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Article THE GENERAL HISTORY OF CHINA: ← Page 3 of 5 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The General History Of China:
them to prison , but never by seizing their goods ; or -else by hi !* leting into their houses the poor and aged , whom the Emperor keeps out of charity in each town , and who remain in the house until they have consumed as much as is owing to the Emperor . These officers are accountable for what they receive to the Pout tching ssee , who is treasurer-general of the province , and they remit to him the sums of money which they have collected ;
they send them on mules , each mule carries 2 , 000 taels in two wooden vessels like long barrels , which are secured with iron cramps . The Poll tching ssee is accountable to the Hou pou , which is the second sovereign court , and has the superintendency of the customs and taxes , and is accountable for them to the Emperor . China is singular in thisThat the Emperor is in the Empire
, as a great head of a family , who provides for all the necessities of his officers ; the greater part of the tribute and taxes belonging to the Emperor is spent in the provinces for the maintenance of the poor , especially of aged people , of invalids , who are in great number , for the salary of the mandarins , the maintenance of the forces , for public buildings , & c . and the overplus is carried to
Pekin , to supply the expences of the court and the metropolis , in which the Emperor maintains 160 , 000 men of regular troops , besides their pa } ' , which is paid in money .. Besides all this there is distributed at Pekin every day , to near 5000 mandarins , a certain quantity of meat , fish , salt , herbs , & c . And every month they "have rice , beans , wood , coals , and straw delivered to thern : the same thing is done to those that are sent
from the court to the provinces , they are paid all their charges on the road ; beside , they have barks , horses , carriages , and inns allowed them at the expences of the Emperor . The affair . is thus managed ; when a mandarin is sent by the court they give him a Gang ho , that is an order dispatched from the court by the Ping pou , or tribunal of the militia , sealed with the seal of
that tribunal , by . which the officers of the posts , and of the towns are ordered to furnish , without delay , what is mentioned in that order , and for a proof of the execution of it they put their seals to it : there are men provided to draw the barks , and to carry the baggage , likewise the general officer of the posts gives orders for weighing the baggage , and furnishing as man } ' men as are necersary to carry it , allowing fifty Chinese pounds wei ght to each man .. ¦
The troops which the Emperor keeps , as well near the great wall as in other fortified places , amounted formerly to the number of 770 , 000 soldiers , which number hath been increased , and subsists so at present , for they never reduce them ; they serve for guards to the grand mandarins , governors , officers and magistrates , escorting them on their journe }^ , and in the night keeping watch about their barks or their inns . The Emperor likewise maintains near , 565 , 000 horses to remount his cavalry , and for the use of
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The General History Of China:
them to prison , but never by seizing their goods ; or -else by hi !* leting into their houses the poor and aged , whom the Emperor keeps out of charity in each town , and who remain in the house until they have consumed as much as is owing to the Emperor . These officers are accountable for what they receive to the Pout tching ssee , who is treasurer-general of the province , and they remit to him the sums of money which they have collected ;
they send them on mules , each mule carries 2 , 000 taels in two wooden vessels like long barrels , which are secured with iron cramps . The Poll tching ssee is accountable to the Hou pou , which is the second sovereign court , and has the superintendency of the customs and taxes , and is accountable for them to the Emperor . China is singular in thisThat the Emperor is in the Empire
, as a great head of a family , who provides for all the necessities of his officers ; the greater part of the tribute and taxes belonging to the Emperor is spent in the provinces for the maintenance of the poor , especially of aged people , of invalids , who are in great number , for the salary of the mandarins , the maintenance of the forces , for public buildings , & c . and the overplus is carried to
Pekin , to supply the expences of the court and the metropolis , in which the Emperor maintains 160 , 000 men of regular troops , besides their pa } ' , which is paid in money .. Besides all this there is distributed at Pekin every day , to near 5000 mandarins , a certain quantity of meat , fish , salt , herbs , & c . And every month they "have rice , beans , wood , coals , and straw delivered to thern : the same thing is done to those that are sent
from the court to the provinces , they are paid all their charges on the road ; beside , they have barks , horses , carriages , and inns allowed them at the expences of the Emperor . The affair . is thus managed ; when a mandarin is sent by the court they give him a Gang ho , that is an order dispatched from the court by the Ping pou , or tribunal of the militia , sealed with the seal of
that tribunal , by . which the officers of the posts , and of the towns are ordered to furnish , without delay , what is mentioned in that order , and for a proof of the execution of it they put their seals to it : there are men provided to draw the barks , and to carry the baggage , likewise the general officer of the posts gives orders for weighing the baggage , and furnishing as man } ' men as are necersary to carry it , allowing fifty Chinese pounds wei ght to each man .. ¦
The troops which the Emperor keeps , as well near the great wall as in other fortified places , amounted formerly to the number of 770 , 000 soldiers , which number hath been increased , and subsists so at present , for they never reduce them ; they serve for guards to the grand mandarins , governors , officers and magistrates , escorting them on their journe }^ , and in the night keeping watch about their barks or their inns . The Emperor likewise maintains near , 565 , 000 horses to remount his cavalry , and for the use of