have been through their negledt o f admonition on the fir ft
appearance of filial mifcondudt, that fuch a monfter could be
found. The emperor himffelf is judge, and the crime is expiated'
by the fentence of the criminal being cut into ten thoufand1
pieces.
Seif-interest. T h e reigning vice o f the Chinefe is felf-intereft, which gives
rife to the infinite variety o f frauds of which they áre juftly ac-
cufed. Lord Ahforts account o f them is by ho meads exaggerated.
Attempts have been made to clear them from the
afperiion, but all has proved a vain labor. They cónfider the art
of over-reaching as a mark o f fuperior genius, and1 laugh at
their dupe for fuffering himfelf to be impofed on. Du Halde tells
á pleafant ftory o f an Engiijh captain who had bargained with a
Chinefe merchant for feveral bales o f filk. On opening the fir ft,
he found it excellent; but all the reft were quite rotten. The
captain reproached the merchant in the moft fevere terms. The
Chinefe, with great coolnefs, anfwered, “ Blame, Sir, your rogue
“ of an interpreter, for he allured me, that you never would ex-
“ amine the bales.”
P r i d e . Pride and felf-conceit are the other charadteriftic faults of
this people. They alfume an imaginary pre-eminence over all
the world, and conceive nothing can be right but what they do.
Their arts and their inventions have been brought to a certain
point, at which they muft ever flop, till they can prevale on
themfelves to lower their high opinion of fuperiority, and improve
upon the models brought from Europe. They can
copy, but they do it with reluftance, as they look upon themfelves
to be the firft o f men. A good effedt arifes out o f this
foible,
foible, it repreffes luxury ; they think themfelves wiier than the
reft of mankind, and that they are fupplied with whatever their
fituation can require. Their rule of government, their cuftoms,
their arts, their habits, have remained for centuries the fame, and
probably will continue fo to the end of time.
This leading feature is, befides, the refult of the high and juft A n t i q u i t t .
opinion they entertain o f the antiquity o f the Chinefe nation,'in
coinparifan o f that o f the reft of the world ; and they with truth
obferve, that they were a polilhed people ages before the nations
o f modern Europe had emerged from favage manners and profound
ignorance.
T he founder of their empire isfaid to be Fo-hi, cotemporary F o - h i , F o u n d e r
with Phaleg and Heber, His fubjedts at that time were nearly in 0F rHE M IRE-
the ftate o f nature ; they fed on what they caught, ,ate it raw,
drank the blood, and clothed themfelves with the ikins. He
taught them to make filhing-nets and fnares for birds,, to rear
domeftic animals, and inftrudted them in various arts of .life;
and to foften the fiercenefs of his people, invented mufic, and
the inftrument Kin. China was inhabited above two thoufand
years before the-Chriftian sera, demonftrable from an -eclipfe ob-
ferved atthat period: The boaft of the Chinefe is, that their monarchy
has continued four thoufand years under the government
of çmperors; that it experienced twenty-two cjyuafties or revo-,
lutions, hut-the commotions each occafioned. were fo ihort that
the country fuffered very little inconveniency, and returned immediately
into its-former regular fvftem.
T h é original religion o f the Chinefe.was truly ptire, and pro- r el10ion.
hahly delivered to them by the firft founder o f the empire,
N % Fo-hi,