and a heavy swell;--struck our masts
and pulled, not being able to see the land, steered by the swell. When
the weather broke up, found we had drifted several miles to leeward.
During the calm a fresh breeze springing up, made sail, and
endeavoured to reach the weather-shore, and anchor with six muskets we
had lashed together for that purpose. Finding the boat made no way
against the swell and tide, bore up for a bay to leeward, and anchored
about one A.M. close under the land in five or six fathoms water,
blowing fresh, with hard rain.
Wednesday the 20th at day-light, supposing the flood-tide making,
weighed and stood over to the weather-land, but found we were drifting
fast to leeward. About ten o'clock perceived two Chinese boats
steering for us. Bore up, and stood towards them, and made signals to
induce them to come within hail; on nearing them, they bore up, and
passed to leeward of the islands. The Chinese we had in the boat
advised me to follow them, and he would take us to Macao by the
leeward passage. I expressed my fears of being taken by the Ladrones.
Our ammunition being wet, and the muskets rendered useless, we had
nothing to defend ourselves with but cutlasses, and in too distressed
a situation to make much resistance with them, having been constantly
wet, and eat nothing but a few green oranges for three days.
As our present situation was a hopeless one, and the man assured me
there was no fear of encountering any Ladrones, I complied with his
request, and stood in to leeward of the islands, where we found the
water much smoother, and apparently a direct passage to Macao. We
continued pulling and sailing all day. At six o'clock in the evening I
discovered three large boats at anchor in a bay to leeward. On seeing
us they weighed and made sail towards us. The Chinese said they were
Ladrones, and that if they captured us they would most certainly put
us all to death! Finding they gained fast on us, struck the masts, and
pulled head to wind for five or six hours. The tide turning against
us, anchored close under the land to avoid being seen. Soon after we
saw the boats pass us to leeward.
Thursday the 21st, at day-light, the flood making, weighed and pulled
along shore in great spirits, expecting to be at Macao in two or three
hours, as by the Chinese account it was not above six or seven miles
distant. After pulling a mile or two perceived several people on
shore, standing close to the beach; they were armed with pikes and
lances. I ordered the interpreter to hail them, and ask the most
direct passage to Macao. They said if we came on shore they would
inform us; not liking their hostile appearance I did not think proper
to comply with the request. Saw a large fleet of boats at anchor close
under the opposite shore. Our interpreter said they were
fishing-boats, and that by going there we should not only get
provisions, but a pilot also to take us to Macao.
I bore up, and on nearing them perceived there were some large
vessels, very full of men, and mounted with several guns. I hesitated
to approach nearer; but the Chinese assuring me they were Mandarine
junks[107] and salt-boats, we stood close to one of them, and asked
the way to Macao? They gave no answer, but made some signs to us to go
in shore. We passed on, and a large row-boat pulled after us; she soon
came along-side, when about twenty savage-looking villains, who were
stowed at the bottom of the boat, leaped on board us. They were armed
with a short sword in each hand, one of which they laid on our necks,
and the other pointed to our breasts, keeping their eyes fixed on
their officer, waiting his signal to cut or desist. Seeing we were
incapable of making any resistance, he sheathed his sword, and the
others immediately followed his example. They then dragged us into
their boat, and carried us on board one of their junks, with the most
savage demonstrations of joy, and as we supposed, to torture and put
us to a cruel death. When on board the junk, they searched all our
pockets, took the handkerchiefs from our necks, and brought heavy
chains to chain us to the guns.
At this time a boat came, and took me, with one of my men and the
interpreter, on board the chief's vessel. I was then taken before the
chief. He was seated on deck, in a large chair, dressed in purple
silk, with a black turban on. He appeared to be about thirty years of
age, a stout commanding-looking man. He took me by the coat, and drew
me close to him; then questioned the interpreter very strictly, asking
who we were, and what was our business in that part of the country. I
told him to say we were Englishmen in distress, having been four days
at sea without provisions. This he would not credit, but said we were
bad men, and that he would put us all to death; and then ordered some
men to put the interpreter to the torture until he confessed the
truth.
Upon this occasion, a Ladrone, who had been once to England and spoke
a few words of English, came to the chief, and told him we were really
Englishmen, and that we had plenty of money, adding, that the buttons
on my coat were gold. The chief then ordered us some coarse brown
rice, of which we made a tolerable meal, having eat nothing for nearly
four days, except a few green oranges. During our repast, a number of
Ladrones crowded round us, examining our clothes and hair, and giving
us every possible annoyance. Several of them brought swords, and laid
them on our necks, making signs that they would soon take us on shore,
and cut us in pieces, which I am sorry to say was the fate of some
hundreds during my captivity.
I was now summoned before the chief, who had been conversing with the
interpreter; he said I must write to my captain, and tell him, if he
did not send an hundred thousand dollars for our ransom, in ten days
he would put us all to death. In vain did I assure him it was useless
writing unless he would agree to take a much smaller sum; saying we
were all poor men, and the most we could possibly raise would not
exceed two thousand dollars. Finding that he was much exasperated at
my expostulations, I embraced the offer of writing to inform my
commander of our unfortunate situation, though there appeared not the
least probability of relieving us. They said the letter should be
conveyed to Macao in a fishing-boat, which would bring an answer in
the morning. A small boat accordingly came alongside, and took the
letter.
About six o'clock in the evening they gave us some rice and a little
salt fish, which we eat, and they made signs for us to lay down on the
deck to sleep; but such numbers of Ladrones were constantly coming
from different vessels to see us, and examine our clothes and hair,
they would not allow us a moment's quiet. They were particularly
anxious for the buttons of my coat, which were new, and as they
supposed gold. I took it off, and laid it on the deck to avoid being
disturbed by them; it was taken away in the night, and I saw it on the
next day stripped of its buttons.
About nine o'clock a boat came and hailed the chief's vessel; he
immediately hoisted his mainsail, and the fleet weighed apparently in
great confusion. They worked to windward all night and part of the
next day, and anchored about one o'clock in a bay under the island of
Lantow, where the head admiral of Ladrones was lying at anchor, with
about two hundred vessels and a Portuguese brig they had captured a
few days before, and murdered the captain and part of the crew.
Saturday the 23d, early in the morning, a fishing-boat came to the
fleet to inquire if they had captured an European boat; being answered
in the affirmative, they came to the vessel I was in. One of them
spoke a few words of English, and told me he had a Ladrone-pass, and
was sent by Captain Kay in search of us; I was rather surprised to
find he had no letter. He appeared to be well acquainted with the
chief, and remained in his cabin smoking opium, and playing cards all
the day.[108]
In the evening I was summoned with the interpreter before the chief.
He questioned us in a much milder tone, saying, he now believed we
were Englishmen, a people he wished to be friendly with; and that if
our captain would lend him seventy thousand dollars 'till he returned
from his cruize up the river, he would repay him, and send us all to
Macao. I assured him it was useless writing on those terms, and unless
our ransom was speedily settled, the English fleet would sail, and
render our enlargement altogether ineffectual. He remained determined,
and said if it were not sent, he would keep us, and make us fight, or
put us to death. I accordingly wrote, and gave my letter to the man
belonging to the boat before-mentioned. He said he could not return
with an answer in less than five days.
The chief now gave me the letter I wrote when first taken. I have
never been able to ascertain his reasons for detaining it, but suppose
he dare not negotiate for our ransom without orders from the head
admiral, who I understood was sorry at our being captured. He said the
English ships would join the mandarines and attack them.[109] He told
the chief that captured us, to dispose of us as he pleased.
Monday the 24th, it blew a strong gale, with constant hard rain; we
suffered much from the cold and wet, being obliged to remain on deck
with no covering but an old mat, which was frequently taken from us in
the night, by the Ladrones who were on watch. During the night the
Portuguese who were left in the brig murdered the Ladrones that were
on board of her, cut the cables, and fortunately escaped through the
darkness of the night. I have since been informed they run her on
shore near Macao.
Tuesday the 25th, at day-light in the morning, the fleet, amounting to
about five hundred sail of different sizes, weighed, to proceed on
their intended cruize up the rivers, to levy contributions on the
towns and villages. It is impossible to describe what were my
feelings at this critical time, having received no answers to my
letters, and the fleet under-way to sail,--hundreds of miles up a
country never visited by Europeans, there to remain probably for many
months, which would render all opportunities of negotiating for our
enlargement totally ineffectual; as the only method of communication
is by boats, that have a pass from the Ladrones, and they dare not
venture above twenty miles from Macao, being obliged to come and go in
the night, to avoid the Mandarines; and if these boats should be
detected in having any intercourse with the Ladrones, they are
immediately put to death, and all their relations, though they had not
joined in the crime,[110] share in the punishment, in order that not a
single person of their families should be left to imitate their crimes
or revenge their death. This severity renders communication both
dangerous and expensive; no boat would venture out for less than a
hundred Spanish dollars.
Wednesday the 26th, at day-light, we passed in sight of our ships at
anchor under the island of Chun Po. The chief then called me, pointed
to the ships, and told the interpreter to tell us to look at them, for
we should never see them again. About noon we entered a river to the
westward of the Bogue,[111] three or four miles from the entrance. We
passed a large town situated on the side of a beautiful hill, which is
tributary to the Ladrones; the inhabitants saluted them with songs as
they passed.
The fleet now divided into two squadrons (the red and the black)[112]
and sailed up different branches of the river. At midnight the
division we were in anchored close to an immense hill, on the top of
which a number of fires were burning, which at day-light I perceived
proceeded from a Chinese camp. At the back of the hill was a most
beautiful town, surrounded by water, and embellished with groves of
orange-trees. The chop-house (custom-house)[113] and a few cottages
were immediately plundered, and burnt down; most of the inhabitants,
however, escaped to the camp.
