on a little eminence at a short distance from
the town.

Our captain finding that he could not
transact the business he expected to do in
Macao, proposed to sail on the following
morning; and he kindly invited me to make
the trip to Hong-Kong, though I had engaged
my passage only as far as Macao. I very
gladly accepted his invitation.

On the morning of the 10th of July, we
sailed for Hong-Kong, which is about sixty
nautical miles from Macao. The voyage
from the one place to the other is varied and
interesting. We were continually in sight of
picturesque bays and groups of islands. Hong-
Kong was ceded to the English by the Chinese
after the peace in 1842. The sea-port town,
called Victoria, built by the English, contains
many handsome stone edifices.

The Europeans, of whom there are only a
few hundreds here, are somewhat dissatisfied,
trade not being so prosperous as was at first
expected. The English Government
gratuitously gives portions of land to merchants,
on condition of their building houses. Many
have erected on these grants of land large
houses, which they would willingly sell for
half the price they have cost. Victoria
is surrounded by barren hills, or not very
pleasingly situated. The town has
altogether a European character; and, but for
the Chinese porters, labourers, hucksters,
&c., seen in the streets and in the shops, it
would be difficult to imagine one's-self on
Chinese ground. I was a little surprised at
not seeing any native women in the streets;
from which circumstance it might have been
inferred that a European female could not
safely have ventured out of doors alone.
However, I never met with the least insult or
annoyance on the part of the Chinese: even
their curiosity was not offensively manifested.

In Victoria I had the pleasure of being
introduced to the celebrated Gutzlaff. Four
other German missionaries were also residing
there. They were dressed in the Chinese
style; had their heads shaved, and the back
hair plaited in long tails in the style worn by
the natives. These missionaries were studying
the Chinese language, which is exceedingly
difficult, both to speak and to write. The
written language consists of characters, of
which there are upwards of four thousand;
and the spoken language is composed of pure
monosyllabic sounds. The Chinese write with
pencils dipped in Indian ink; their lines run
from right to left, and from the top of the
paper downward.

After the lapse of a few days, I met with
an opportunity of going to Canton on board
of a Chinese junk. Mr. P., a merchant
residing at Victoria, who had received me very
kindly, recommended me not to venture in
the junk alone, as he assured me the Chinese
people were not to be trusted. He advised
me either to take a boat for myself, or to
engage a berth on board one of the steamers;
but these modes of travelling were too expensive
for the limited means at my disposal.
A place in the steamer, or a hired boat,
would have cost twelve dollars; whilst the
fare by the junk was only three. However,
I must confess that I saw nothing either
in the looks or conduct of the Chinese to
excite alarm. "I put my pistols in order—
(continues the fearless lady)—and, on the 12th
of July, I went on board the junk."

As evening drew in, heavy rain obliged me
to return to the covered part of the vessel,
where I amused myself by observing my
Chinese companions.

The party on board the junk, though not
the most select, was nevertheless perfectly
decorous in demeanour. Some of the men were
seated at dominoes, others were listening to
the performance of a musician, who drew
forth doleful strains from a sort of mandoline
with three strings. A few were gossiping;
a great many smoking; and all, by turns,
drank unsugared tea. Of this beverage,
which was served in small cups, I was civilly
invited to partake. The Chinese of all ranks
and classes, rich and poor, drink neither pure
water nor fermented liquors. Weak tea,
without sugar, is their constant beverage.

Late in the evening I retired to my cabin,
where, to my discomfort, I found the rain
dripping through the roof. The captain, on
being apprised of this fact, immediately
accommodated me with another berth, where
I found myself in company with two Chinese
women. When I entered the cabin they
were completely enveloped in a cloud of
tobacco-smoke, which they were puffing from
small pipes, no larger than thimbles.

My companions, observing that I was
unprovided with the head-stool, which in China
is used instead of a pillow, kindly offered me
one of theirs; and the offer was so urgently
pressed that I felt myself obliged to accept it.
These head-stools are made of bamboo, or of a
very thick kind of pasteboard. They are
about eight inches high, and from one to.
three feet long, rounded at top, and have no
stuffing. The head rests more comfortably
than might be expected on one of these stools.

Early next morning I hurried on deck to
see the entrance to the mouth of the Si-kiang
or Tiger River; but we had advanced so far
up, that no trace of the mouth was discernible.
I, however, saw it subsequently, when I
returned from Canton to Hong-Kong. The
Si-kiang is one of the largest rivers in China.
At a very short distance from the point at
which it falls into the sea, it is nearly eight
nautical miles in width; but at its mouth it
is so contracted by rocks that it is only about
half that breadth. The views along the banks
are pleasing; and some fortifications erected
on the heights give a romantic character to
the scenery.

At Hoo-man (which place also bears the
name of Whampoa) the river branches into
several separate streams. One which flows