the Emperor, befides, others innumerable, the property of merchants,,
or of private people, who hire them to travellers. They
are all richly ornamented, eipecially the imperial, which carry
on them the dragon o f five claws, the arms of the empire. The
traveller, i f he takes the route o f I>uang-Ji and Hu-quang, is
under no necefiity o f ever quitting his bark from Canton to Peking
; he meets with rivers and lakes till he falls in again with
the Tu-Ho, or Royal Canal, as it is named by way o f pre-eminence.
On that canal the voyager is only obliged to quit his
veflel once in nine hundred miles; the mountain Meylin intervenes,
and makes it neceflary for him to take a day’s journey
before he can again benefit o f the royal work. The ihipping on
the canal and rivers are often fo numerous as to fill the channel
for a mile or two, and quite obftrudt for a time their progrefs.
G r e a t F a i r o n G r e a t fairs are alfo kept on the rivers. “ One feafon,” fays
t h e a t e r . Hamilton, “ at one place, and in other feafons at other places;
“ and though there may be 10,000 veffels afiembled at a fair,
“ yet there is as good order and decorum kept as in a well-
“ governed city. All ihips and boats who have the fame fpecies
“ of goods are moored together, along a certain place on the
“ river fide allotted for them by proper magiftrates, and at night
“ watches are fent to prevent thieving and diforder, and of-
“ fenders are feverely punilhed without refpeit o f perfons.”
J. N ie u h o f f . John Nieuhoff, the celebrated traveller o f the laft century, is
the only one* who gives an account o f the entire inland voyage
from the fouth to almoft the very north o f the mighty empire.
* Sir George Staunton’s Account of the ipirited and well-condu£ted Embafly to China was
not publiihed at the time this work was compofed. E.
That able writer was born on July 22d, 1618, at Uffen, in the
earldom o f Bentham, o f a refpeitable family; his perfon was
elegant, his underftanding good, his temper and converfation
amiable ; he was fond o f the fine arts, poetry, mufic, and drawing
; and mailer of feveral languages. In the year 1646 he entered
into the Dutch WeJl India fervice, and made his firft voyage
to the Brazils, vvhere he refided nine years. He has left us an
admirable defcription o f the country, and o f the many great
events o f that period which happened between his countrymen
and the Portugueje.
His next voyage was to the Eajl Indies, in the year 1653. He
vilited the coait of Malabar, the peninfula o f Malacca, and many o f
the iflands, even to the Moluccas. His accounts are the moil fatif-
faétory of any extant; his attention to feveral branches o f natural
hiftory was very confiderable ; and he has.given various plates of
the filhes of the Indies, done with much accuracy, confidering the
infantflate o f the fcience. On this voyage he was eight years ab-
fent from home. His laft voyage (defigned alfo for the Eaji Indies)
was begun on January ift, 1672. He landed at Madagafcar, in
order to trade.with the natives, and, as is fuppofed, was, with
his people, maflacred by the inhabitants in the month of Sep-
tember of the fame year, for he never more was heard of. Diligent
enquiry was made after him by the furviving part o f the
crew left on board his Ihip, and afterwards a, yatch was dif-
patched from the Cape of Good Hope to repeat the fearch, which
proved equally fruitlefs.
His brother, Henry Nieuhoff, colleited together all the papers
he left behind, and publiihed them, to the great honor o f his
memory.
H . N ie u h o f f .