The Ladrones now prepared to attack the town with a formidable force,
collected in row boats from the different vessels. They sent a
messenger to the town, demanding a tribute of ten thousand dollars
annually, saying, if these terms were not complied with, they would
land, destroy the town, and murder all the inhabitants; which they
would certainly have done, had the town laid in a more advantageous
situation for their purpose; but being placed out of the reach of
their shot, they allowed them to come to terms. The inhabitants agreed
to pay six thousand dollars, which they were to collect by the time of
our return down the river. This finesse had the desired effect, for
during our absence they mounted a few guns on a hill, which commanded
the passage, and gave us in lieu of the dollars a warm salute on our
return.
October the 1st, the fleet weighed in the night, dropped by the tide
up the river, and anchored very quietly before a town surrounded by a
thick wood. Early in the morning the Ladrones assembled in row-boats,
and landed; then gave a shout, and rushed into the town, sword in
hand. The inhabitants fled to the adjacent hills, in numbers
apparently superior to the Ladrones. We may easily imagine to
ourselves the horror with which these miserable people must be seized,
on being obliged to leave their homes, and every thing dear to them.
It was a most melancholy sight to see women in tears, clasping their
infants in their arms, and imploring mercy for them from those brutal
robbers! The old and the sick, who were unable to fly, or to make
resistance, were either made prisoners or most inhumanly butchered!
The boats continued passing and repassing from the junks to the shore,
in quick succession, laden with booty, and the men besmeared with
blood! Two hundred and fifty women, and several children, were made
prisoners, and sent on board different vessels. They were unable to
escape with the men, owing to that abominable practice of cramping
their feet: several of them were not able to move without assistance,
in fact, they might all be said to totter, rather than walk. Twenty of
these poor women were sent on board the vessel I was in; they were
hauled on board by the hair, and treated in a most savage manner.
When the chief came on board, he questioned them respecting the
circumstances of their friends, and demanded ransoms accordingly, from
six thousand to six hundred dollars each. He ordered them a berth on
deck, at the after-part of the vessel, where they had nothing to
shelter them from the weather, which at this time was very
variable,--the days excessively hot, and the nights cold, with heavy
rains. The town being plundered of every thing valuable, it was set on
fire, and reduced to ashes by the morning. The fleet remained here
three days, negotiating for the ransom of the prisoners, and
plundering the fish-tanks and gardens. During all this time, the
Chinese never ventured from the hills, though there were frequently
not more than a hundred Ladrones on shore at a time, and I am sure the
people on the hills exceeded ten times that number.[114]
October the 5th, the fleet proceeded up another branch of the river,
stopping at several small villages to receive tribute, which was
generally paid in dollars, sugar and rice, with a few large pigs
roasted whole, as presents for their joss (the idol they
worship).[115] Every person on being ransomed, is obliged to present
him with a pig, or some fowls, which the priest offers him with
prayers; it remains before him a few hours, and is then divided
amongst the crew. Nothing particular occurred 'till the 10th, except
frequent skirmishes on shore between small parties of Ladrones and
Chinese soldiers. They frequently obliged my men to go on shore, and
fight with the muskets we had when taken, which did great execution,
the Chinese principally using bows and arrows. They have match-locks,
but use them very unskilfully.
On the 10th, we formed a junction with the Black-squadron, and
proceeded many miles up a wide and beautiful river, passing several
ruins of villages that had been destroyed by the Black-squadron. On
the 17th, the fleet anchored abreast four mud batteries, which
defended a town, so entirely surrounded with wood that it was
impossible to form any idea of its size. The weather was very hazy,
with hard squalls of rain. The Ladrones remained perfectly quiet for
two days. On the third day the forts commenced a brisk fire for
several hours: the Ladrones did not return a single shot, but weighed
in the night and dropped down the river.
The reasons they gave for not attacking the town, or returning the
fire, were, that Joss had not promised them success. They are very
superstitious, and consult their idol on all occasions. If his omens
are good, they will undertake the most daring enterprizes.
The fleet now anchored opposite the ruins of the town where the women
had been made prisoners. Here we remained five or six days, during
which time about an hundred of the women were ransomed; the remainder
were offered for sale amongst the Ladrones, for forty dollars each.
The woman is considered the lawful wife of the purchaser, who would be
put to death if he discarded her. Several of them leaped over-board
and drowned themselves, rather than submit to such infamous
degradation.[116]
The fleet then weighed and made sail down the river, to receive the
ransom from the town before-mentioned. As we passed the hill, they
fired several shot at us, but without effect. The Ladrones were much
exasperated, and determined to revenge themselves; they dropped out of
reach of their shot, and anchored. Every junk sent about a hundred men
each on shore, to cut paddy, and destroy their orange-groves, which
was most effectually performed for several miles down the river.
During our stay here, they received information of nine boats lying up
a creek, laden with paddy; boats were immediately dispatched after
them.
Next morning these boats were brought to the fleet; ten or twelve men
were taken in them. As these had made no resistance, the chief said he
would allow them to become Ladrones, if they agreed to take the usual
oaths before Joss. Three or four of them refused to comply, for which
they were punished in the following cruel manner: their hands were
tied behind their back, a rope from the mast-head rove through their
arms, and hoisted three or four feet from the deck, and five or six
men flogged them with three rattans twisted together 'till they were
apparently dead; then hoisted them up to the mast-head, and left them
hanging nearly an hour, then lowered them down, and repeated the
punishment, 'till they died or complied with the oath.
October the 20th, in the night, an express-boat came with the
information that a large mandarine fleet was proceeding up the river
to attack us. The chief immediately weighed, with fifty of the largest
vessels, and sailed down the river to meet them. About one in the
morning they commenced a heavy fire till day-light, when an express
was sent for the remainder of the fleet to join them: about an hour
after a counter-order to anchor came, the mandarine-fleet having run.
Two or three hours afterwards the chief returned with three captured
vessels in tow, having sunk two, and eighty-three sail made their
escape. The admiral of the mandarines blew his vessel up, by throwing
a lighted match into the magazine as the Ladrones were boarding her;
she ran on shore, and they succeeded in getting twenty of her guns.
In this action very few prisoners were taken: the men belonging to the
captured vessels drowned themselves, as they were sure of suffering a
lingering and cruel death if taken after making resistance. The
admiral left the fleet in charge of his brother, the second in
command, and proceeded with his own vessel towards Lantow. The fleet
remained in this river, cutting paddy, and getting the necessary
supplies.
On the 28th of October, I received a letter from Captain Kay, brought
by a fisherman, who had told him he would get us all back for three
thousand dollars. He advised me to offer three thousand, and if not
accepted, extend it to four; but not farther, as it was bad policy to
offer much at first: at the same time assuring me we should be
liberated, let the ransom be what it would. I offered the chief the
three thousand, which he disdainfully refused, saying he was not to be
played with; and unless they sent ten thousand dollars, and two large
guns, with several casks of gunpowder, he would soon put us all to
death. I wrote to Captain Kay, and informed him of the chief's
determination, requesting if an opportunity offered, to send us a
shift of clothes, for which it may be easily imagined we were much
distressed, having been seven weeks without a shift; although
constantly exposed to the weather, and of course frequently wet.
On the first of November, the fleet sailed up a narrow river, and
anchored at night within two miles of a town called Little Whampoa. In
front of it was a small fort, and several mandarine vessels lying in
the harbour. The chief sent the interpreter to me, saying, I must
order my men to make cartridges and clean their muskets, ready to go
on shore in the morning. I assured the interpreter I should give the
men no such orders, that they must please themselves. Soon after the
chief came on board, threatening to put us all to a cruel death if we
refused to obey his orders. For my own part I remained determined, and
advised the men not to comply, as I thought by making ourselves useful
we should be accounted too valuable.
A few hours afterwards he sent to me again, saying, that if myself and
the quarter-master would assist them at the great guns, that if also
the rest of the men went on shore and succeeded in taking the place,
he would then take the money offered for our ransom, and give them
twenty dollars for every Chinaman's head they cut off. To these
proposals we cheerfully acceded, in hopes of facilitating our
deliverance.
Early in the morning the forces intended for landing were assembled in
row-boats, amounting in the whole to three or four thousand men. The
largest vessels weighed, and hauled in shore, to cover the landing of
the forces, and attack the fort and mandarine-vessels. About nine
o'clock the action commenced, and continued with great spirit for
nearly an hour, when the walls of the fort gave way, and the men
retreated in the greatest confusion.
The mandarine vessels still continued firing, having blocked up the
entrance of the harbour to prevent the Ladrone boats entering. At this
the Ladrones were much exasperated, and about three hundred of them
swam on shore, with a short sword lashed close under each arm; they
then ran along the banks of the river 'till they came a-breast of the
vessels, and then swam off again and boarded them. The Chinese thus
attacked, leaped over-board, and endeavoured to reach the opposite
shore; the Ladrones followed, and cut the greater number of them to
pieces in the water. They next towed the vessels out of the harbour,
and attacked the town with increased fury. The inhabitants fought
about a quarter of an hour, and then retreated to an adjacent hill,
from which they were soon driven with great slaughter.
After this the Ladrones returned, and plundered the town, every boat
leaving it when laden. The Chinese on the hills perceiving most of the
boats were off, rallied, and retook the town, after killing near two
hundred Ladrones. One of my men was unfortunately lost in this
dreadful massacre! The Ladrones landed a second time, drove the
Chinese out of the town, then reduced it to ashes, and put all their
prisoners to death, without regarding either age or sex!
I must not omit to mention a most horrid (though ludicrous)
circumstance which happened at this place. The Ladrones were paid by
their chief ten dollars for every Chinaman's head they produced. One
of my men turning the corner of a street was met by a Ladrone running
furiously after a Chinese; he had a drawn sword in his hand, and two
Chinaman's heads which he had cut off, tied by their tails, and slung
round his neck. I was witness myself to some of them producing five or
six to obtain payment!!!
