companied the embaffy, to dwell on thofe fubjeas which have
been treated b y him in fo mafterly a manner; or to recapitulate
thofe incident!? and tranfadions, which he has detailed
with equal elegance and accuracy.
But, as it will readily occur to every one, there are ftilt many
interefting fubjeas, on which Sir George, from the nature o f
his work, could only barely touch, and others that did not
come within his plan, one great o b jea o f which was to unfold
the views o f the embaffy, and to ihew that every thing,
which could be done,'was done, for promoting the interefts o f
the Britilh nation, and fupporting the dignity o f the Bntiih
ch a ra a e r ; the Author o f the prefent work has ventured,
though with extreme diffidence, and with the confcioufnefs o f
the difadvantage under which he muft appear after that “ A c -
“ count o f the Embaffy,” to lay before the public the point
o f view in which be faw the Chinefe empire, and the Chine/e
charaaer. In doing this, the fame, fa d s will fpmetimes. necef-
farily occur, that have already been publiihed, for reafons that
it would be needlefs to mention; but whenever that happens
to be the cafe, they will briefly be repeated, for the purpofe o f
illuftrating fome pofition, or for deducing fome general inference.
Thus, for inftance, the document given to the EmbaC-
fador o f the.population o f China will be noticed, not however
under the colour o f its being an unqueftionably accurate ftate-
ment, but, on the contrary, to ihew that it neither is, nor can
be, c o r r ed ; yet at the fame time to endeavour to prove, by
fads and analogy,, that, contrary to the received opinion, the
country is capable o f fupporting not only three hundred and
/ j thirtythirty
three millions o f people, but that it might aduaily afford
the means o f fubfiftence to twice that number. T h e confirmation,
indeed, o f new and important fads, though very different
conclufions be drawn from them, cannot be entirely
unacceptable to the reader; for as different perfons will generally
fee the fame things in different points o f view, fo,perhaps,
b y combining and comparing the different defcriptions and
colouring that may be given o f the fame objects, the public is
enabled to obtain the moft corre& notions o f fuch matters as
can be learned only from the report o f travellers.
W ith regard to China, i f we except the work o f Sir George
Staunton, and the limited account o f Mr. Bell o f Antermony,
which was not written by himfelf, it may be confidered as
unbeaten ground b y Britons. We have heard a great deal o f
Chinefe knavery ptadifed at Canton, but, except in the two
works abovementioned, we have not yet heard the fentiments
o f an Engliihman at all acquainted with the manners, cuftoms,
and character o f the Chinefe nation. T he voluminous communications
o f the miffionaries are by no means fatisfadory ; and
fome o f their defeds will be noticed and accounted for in the
courfe o f this w o rk ; the chief aim o f which will be to ihew
this extraordinary people in their proper colours, not as their
own moral maxims would reprefent them, but as they really
are— to diveft the court o f the tinfel and the tawdry varmih
with which, like the palaces o f the Emperor, the miffionaries
have found it expedient to cover it in their writings; and to
endeavour to draw fuch a iketch o f the manners, the ftate o f
fociety, the language, literature and fine arts, the fciences
B 2 an^