On the 4th of November an order arrived from the admiral for the fleet
to proceed immediately to Lantow, where he was lying with only two
vessels, and three Portuguese ships and a brig constantly annoying
him; several sail of mandarine vessels were daily expected. The fleet
weighed and proceeded towards Lantow. On passing the island of Lintin,
three ships and a brig gave chase to us. The Ladrones prepared to
board; but night closing we lost sight of them: I am convinced they
altered their course and stood from us. These vessels were in the pay
of the Chinese government, and style themselves the Invincible
Squadron, cruizing in the river Tigris to annihilate the Ladrones!
On the fifth, in the morning, the red squadron anchored in a bay under
Lantow; the black squadron stood to the eastward. In this bay they
hauled several of their vessels on shore to bream their bottoms and
repair them.
In the afternoon of the 8th of November, four ships, a brig and a
schooner came off the mouth of the bay. At first the pirates were much
alarmed, supposing them to be English vessels come to rescue us. Some
of them threatened to hang us to the mast-head for them to fire at;
and with much difficulty we persuaded them that they were Portuguese.
The Ladrones had only seven junks in a fit state for action; these
they hauled outside, and moored them head and stern across the bay;
and manned all the boats belonging to the repairing vessels ready for
boarding.
The Portuguese observing these man[oe]uvres hove to, and communicated
by boats. Soon afterwards they made sail, each ship firing her
broadside as she passed, but without effect, the shot falling far
short: The Ladrones did not return a single shot, but waved their
colours, and threw up rockets, to induce them to come further in,
which they might easily have done, the outside junks lying in four
fathoms water which I sounded myself: though the Portuguese in their
letters to Macao, lamented there was not sufficient water for them to
engage closer, but that they would certainly prevent their escaping
before the mandarine fleet arrived!
On the 20th of November, early in the morning, discovered an immense
fleet of mandarine vessels standing for the bay. On nearing us, they
formed a line, and stood close in; each vessel as she discharged her
guns tacked to join the rear and reload. They kept up a constant fire
for about two hours, when one of their largest vessels was blown up by
a firebrand thrown from a Ladrone junk; after which they kept at a
more respectful distance, but continued firing without intermission
'till the 21st at night, when it fell calm.
The Ladrones towed out seven large vessels, with about two hundred
row-boats to board them; but a breeze springing up, they made sail and
escaped. The Ladrones returned into the bay, and anchored. The
Portuguese and mandarines followed, and continued a heavy cannonading
during that night and the next day. The vessel I was in had her
foremast shot away, which they supplied very expeditiously by taking a
mainmast from a smaller vessel.
On the 23d, in the evening, it again fell calm; the Ladrones towed out
fifteen junks in two divisions, with the intention of surrounding
them, which was nearly effected, having come up with and boarded one,
when a breeze suddenly sprung up. The captured vessel mounted
twenty-two guns. Most of her crew leaped overboard; sixty or seventy
were taken immediately, cut to pieces and thrown into the river. Early
in the morning the Ladrones returned into the bay, and anchored in the
same situation as before. The Portuguese and mandarines followed,
keeping up a constant fire. The Ladrones never returned a single shot,
but always kept in readiness to board, and the Portuguese were careful
never to allow them an opportunity.
On the 28th, at night, they sent in eight fire-vessels, which if
properly constructed must have done great execution, having every
advantage they could wish for to effect their purpose; a strong breeze
and tide directly into the bay, and the vessels lying so close
together that it was impossible to miss them. On their first
appearance the Ladrones gave a general shout, supposing them to be
mandarine vessels[117] on fire, but were very soon convinced of their
mistake. They came very regularly into the centre of the fleet, two
and two, burning furiously; one of them came alongside of the vessel I
was in, but they succeeded in booming her off. She appeared to be a
vessel of about thirty tons; her hold was filled with straw and wood,
and there were a few small boxes of combustibles on her deck, which
exploded alongside of us without doing any damage. The Ladrones,
however, towed them all on shore, extinguished the fire, and broke
them up for fire-wood. The Portuguese claim the credit of constructing
these destructive machines, and actually sent a dispatch to the
Governor of Macao, saying they had destroyed at least one-third of the
Ladrones' fleet, and hoped soon to effect their purpose by totally
annihilating them.
On the 29th of November, the Ladrones being all ready for sea, they
weighed and stood boldly out, bidding defiance to the invincible
squadron and imperial fleet, consisting of ninety-three war-junks, six
Portuguese ships, a brig, and a schooner. Immediately the Ladrones
weighed, they made all sail. The Ladrones chased them two or three
hours, keeping up a constant fire; finding they did not come up with
them, they hauled their wind and stood to the eastward.
Thus terminated the boasted blockade, which lasted nine days, during
which time the Ladrones completed all their repairs. In this action
not a single Ladrone vessel was destroyed, and their loss about thirty
or forty men. An American was also killed, one of three that remained
out of eight taken in a schooner. I had two very narrow escapes: the
first, a twelve-pounder shot fell within three or four feet of me;
another took a piece out of a small brass-swivel on which I was
standing. The chief's wife[118] frequently sprinkled me with
garlic-water, which they consider an effectual charm against shot. The
fleet continued under sail all night, steering towards the eastward.
In the morning they anchored in a large bay surrounded by lofty and
barren mountains.
On the 2nd of December I received a letter from Lieutenant Maughn,
commander of the Honourable Company's cruizer Antelope, saying that he
had the ransom on board, and had been three days cruizing after us,
and wished me to settle with the chief on the securest method of
delivering it. The chief agreed to send us in a small gun-boat, 'till
we came within sight of the Antelope; then the Compradore's boat was
to bring the ransom and receive us.
I was so agitated at receiving this joyful news, that it was with
considerable difficulty I could scrawl about two or three lines to
inform Lieutenant Maughn of the arrangements I had made. We were all
so deeply affected by the gratifying tidings, that we seldom closed
our eyes, but continued watching day and night for the boat. On the
6th she returned with Lieutenant Maughn's answer, saying, he would
respect any single boat; but would not allow the fleet to approach
him. The chief then, according to his first proposal, ordered a
gun-boat to take us, and with no small degree of pleasure we left the
Ladrone fleet about four o'clock in the morning.
At one P.M. saw the Antelope under all sail, standing toward us. The
Ladrone boat immediately anchored, and dispatched the Compradore's
boat for the ransom, saying, that if she approached nearer, they would
return to the fleet; and they were just weighing when she shortened
sail, and anchored about two miles from us. The boat did not reach her
'till late in the afternoon, owing to the tide's being strong against
her. She received the ransom and left the Antelope just before dark. A
mandarine boat that had been lying concealed under the land, and
watching their man[oe]uvres, gave chace to her, and was within a few
fathoms of taking her, when she saw a light, which the Ladrones
answered, and the Mandarine hauled off.
Our situation was now a most critical one; the ransom was in the hands
of the Ladrones, and the Compradore dare not return with us for fear
of a second attack from the mandarine boat. The Ladrones would not
remain 'till morning, so we were obliged to return with them to the
fleet.
In the morning the chief inspected the ransom, which consisted of the
following articles: two bales of superfine scarlet cloth; two chests
of opium; two casks of gunpowder; and a telescope; the rest in
dollars. He objected to the telescope not being new; and said he
should detain one of us 'till another was sent, or a hundred dollars
in lieu of it. The Compradore however agreed with him for the hundred
dollars.
Every thing being at length settled, the chief ordered two gun-boats
to convey us near the Antelope; we saw her just before dusk, when the
Ladrone boats left us. We had the inexpressible pleasure of arriving
on board the Antelope at 7 P.M., where we were most cordially
received, and heartily congratulated on our safe and happy deliverance
from a miserable captivity, which we had endured for eleven weeks and
three days.
(Signed) RICHARD GLASSPOOLE.
CHINA, December 8th, 1809.
_A few Remarks on the Origin, Progress, Manners, and Customs of the
Ladrones._
The Ladrones are a disaffected race of Chinese, that revolted against
the oppressions of the mandarines.--They first commenced their
depredations on the Western coast (Cochin-China), by attacking small
trading vessels in row-boats, carrying from thirty to forty men each.
They continued this system of piracy several years; at length their
successes, and the oppressive state of the Chinese, had the effect of
rapidly increasing their numbers. Hundreds of fishermen and others
flocked to their standard; and as their number increased they
consequently became more desperate. They blockaded all the principal
rivers, and attacked several large junks, mounting from ten to fifteen
guns each.
With these junks they formed a very formidable fleet, and no small
vessels could trade on the coast with safety. They plundered several
small villages, and exercised such wanton barbarity as struck horror
into the breasts of the Chinese. To check these enormities the
government equipped a fleet of forty imperial war-junks, mounting from
eighteen to twenty guns each. On the very first rencontre,
twenty-eight of the imperial junks struck to the pirates; the rest
saved themselves by a precipitate retreat.
These junks, fully equipped for war, were a great acquisition to them.
Their numbers augmented so rapidly, that at the period of my captivity
they were supposed to amount to near seventy thousand men, eight
hundred large vessels, and nearly a thousand small ones, including
row-boats. They were divided into five squadrons, distinguished by
different coloured flags: each squadron commanded by an admiral, or
chief; but all under the orders of A-juo-chay (Ching y[)i]h saou),
their premier chief, a most daring and enterprising man, who went so
far as to declare his intention of displacing the present Tartar
family from the throne of China, and to restore the ancient Chinese
dynasty.
This extraordinary character would have certainly shaken the
foundation of the government, had he not been thwarted by the jealousy
of the second in command, who declared his independence, and soon
after surrendered to the mandarines with five hundred vessels, on
promise of a pardon. Most of the inferior chiefs followed his example.
A-juo-Chay (Ching y[)i]h saou) held out a few months longer, and at
length surrendered with sixteen thousand men, on condition of a
general pardon, and himself to be made a mandarine of distinction.
The Ladrones have no settled residence on shore, but live constantly
in their vessels. The after-part is appropriated to the captain and
his wives; he generally has five or six. With respect to conjugal
rights they are religiously strict; no person is allowed to have a
woman on board, unless married to her according to their laws. Every
man is allowed a small berth, about four feet square, where he stows
with his wife and family.
From the number of souls crowded in so small a space, it must
naturally be supposed they are horridly dirty, which is evidently the
case, and their vessels swarm with all kinds of vermin. Rats in
particular, which they encourage to breed, and eat them as great
delicacies;[119] in fact, there are very few creatures they will not
eat. During our captivity we lived three weeks on caterpillars boiled
with rice. They are much addicted to gambling, and spend all their
leisure hours at cards and smoking opium.
THE END.
LONDON:
Printed by J. L. Cox, Great Queen Street,
Lincoln's Inn Fields.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] The Chinese have particular histories of the robbers and pirates
who existed in the _middle empire_ from the most ancient times; these
histories form a portion of every provincial history. The three last
books (the 58th, 59th, and 60th) of the _Memoirs_ _concerning the
South of the Meihling Mountains_ (see the Catechism of the Shahmans,
p. 44) are inscribed _Tsing fun_ (10,987, 2,651), and contain the
Robber history from the beginning of Woo wang, of the dynasty Chow.
The Memoirs only give extracts of former works; the extracts to the
three last books are taken from _the Great History of Yu[)e]_, or
Province of Kwang tang (_Yu[)e] ta ke_), from _the Old Transactions of
the Five Realms_ (_Woo kw[)o] koo sse_), _the Old Records of Yang
ching_, a name of the ancient city of Kwang tung (_Yang ching koo
chaou_), _the Official Robber History_ (_Kw[)o] she y[)i]h shin
chuen_), &c.
[2] We are chiefly indebted to the Jesuits that the Russians had not
conquered part of China about the middle of the seventeenth century.
See the passage of Muller in Burney's Voyages of Discovery to the
North-East Passage, p. 55. The Manchow destroyed the Chinese patriots
by the cannon cast by the Rev. Father Verbiest.--Le Comte, Nouvelles
Observations sur la Chine.
[3] We have a learned dissertation, pleading for the authenticity of
the famous inscription of _Se ngan foo_, by a well-known Sinologue.
May we not be favoured with another _Oratio pro domo_ concerning the
many crosses which had been found in Fuh këen, and on the "Escrevices
de Mer, qui estans encore en vie, lors mesme qu'elles estoient
cuites?" See Relation de la Chine par Michel Boym, de la Compagnie de
Jesus, in Thévenot, et Relations de divers Voyage, vol. ii, pp. 6 and
14.
[4] _Toland_, History of the Druids, p. 51.--
"This justice, therefore, I would do to Ireland, even if it had
not been my country, _viz._ to maintain that this tolerating
principle, this _impartial liberty_ (of religion), ever since
unexampled there as well as elsewhere, _China excepted_, is far
greater honour to it," &c.
Never was a man more calumniated than Confucius by the Jesuit Couplet.
_Confucius Sinarum Philosophus_ was printed in the year 1687, shortly
after Louis XIV. abolished the Edict of Nantes, and persecuted the
most industrious part of his subjects. The Jesuit is bold enough to
affirm, in his _Epistola Dedicatoria ad Ludovicum magnum_, that the
Chinese philosopher would be exceedingly rejoiced in seeing the piety
of the great king.
"_Quibus te laudibus efferret, cum haeresin, hostem illam
avitae fidei ac regni florentissimi teterrimam, proculcatam et
attritam, edicta quibus vitam ducere videbatur, abrogata;
disjecta templa, nomen ipsum sepultum, tot animarum millia
pristinis ab erroribus ad veritatem, ab exitio ad salutem tam
suaviter (!) tam fortiter (!), tam feliciter (!) traducta._"
[5] Toreen's Voyage behind Osbeck, II. 239, English translation.
[6] The Canton Register, 1829, No. 20.
[7] _Jang sëen_ is his Tsze, or title. The numbers which are to be
found on the margin of the translation, refer to the pages of the
Chinese printed text.
[8] The cubit at Canton is 14 inches 625 dec. Morrison, under the word
_Weights_, in his Dictionary, English and Chinese.
[9] We see by this statement that Couplet is wrong in saying
(_Confucius_ Sinarum philosophus. Proemialis declaratio, p. 60):
"Mahometani, qui una cum suis erroribus ante annos fere _septingentos_
(Couplet wrote 1683) magno numero et licentia ingressi in Chinam."
[10] This statement is so extraordinary, that the Translator thought
it necessary to compare many passages where the character _sh[)u]h_
(8384 M.) occurs. Sh[)u]h originally means, according to the _Shw[)o]
w[)a]n_, _near, joining_; and _Sh[)u]h kw[)o]_, are, according to Dr.
Morrison, "small states attached to and dependent on a larger one:
tributary states." The character _sh[)u]h_ is often used in the same
signification in the 57th book of our work. The description of the
Peninsula of Malacca begins (Mem. b. 57, p. 15 r.) with the following
words: "_Mwan l[)a] kea_ (Malacca) is in the southern sea, and was
originally a tributary state (sh[)u]h kw[)o]) of _Sëen lo_, or Siam;
but the officer who there had the command revolted and founded a
distinct kingdom." In the war which the Siamese some years back
carried on against the Sultan of Guedah, they always affirmed that the
King of Siam is, by his own right, the legitimate sovereign of the
whole peninsula of Malacca, and that the Sultan must only be
considered as a rebel against his liege. The statement of the Chinese
author, therefore, corroborates the assertions of the Siamese.
[11] On the _General Map of the Western Sea_ (_Se hae tsung too_) _Lin
yin_ takes the place of Sweden. I cannot conceive what can be the
cause of that denomination. _Lin yin_, perhaps, may mean the island
_Rugen_?
[12] The common word for cloth, _to lo ne_, seems to be of Indian
origin; it is certainly not Chinese. The proper Chinese name is
_jung_.
[13] _Peih ke_ is written with various characters. See Morrison's
Dictionary, under the word Peih, 8509.
[14] The syllable _lo_ is not in the Chinese text, as it is supposed,
by a mistake of the printer.
[15] It may be remarked, that Cosmas, about the middle of the sixth
century, had a better idea concerning the Chinese empire, or the
country of _Tsin_, than the Chinese have even now of Europe. Such an
advantage was it to be born a Greek and not a Chinese. Cosmas seems
very well informed concerning the articles of trade which the Chinese
generally bring to Serendib, or Serendwîpa (Ceylon). He remarks, that
farther than China there exists no other country; that on the east it
is surrounded by the ocean; and that Ceylon is nearly as far from the
Persian gulf as from Tziniza or China. See the description of
Taprobane, taken from the Christian Topography, and printed in
Thévenot, "Relations de divers Voyages," vol. i. pp. 2, 3, and 5. The
Chinese about Canton have a custom of ending every phrase with a long
_a_ (_a_ is pronounced like _a_ in Italian) which is merely euphonic,
like _yay_ (11980) in the Mandarine dialect. If a Chinese should be
asked about his country, he would answer according to the different
dynasties, Tsin-a, Han-a, Tang-a, Ming-a, &c. _Tsin-a_ is probably the
origin of _Tziniza_. It is a little strange that Rennel takes no
notice of the statements of Cosmas. (See the Geographical System of
Herodotus I. 223, Second Edition, London, 1830.) Is it not very
remarkable, that this merchant and monk seems to have also had very
correct information concerning the north-west frontier of China, and
of the conquest which the Huns (in Sanscrit H[=u]na) have made in the
north-west part of Hindostan? He reckons from China, through Tartary
and Bactria to Persia, 150 stations, or days' journies. About the time
of Cosmas, an intercourse commenced between China and Persia.
[16] In prefaces and rhetorical exercises, the Chinese commonly call
the years by the names employed in the well-known cycle of sixty
years. The first cycle is supposed to have begun with the year 2697
before Christ. In the year 1804, the ninth year of Këa kïng, was the
beginning of the thirty-sixth cycle.--Histoire générale de la Chine,
XII. p. 3 and 4.
[17] The _Mei ling_ mountains, which divide the province Kwang tung
from the province Këang se. See Note in the beginning of the History
of the Pirates.
[18] The place where European ships lie at anchor in the river of
Canton, and one of the few spots which foreigners are allowed to
visit.
[19] I translate the Chinese words _Wae she_, by _non-official
historian_, in opposition to the _Kw[)o] she_, or _She kwan_, the
official historiographers of the empire. Both _Yuen tsze_, author of
the following History of the Pirates, and _Lan e_, author of the work
which is referred to in the preface, are such _Public historians_, who
write--like most of the historians of Europe--the history of their own
times, without being appointed to or paid for by government.
_Lan e_ gives the history of the civil commotions under Këa king,
which continued from the year 1814 to 1817, in six books; the work is
printed in two small volumes, in the first year of Tao kwang (1820),
and the following contains the greater part of the preface:
"In the spring of the year _Kea su_ (1814), I went with other
people to Peking; reaching the left side of the (Mei ling)
mountains we met with fellow travellers, who joined the army,
and with many military preparations. In the capital I learned
that the robber _Lin_ caused many disturbances; I took great
care to ascertain what was said by the people of the court, and
by the officers of government, and I wrote down what I heard.
But being apprehensive that I might publish truth and falsehood
mixed together, I went in the year _Ting chow_ (1817) again to
the metropolis, and read attentively the imperial account of
the _Pacification of the Robber-bands_, planned the occurrences
according to the time in which they happened, joined to it what
I heard from other sources, and composed out of these various
matters a work in six books, on the truth of which you may
rely."
_Lan e_ begins his work with the history of those rebels called
_T[.e]en le keaou_ (_the Doctrine of Nature_). They were divided into
eight divisions, according to the eight Kwas, and placed under three
captains, or chiefs, of whom the first was called _Lin tsing_--the
same _Lin_ who is mentioned in the preface of _Soo_. These followers
of the doctrine of Nature believed implicitly in an absurd book
written by a robber, in which it was stated, that the Buddha who
should come after Shakia (in Chinese called _Me l[)i]h_, in Sanscrit
_Maëtreya_) is in possession of three seas, the _blue_, the _red_, and
the _white_. These seas are the three Kalpas; we now live in the
_white_ Kalpa. These robbers, therefore, carried _white_ banners.
_Tsing y[)i]h ke_, B. i., p. i.
[20] The Translator thinks it his duty to observe, that this preface,
being printed in characters written in the current hand, he tried in
vain to make out some abbreviations; he is, therefore, not quite
certain if the last phrase beginning with the words: "_Yuen tsze has
overlooked nothing_," &c. be correctly translated.
[21] The names of authors of Prefaces, as well as of works themselves,
which are not authorized by government, are often fictitious. Who
would dare to publish or recommend any thing under his own name, which
could displease any of the officers of the Chinese government? The
author of the following Preface has a high-sounding title: "He, whose
heart is directed towards the people."
[22] _Keun_, or _Tsze_, are only titles, like those of _Master_ and
_Doctor_ in the European languages. _Keun_ is, in the Canton dialect,
pronounced _Kwa_, which, placed behind the family names of the _Hong_,
or _Hing_ (3969) merchants, gives _How qwa_, or _How kwa_, _Mow kwa_,
&c., which literally means "Mr. How, Mr. Mow."
[23] I presume that the author of the Preface alludes to the
_twenty-three_ large historical collections, containing the official
publications regarding history and general literature. I have brought
with me from Canton this vast collection of works, which are now
concluded by the _History of the Ming_. It must be acknowledged that
no other nation has, or had, such immense libraries devoted to history
and geography. The histories of ancient Greece and Rome are pamphlets
in comparison with the _Url shih san she_ of the Chinese.
[24] See the first Note to this preface.
[25] In the original Chinese now follows a sort of Introduction, or
Contents (_Fan le_), which I thought not worth translating. It is
written by the author of the _History of the Pacification of the
Pirates_, who signs by his title _Jang sëen_.
[26] This prince was declared Emperor on the 8th February 1796, by his
father the Emperor Këen lung, who then retired from the management of
public affairs.--Voyage of the Dutch Embassy to China, in 1794-5;
London edition, I. 223. Këa king died on the 2d of September 1820,
being sixty-one years of age. His second son ascended the Imperial
throne six days after the death of his father; the years of his reign
were first called _Yuen hwuy_, but soon changed to _Taou
kwang_--_Illustrious Reason_. Indo-Chinese Gleaner, vol. iii. 41.
[27] Annam (Chinese, Annan) comprehends the country of Cochin-China
and Tung king. There have been many disturbances in these countries
within the last fifty years. The English reader may compare the
interesting historical sketch of modern Cochin-China in Barrow's
_Voyage to Cochin-China_, p. 250.
[28] The origin of this family may be seen in a notice of Cochin-China
and Tung king by father Gaubil, in the "Lettres Edifiantes," and in
the last volume of the French translation of the Kang m[)u]h. Annam
had been conquered by Chinese colonies, and its civilization is
therefore Chinese. This was already stated in Tavernier's masterly
description of Tunking, "Recueil de plusieurs Relations," Paris, 1679,
p. 168. Leyden, not knowing Chinese, has made some strange mistakes in
his famous dissertation regarding the languages and literature of
Indo-Chinese nations. Asiatic Researches, vol. x. 271, London edition,
1811.
[29] In Chinese _Lung lae_ (7402, 6866 Mor.); this name is taken from
the metropolis of this kingdom, called by the European travellers in
the beginning of the seventeenth century, _Laniam_, _Laniangh_, or
_Lanshang_. Robt. Kerr, General History and Collection of Voyages and
Travels, Edinburgh, 1813, vol. viii. 446, 449.--The Burmas call this
country Layn-sayn; "Buchanan on the Religion and Literature of the
Burmas." Asiatic Researches, vol. ii. 226, London edition, 1810, 4to.
The kingdom of Laos was conquered about the end of the year 1828, by
the Siamese; the king, his two principal wives, his sons, and
grandsons, amounting in all to fourteen persons, were cruelly killed
at Bangkok. The Protestant missionaries, Thomlin and Guzlaff, saw nine
of the relations of the king in a cage at Bangkok, the 30th of
January, 1829. The First Report of the Singapore Christian Union,
Singapore, 1830, Appendix xv. Is _Lang lae_ a mistake for _L[)u]h
lae_, which is mentioned in the _Hae kw[)o] hëen këen_, p. 214? There
occurs no _Lung lae_ in this work; where the Indo-Chinese nations are
described under the title _Nan yan she_; i.e. History of the Southern
ocean.
[30] People living in the same state of society, have usually the same
customs and manners. It is said of the celebrated _Buccaneers_, that
they laid aside their surnames, and assumed nicknames, or martial
names. Many, however, on their marrying, took care to have their real
surnames inserted in the marriage contract; and this practice gave
occasion to a proverb still current in the French Antilles, _a man is
not to be known till he takes a wife_. See the Voyages and Adventures
of William Dampier, and History of the Buccaneers, p. 87. Women cut
the characters for common Chinese books; and, therefore, the Chinese
say, so many mistakes are found in ordinary publications. The
character _pa_ (8123) in _Tung hae pa_ is by such a mistake always
written _p[)i]h_ (8527).
[31] He called himself Hëo hëen (3728, 3676,) after having received a
recompense from government for his robberies. See p. 75.
[32] Our author anticipates here a little; this will be clear by a
subsequent paragraph, p. 13.
[33] _Shan_ is a mountain in Chinese; _Ling_ is a chain of mountains
or _sierra_. The Chinese geographers say, the Mei ling mountain
branches out like a tree; and they describe in particular two, the
south-east and the south-west branches from Canton. They speak
likewise of Woo Ling, or five sierras, in reference to five different
passes by which these mountains are divided; but there are now more
passes. See a compilation, already quoted, regarding Canton, made by
order of the former governor _Yuen_, and printed at Canton last year,
1830, in eighty books, under the title _Ling nan y ung shuh_: i. e.
_Memoirs regarding the South of the Sierra_, book 5. vol. ii, p. 1.
[34] The Chinese possess itineraries and directories for the whole
empire, for every province, and for every large town or place; I shall
therefore always extract the notices which are to be found in the
_Itinerary of the Province Kwang tung_ (_Kwang tung tsuen too_,)
referring to the places mentioned in our text.
_Hwy_ is _Hwy chow foo_, from Pekin 6365 le, and easterly from Canton
400 le; one town of the second, and ten towns of the third rank are
appended to this district-metropolis. The whole district pays 14,321
leang, or tael. Here is the celebrated _Lo fow_ mountain. Lo fow
consists really of two united mountains, of which one is called _Lo_
and the other _Fow_, said to be three thousand six hundred _chang_ in
height, or 36,000 feet (?). The circumference is about 500 le. Here
are the sixteen caverns where the dragon dwells, spoken of in the
books of the Tao sect. You meet on these mountains with bamboo from
seventy to eighty feet in circumference. Kwang tung tsuen too, p. 5v.
_Chaou_ is _Chaou chow foo_, from Pekin 8,540 and easterly from Canton
1,740 le; eleven towns of the third rank belong to it. The whole
district pays 65,593 leang, or tael. A tael is equal to 5.798 decimal,
troy weight; and in the East-India Company's accounts the tael of
silver is reckoned at six shillings and eightpence sterling. _Foo_ is
the Chinese name for the first class of towns; _Chow_ for the second,
_Hëen_ for the third. I sometimes have translated _Chow_ by
district-town, and _Hëen_ by borough, or market-town.
[35] _Kaou_ is _Kaou chow foo_, from Pekin 7,767, north-west from
Canton 930 le; the district, and five towns of the third class, paying
together 62,566 leang, are dependent on the district-metropolis.
_Lëen_ is _Lëen chow foo_, from Pekin 9,065, from Canton 1,515 le; the
district and two towns, paying together 1,681 leang, are dependent on
the district-metropolis.
_Luy_ is _Luy chow foo_, from Pekin 8,210, westerly from Canton 1,380
le; the district and its towns, paying together 13,706 leang, are
dependent on the district-metropolis.
_Këung_ is _Këung chow foo_, the capital of the island _Hae nan_ or
Hainan, from Pekin 9,690, south-west from Canton 1,680 le; three
district towns, and ten towns of the third class, paying together
89,447 leang, are dependent on this capital. There is a town also
called _Këung shan hëen_, and both town and capital take their name
from the mountain _Këung_.
_Kin_ is _Kin chow_, dependent on _Lëen chow foo_, and far from it 140
le.
_Tan_ is _Tan chow_, a town of Hainan, south-west from the capital 370
le; the area of the town is 31 le.
_Yae_ is _Yae chow_, a town of Hainan, southerly from the capital of
the island 1,114 le. About this town many pirates have their
lurking-place. This circumstance may have caused the mistake of
Captain Krusenstern, stating that in A.D. 1805, the pirates who infest
the coast of China had obtained possession of the whole island of
Hainan.
_Wan_ is _Wan chow_, a town of Hainan, in a south-easterly direction
from the capital of the island 470 le.
[36] _Kwang_ is _Kwang tung s[)a]ng_, or the metropolis of the
province Kwang tung (Canton). Ten departments (foo), nine districts
(chow), and seventy-eight towns of the third class (hëen), are
dependent on the provincial city, and pay together in land-tax
1,272,696 leang, excise 47,510 leang, and in other miscellaneous taxes
5,990 leang. The import duties from the sea-side with measurement of
foreign vessels is said in the _Kwang tung tsuen too_, p. 3v, to
amount to 43,750 leang. All duties together of the province of Canton
amount to 1,369,946 taels, about £450,000. The lists of population
gave last October (1830) 23,000,000 (?) for the whole province, and we
now see that the Chinese pay less duties (every inhabitant about
fourpence halfpenny) than the population of any country of Europe. I
received the population lists from _Ahong_, an intelligent Chinese,
well known to the English residents at Canton. Distance from Pekin
about 6,835 le.
The subject concerning the population of China, and the amount of the
_land-rent_, the _poll-tax_, and other miscellaneous taxes, is
surrounded by so many difficulties, that the writer of this dares not
to affirm any thing about these matters until he has perused the new
edition of _Tay tsing hwy tëen_. For the present he will merely
remark, that in book 141, p. 38, of the said work, the population of
China Proper for the year 1793 is reckoned at 307,467,200. If we add
to this number the population of Chinese Tartary, it will certainly
amount to the round number of 333,000,000, as reported by Lord
Macartney.
_Chow_ is _chow king foo_, from Pekin about 4,720, north-west from
Canton 360 le. There is certainly some mistake in the Chinese
Itinerary; how could Canton be only 6,835, and Chow king foo 7420 le?
The imperial edition of the Tay tsing hwy tëen (book 122, p. 6 v.)
only gives 5,494 le as the distance from Canton to Pekin; there seems
to be a different sort of le. The district and eleven towns of the
third class, paying together 162,392 leang depend on the district
metropolis.
With the aid of the Chinese Itineraries and the new edition of the
_Tay tsing hwy tëen_ (printed 1797, in 360 large volumes) it would be
an easy task to compile a "Chinese Gazetteer."
[37] I found no particulars concerning these two small _islands_ (Chow
signifies island) in the Canton Itinerary; and I looked in vain on the
great map of the Chinese sea-coast in the Hae kw[)o] hëen këen for
their position.
[38] The town _Sin hwy_ is south-west from Canton 230 le; its area is
138 le (?) and the taxes amount to 28,607 leang. This place suffered
much from the pirates. I find no proper name for the river on which
Sin hwy lies in the Chinese maps, it is merely called _Këang_, river.
Near this place is the island where the last emperor of the Sung cast
himself into the sea (1280).
[39] The word _pe_ (8335) cannot be translated in any European
language. It means a vice common in Asia.
[40] The pirates probably made use of the term _saou_ (8833) and not
of _tse_ (10575), because _saou_ written with a different character
(8834), is the general term for boats and ships. _Paou_ must be
considered as the lieutenant or first minister of Mistress _Ching_,
she being herself of the family _Sh[)i]h_.
[41] It will be very interesting to compare the regulations of Paou
with those of the Buccaneers. When these pirates had got a
considerable booty, each person, holding up his hand, solemnly
protested that he had secreted nothing of what he had taken.--Voyage,
l. c. p. 95.
[42] The _San po_ (8788, 8608) are national spirits, and, as it seems,
not connected with Buddhism; there is a great variety in the number of
these good old mothers, who by the different emperors have been
declared saints, or spirits, for the Emperor of China is likewise the
pope in his empire. Dr. Morrison has an interesting article on these
old women in his Canton Vocabulary. _Kang he_ mentions only two _Po_
(s. v.), who may be considered as spirits. This is a character of
which the Buddhists are very fond; perhaps the translator may be
wrong, and that _San po_ is merely the Sanscrit word _Swayam-bhú_.
[43] Our author shews every where his partiality for Chang paou.
[44] The author said just before that the dominion of the pirates in
the Chinese sea lasted about ten years; but he only describes the
transactions of the last three years, when their power and strength
was at the highest point. He begins to give particulars from the 7th
moon of the 13th year of Këa king, which corresponds nearly to the
beginning of September 1808.
[45] There are three wretched forts at the Hoo mun, the mouth of the
Canton river, which could scarcely hinder any European vessel from
passing through.
[46] One of the islands marked upon European maps is called _The
Ladrones_: these Ladrones, so called from the pirates, have all
particular names on Chinese maps.
[47] In the first preface of the Hae kw[)o] hëen këen it is
particularly stated, that the map of the sea-coast of China became
first known to its editor by the expeditions against the pirates.
[48] There are, as is stated in my preface, some vulgar or provincial
characters in this history; here (p. 1.) occurs a character not to be
found in Kanghe, composed out of the fifty-sixth radical and the group
Leaou or Lew (7061, 7203). My whole library being locked up in the
Custom-house, I am not able to consult a dictionary of the Canton
dialect, therefore the meaning of these characters can only be guessed
at by etymology. The etymology of the characters gives sometimes a
better meaning than any dictionary, and sometimes it may entirely
mislead us; there is no reliance on etymology. Usage is the only
master of the Chinese, as of all other languages.
[49] Hëang shan is a considerable place between Macao and Canton. I
passed this town in the beginning of October 1830. Distance from
Canton 150 le in an eastern direction.
[50] It was, as we have before stated, the policy of Chang paou to
befriend himself, when possible, with the lower sort of people.
[51] Here the author himself says _Te ming_ (9955, 7714) "name of a
place." To find out the names of places and persons, and distinguish
the titles of the different officers employed by government, is often
a very difficult task. The last character in the name of this place,
_pae_, is very seldom found; it is the fourth character of the
division of eight strokes, rad. 177.--See Kanghe. O is, in the Canton
dialect, commonly pronounced like A, in Italian.
[52] These are large vessels with windows, from 200 to 500 tons; they
are called by Europeans by the Chinese name, in the Canton dialect,
junks; _chuen_ is the Mandarin pronunciation. The foreign trade of
Cochin-China and Tung king is almost exclusively with China, that to
Siam, Singapur, and Malacca, being inconsiderable. The Cochin-Chinese
government tried some years ago to open a regular trade with Calcutta;
but this undertaking partly failed on account of the heavy duties on
foreign sugar in the possessions of the East-India Company. Sugar is a
great article of export in Cochin-China and Siam.
[53] On the large map of the coast of China from Corea to
Cochin-China, called _Yuen_ (12542) _hae tsuen too_, this place is
called _Lao wan shan_, "the old ten thousand mountains," and is
exactly opposite to the Bocca Tigris in a direct southerly direction.
[54] The sails of Chinese vessels are often called Mats, for they are
really nothing else than matting.
[55] _Le_: this itinerary measure, as we have remarked, is different
in different parts of the empire; it is generally considered that 250
le make a degree of latitude.
[56] This they did probably to look more ferocious. Plutarch observes
of Sylla, that "the ferocity of his aspect was heightened by his
complexion, which was a strong _red_, interspersed with spots of
white."
[57] _Mun_ means an _entrance_ or _mouth_; few of these places are to
be found, even in the particular maps of the province Kwang tung in
the _Tay tsing hwy teen_.
[58] _Paou_, the first character of 8233, is in our own history always
used in the signification of _cannon_. The word meant in former times
an engine for throwing stones, and so it is used in the history of the
Han dynasty. This gave rise to the opinion that the Chinese had guns
and gunpowder long before its discovery in Europe. How could these
extraordinary engines have escaped the discriminating genius of Marco
Polo, had they existed in China?
[59] The three provinces which have Këang (5500) in their name the
same as the two Kwang, Kwang to the east (tung) and Kwang to the west
(se), are usually united under one governor and one deputy governor.
[60] Previously they robbed only in the open sea, outside the Canton
river.
[61] The river discharges itself by many channels into the sea.
[62] _Tung kwan hëen_ is easterly from Canton 150 le, its area amounts
to 180 le, and pays 44,607 leang land-rent, or taxes. There are many
small islands belonging to the district of Tung kwan.
[63] _Fan yu hëen_, near Canton. The place where European ships anchor
belongs to this Hëen; its area amounts to 140 le, and pays 48,356
leang. I looked in vain for some notices regarding the many small
villages which are to be found in the sequel of the page. Some of them
are merely mentioned in the Itinerary of the province Canton. The
reader may compare the account of Richard Glasspoole in the Appendix.
[64] These are names of different sorts of Chinese vessels or junks.
[65] In the original Kin (6369). Kin cannot be the common cash (Tung
pao) for then the sum would be too trifling--8 to 900 are to be got in
Canton for a Spanish dollar. If Kin were used for dollar, or tael,
which is very probable, the sum is enormous. Richard Glasspoole states
that the pirates demanded indeed ten thousand dollars!--See the
Appendix.
[66] _Hoo mun_. The following notice on the Chinese tiger is taken
from the geography of Mookden, and translated by Father Amiot. Eloge
de la ville de Moukden par Kien long, p. 249. "Au-delà de nos
frontières (Mookden), il y a une espèce de tigre, dont la peau est un
fort beau blanc, sur lequel il y a, par intervalles, des taches
noires. Ces espèces de tigres sont plus méchants et plus féroces que
les autres." Father Amoit adds, that these tigers are called _Hoo_ by
the Chinese, and _Tasha_ by the Manchow.
[67] The Chinese geographers and historians are very well acquainted
with Siam; there is an interesting description of this empire in the
Hae kwo hëen këen, p. 21, and in the 57th book, p. 13, of the memoirs
concerning the south of the Mei ling mountains. That Siam acknowledges
the supremacy of China, was known to the most early European
travellers. Cluver says (in his Introductio in omnem Geographiam
Wolfenbuttelæ, 1694, 4to., p. 473), that "Rex Siamensis irruptione
crebriori Tartarica pressus, Chano denique Chinensi sese beneficiarium
aut vasallum submisit." Mendez Pinto, who was in that country in the
year 1540, states that the king of Siam acknowledged the supremacy of
China; Bernhardi Vareni Descriptio regni Japoniæ et Siam; Cantabrigiæ
1673-8, p. 128.
[68] It is impossible to translate the names of vessels of different
descriptions. The large are the Chang lung, or great dragon vessels
which by the Chinese law are forbidden to be used by any private
person; these are the Mandarin, or government vessels. The pirates
nevertheless had such vessels, as likewise the daring smugglers, who
bring the opium from Lintin, or Linting, to Canton. The amount of the
opium trade in the port of Canton was, in the year 1829-30, equal to
12,057,157 Sp. dollars.
[69] One of the English sailors, who had been taken prisoner. "The
pirates frequently obliged my men to go on shore and fight with the
muskets, which did great execution; the Chinese principally using bows
and arrows. They have match-locks, but use them very
unskilfully."--See Appendix.
[70] A shih, or stone, contains four keun: a keun thirty kin or catty,
the well known Chinese weight: a catty is equal to one pound and a
third English.
[71] _Nan hae hëen._ Its area amounts to 278 le, and it pays 63,731
leang. The European factories in Canton lie in this district, and the
monastery opposite to the factories is usually from the name of the
district called the _Hae nan sze_, the temple of Hae nan. The district
of every place is called by the name of the place, and we must
therefore speak of the town and district Nan hae.
[72] This simple note of the Chinese author better illustrates the
religion of China than many learned dissertations. All the deities,
those of Greece and Rome, of China and India, are derived from two
sources; both the powers of nature and highly gifted human beings were
deified. These powers of nature, and the virtues and vices of men
being in every community nearly similar, the same gods and goddesses
are found everywhere; only their external form and shape is different.
Every province, every town, and every village of China has its
particular tutulary saint, or god, and on the day of his festival his
effigy is carried in public. There is no essential difference in this
respect between China and those countries where Roman Catholicism is
yet in its highest vigour. The effigies of the Chinese gods and
goddesses are all of the human shape; they have no monsters like India
and Egypt, under which it was once the fashion to seek for
extraordinary wisdom and astonishing science. Lucian has already taken
the liberty of laughing at these deities, and at the writers, the
prophets, and sophists, who try to find some sense in all this vulgar
display of nonsense, by which the people are deluded. Lucian de
Sacreficiis s. f. where he laughs at the Jupiter with a ram's head, at
the good fellow Mercurius with the countenance of a dog, etc. [Greek:
Krioprosôpon men ton Dia, chynoprosôpon de ton beltison Ermên chai ton
Pana holon tragon], etc. See the pleasant story of Jupiter with the
ram's head in Herodotus, II. 42.
[73] The strong winds (Tay fung) in the Chinese sea begin about the
middle of September, or just before the equinox.
[74] It is not stated in the Chinese text, whose father rushed
forward, whether it was the father of the lady, or of Wei tang chow.
[75] I must again remark that there is a false character in our text:
it should be Në[)e], 7974 in the Tonical Dictionary of Dr. M.
[76] I am compelled to give a free translation of this verse, and
confess myself not quite certain of the signification of the poetical
figures used by our author. _F[=u]ng_ signifies a hollow pyramid
filled with combustibles; _y[=e]n_ signifies the smoke caused by
combustion; _tse[=a]ng_ signifies the spar or yard in a boat or ship,
to which the sail is attached, and _ying_ is shadow. It seems that the
author alludes to the spar or yard-arm, at which _Mei ying_ was
fastened by the pirate; but what he means by _shadow_ I do not really
know, perhaps _ying_ is in the place of _Mei ying_.
[77] The Chinese characters are printed like the other portion of the
work. I have divided them according to the verses. Only the first
eight lines have a regular metre of five feet, or words, and as the
author himself says, his song is then at an end; but the language
still remains poetical, and for that reason it was thought proper to
divide also the remaining lines like verses. Every word must be
considered as consisting of one syllable or sound, even if we write it
with three or four vowels. Poetry is perhaps more esteemed in China,
than in any other country in the world. The late governor-general of
Kwang tung and Kwang se, his Excellency Yuen, published the poems of
his daughter, who died when only nineteen years of age. Most of the
emperors of China wrote verses, and I have, if I remember rightly, an
imperial collection printed at the command of Këa king of many
volumes, containing the poetry of the crowned heads of China. The
reader may easily imagine that the Chinese have many works on poetry;
I am also in possession of a Chinese _Gradus ad Parnassum_ in ten
large volumes, in which are to be found, divided under different
heads, all the fine expression and poetical images of the classical
poets. Mr. Davis has given some excellent specimens of Chinese poetry
in his elegant dissertation on that subject.
[78] Verbally "monkeys and birds," a sort of birds which according to
Dr. Morrison are something similar to our crows.
[79] In the memoirs concerning the south of the Mei ling mountains,
three books (from 9-11 incl.) are filled up with a description of the
seas, rivers, and lakes, of the province of Canton. Book ninth begins
with a general description of the Chinese seas, and of the different
entrances from the sea-side; then follows a particular description of
the sea near Canton and Hainan, and of the different Tides at various
places. The mariner would certainly be gratified by a translation of
this part of the work. The translator has often remarked the
extraordinary phenomenon of the fiery appearance of the sea, during
his residence in China. In the before-mentioned work, b. ix. p. 5 v,
we read the following notice concerning this phenomenon:
"_The fire in the sea_: It happens sometimes that sea waves
have such a luminous appearance, as if the whole sea were full
of fire. If you cast any thing into the sea, it becomes
luminous like a star; but you do not see this during moonlight.
Wood having in itself no fire, receives a fiery appearance,
after having been passed through the water."
In b. x. p. 10 r. Whampo is said to be seventy le from the sea
custom-house of Canton. In this extract foreigners are in general very
unfavourably spoken of. Amongst other things we are told, "that
foreigners or barbarians drink so much strong liquor that they are not
able to stand on their feet; they fall down intoxicated, and before
having had a sound sleep, they cannot rise again." It is also remarked
in the same article that many people assemble together at Whampo, to
attend the trade with the foreigners; the reason probably why our
author calls it "the Great." The reader will remember what has been
said on Hëang shan in a former note; I will only here add the remark
of Martini, "that in his time the principal and most wealthy merchants
lived in that place." (Thévenot, Rélations de divers voyages, iii.
167.)
[80] It is well known that a great part of the population of China
live on the water, and they are generally called _Tan_ (9832)
people;--a word which in the Canton dialect is pronounced _Tanka_.
They are quite a separate race, and harshly dealt with by the Chinese
government. There exist particular works concerning the history, the
customs and laws of these boat-people. They more than once opposed the
despotic regulation of their masters, and government was always afraid
they might join the pirates. The history of the southern barbarians in
the often quoted _Memoirs_, &c. begins with a description of the _Tan
jin_, or _Tanka_ people, and it is there said that they are divided
into three different classes. The description of their customs and
manners is very interesting, and I hope soon to lay it before the
English reader. It has been supposed that the name _Tanka people_ is
derived from the form of their boats, which is similar to an _egg_;
but _Shw[)o] w[)a]n_, as quoted in Kang he, explains the word only by
_Nan fang e yay_, Barbarians of the southern region. There exist
different forms of this character, but I think we should not presume
to make an etymology of a Chinese character without being authorized
by the Shw[)o] w[)a]n, the oldest and most genuine source of Chinese
lexicography.
[81] In the Chinese text is _King king_ (the character is composed out
of radical _fire_ and _ear_), on which is to be found an interesting
critical observation in Kang he, s. v. b. viii. p. 119r. In no other
oriental language has there been so much done by the natives for the
foreign student as by the Chinese.
[82] The most common denomination for Portugal is now Se yang kw[)o],
or more correctly _Siao se yang kw[)o]_. "The small realm in the
western ocean; Europe is called _Ta se yang_." (See Preface.) I thought
it here more proper to translate _E_ by _foreigner_, than by
_barbarian_. In a Chinese history of Macao, we find various
particulars regarding the Portuguese. The description of the
Portuguese clergy and the Roman Catholic religion is the most
interesting part of this curious publication. It consists of two
parts, or volumes.
[83] It would be interesting to read the Portuguese version of these
skirmishes. A history of these skirmishes was printed at Lisbon, but I
could not procure this publication. The reader may compare the
statements of Richard Glasspoole in the Appendix.
[84] The Chinese are very much accustomed to consult the P[)u]h, or
sort. There exists various ways, according to the ideas of the
Chinese, of asking the divinity whether any undertaking shall prove
either fortunate or not. The translator has seen different modes of
casting lots in the temples of the suburbs of Canton. The reader may
find an interesting description of casting lots in the "Histoire du
grand Royaume de la Chine;" à Rouen 1614-8, p. 30. There is much
useful information to be found in this work; but it would be curious
to learn in what Armenian works ("escritures des Armeniens") it is
stated, that "St. Thomas came through China in his voyage to the
East-Indies" (l. c. p. 25)!
[85] _Woo_ (11753) _how_; _Woo_ is the time between eleven and one
o'clock of the day. The Chinese divide the day into twelve _she shin_,
or great hours; the European twenty-four hours of the day are called
_seaou she shin_, little hours. We learn by a passage of Herodotus
(Euterpe 109), that the Greeks in his time also divided the day into
twelve parts; Herodotus also adds that the Greeks received this
division of time from the Babylonians.--See Visdelou in the Supplement
to the "Bibliothèque Orientale," by Herbelot, under the word _Fenek_.
[86] _Me teng_ is a particular sort of junk.
[87] These speeches seem to be rhetorical exercises of the Chinese
historian; the antithesis is a figure very much used in Chinese
rhetoric and poetry, and a great part of their poetry consists merely
of such antitheses.
[88] That is--they are of no effect at all. I, however, thought it
proper to retain the strong figure of the original.
[89] The author forgets in his rhetorical flourishes, that it is a
pirate himself who speaks to pirates. The Chinese characters for "sea
monster" are to be found in M 2057; "_King e_ is used figuratively for
a devouring conqueror of men," says Dr. Morrison.
[90] The author has here the expression _tung-leang_ (11399) _pillar_,
in its proper and figurative sense. He probably chose this expression
to make, according to Chinese sentiments, a fine rhetorical phrase.
_Leang_ in the beginning of the phrase corresponds to the sound and
the form of the character to _Leang_ at the end: Leang shan san kë[)e]
ching y[)i]h, mung g[)a]n shay url king ts[)o] tung-leang. There is
also something like a quibble in the second phrase; Wa kang, _Bricks
and mountain ridge_ is transformed into Choo sh[)i]h (1223) or a
_corner-stone_, just as Leang-shan, _mountain bridge_ is into
tung-leang, or _pillar_.
[91] O po tae alludes to well known events in Chinese history. On
Tsaou tsaou see Dr. Morrison, 10549 in the tonical part of the
Dictionary.
[92] I confess that it was not an easy matter to translate these
rhetorical exercises and poetical phrases, by which the author is
evidently anxious to draw a veil over the weakness of the empire. The
Chinese scholar will certainly pardon any mistake which might occur in
this poetical or furious prose--to use the expression of Blair in his
_Lectures on Rhetoric_.
[93] _Kwei shen_ is a Hëen or town of the third rank, and dependent on
the district metropolis Hwy chow foo; it is near to Hwy. Its area
amounts to thirty-seven le, and pays in taxes 26,058 leang. It is
stated in the _Itinerary of Canton_ (Kwang tung tsuen too, p. 5. v.)
that the situation of this great town makes it a place of danger;
being close to the sea, Kwei shen is exposed to sudden attacks from
pirates.
[94] _Yang keang_ is a town of the third rank, and dependent on its
district metropolis Chow king foo; distant from Chow king foo in a
southerly direction 340 le. Its area amounts to twenty-nine le, and it
pays 12,499 leang in taxes.
_Sin gan_ is a town of the third rank, and dependent upon Kwang chow
foo; distance from Canton in a north-east direction 200 le. Its area
amounts to fifty le, and pays in taxes 11,623 leang. There are three
towns in the district of Canton, whose names begin with _Sin_, new;
_Sin hwy_, _The New Association_; _Sin ning_, _The New Repose_; and
_Sin gan_, _The New Rest_. Kwang tung tsuen too p. 3 v. 4 v et r. 8 r,
_Ning_ (8026) is now always written without sin or heart, being the
_ming_ or proper name of the reigning emperor. By a mistake it is
stated in the Indo-Chinese Gleaner (iii. 108.), that _Ning_ was the
proper name of Këa king. The proper name of the reigning emperor is
considered sacred, and must be spelled differently during his
life-time.
[95] A Pa tsung, a kind of inferior military officer, says Dr.
Morrison, under the word pa, (8103.)
[96] _Laou ya_, _Laou ya kang_, the mountain ridge of Laou ya, is
fifteen le from the town of the third rank called _Sh[)i]h ching_.
Shih ching hëen belongs to the district Kaou chow foo. Kwang tung
tsuen too, 16v. 9r.
[97] Crackers made of gunpowder, and the gong, are used at every
Chinese festival.
[98] The name of a temple which Europeans commonly call a Pagoda.
[99] Keun in Chinese, Kwa according to the Canton pronunciation. It is
true it is somewhat awkward to speak of Madam Ching and Mr. Paou, but
it may be remarked that the Chinese use their familiar expressions
_foo_ or _keun_ in the same manner as we use Mr. and Mrs.
[100] In the text is only Chow (1355); but I think it must here be
taken for the city or town of Canton.
[101] About the towns which are mentioned in our text, the reader may
compare the notes to the first book. It is quite impossible to
ascertain by the text alone if there was only one military officer
appointed for all these places or not. In the latter case it would be
necessary to read Chuh url and Kang g[)i]h; but we see by p. 95 that
Chuh url kang g[)i]h is the name of _one_ commander.
[102] Tung king and Cochin-China now form one empire, under the name
of Annam or Annan. The king of this country acknowledges the supremacy
of the Chinese emperor, and sends every year a tribute to Pekin. The
time of the reign of every king is known by an honorary title, like
that of the emperors of China. The honorary title of the period of the
reigning king, to whom the message was sent, was _Kea lung_ (good
fortune), the younger brother of _King ching_, called by his proper
name _F[)u]h ying_ (according to the Chinese Mandarin pronunciation):
he is often mentioned in the beginning of the first book of our
_History of the Pirates_. The king, commonly called Kea lung, died
Feb. 1820, in the 19th year of his reign. His son, who still reigns,
mounted the throne on the third day after his father's death, assuming
the words _Ming ming_ (Illustrious fortune), as the designation of his
reign. See the "Indo-Chinese Gleaner," vol. i. p. 360. It was falsely
reported that Ming ming was murdered some days after his succession to
the throne (Indo-Chinese Gleaner, l. c. p. 416), and this report is
stated as a fact in the generally very accurate work, Hamilton's
East-India Gazetteer, vol. i. p. 430. The reader may find some
interesting particulars concerning the present state of Cochin-China,
in the Canton Register 1829, No. 13. Chinese influence seems to be now
predominating in that country.
[103] _Teaou_ (10044) in our text is written with a vulgar character.
[104] Chih (Kang he under radical 112. B. vii. p. 19 r.) seems to
indicate that they have been put to death by cutting one member after
another.
[105] Hae k[)a]ng is a town of the third rank and dependent on the
district metropolis Luy chow foo. Luy chow foo is westerly from Canton
1380 le. Hae kang is near to its district metropolis _Kwang tung tsuen
too_, p. v. 9 v. See the Notes, p. 9, of this work.
[106] _Hae fung_ is a town of the third rank, and dependent on the
district metropolis Hwy chow foo. It is in a north-east direction from
its district metropolis 300 le. Its area contains forty le, and pays
17,266 leang in taxes.
_Suy ke_ is a town of the third rank, and dependent upon the district
metropolis Luy chow foo; distance from Luy chow foo in a northerly
direction 180 le.
_H[)o] poo_ is a town of the third rank, and dependant on the district
metropolis Lëen chow foo. This town is near to the district
metropolis, has an area of thirty le, and pays 7,458 leang in taxes.
_Kwang tung tsuen too_, p. 6 r. p. 9 v.
[107] _Junk_ is the Canton pronunciation of _chuen_, ship.
[108] The pirates had many other intimate acquaintances on shore, like
Doctor _Chow_ of Macao.
[109] The pirates were always afraid of this. We find the following
statement concerning the Chinese pirates, taken from the records in
the East-India House, and printed in Appendix C. to the _Report
relative to the trade with the East-Indies and China_, in the sessions
1820 and 1821 (reprinted 1829), p 387.
"In the year 1808, 1809, and 1810, the Canton river was so
infested with pirates, who were also in such force, that the
Chinese government made an attempt to subdue them, but failed.
The pirates totally destroyed the Chinese force; ravaged the
river in every direction; threatened to attack the city of
Canton, and destroyed many towns and villages on the banks of
the river; and killed or carried off, to serve as Ladrones,
several thousands of inhabitants.
"These events created an alarm extremely prejudicial to the
commerce of Canton, and compelled the Company's supercargoes to
fit out a small country ship to cruize for a short time against
the pirates."
[110] That the whole family must suffer for the crime of one
individual, seems to be the most cruel and foolish law of the whole
Chinese criminal code.
[111] The Hoo mun, or Bocca Tigris.
[112] We know by the "History of the Chinese Pirates," that these
"wasps of the ocean," to speak with _Yuen tsze yung lun_, were
originally divided into six squadrons.
[113] In the barbarous Chinese-English spoken at Canton, all things
are indiscriminately called _chop_. You hear of a chop-house,
chop-boat, tea-chop, Chaou-chaou-chop, etc. To give a bill or
agreement on making a bargain is in Chinese called _ch[)a] tan_;
ch[)a] in the pronunciation of Canton is _chop_, which is then applied
to any writing whatever. See Dr. Morrison's English and Chinese
Dictionary under the word _chop_.
[114] The following is the _Character of the Chinese of Canton, as
given in ancient Chinese books_: "People of Canton are silly, light,
weak in body, and weak in mind, without any ability to fight on land."
The Indo-Chinese Gleaner, No. 19.
[115] _Joss_ is a Chinese corruption of the Portuguese _Dios_, _God_.
The Joss, or idol, of which Mr. Glasspoole speaks in the _San po
shin_, which is spoken of in the work of Yuen tsze.
[116] Yuen tsze reported the memorable deed of the beautiful _Mei
ying_ at the end of the first book of his history.
[117] The _Chang lung_ vessels.
[118] Probably the wife of Ching y[)i]h, whose family name was
Sh[)i]h, or stone.
[119] The Chinese in Canton only eat a particular sort of rat, which
is very large and of a whitish colour.
........
Transcriber's note:
Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling is as in the original.
In this etext a 'breve' is represented with [)i] and the same for
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