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Article A VISIT TO CANTON. ← Page 12 of 14 →
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A Visit To Canton.
contributions to the public treasury . Few among the great officers of the empire can boast an illustrious origin . Houan , the intimate adviser of the Viceroy , the mandarin to whose influence rumour attributed in part the diplomatic skill of Ki-ing , was born in the Shan-tong , of obscure parents . He had attained the rank of mandarin of the second orderaud
, was a member of the imperial college of the Han-lin , when he was accused by his enemies of venal partiality in the examinations over which he was called to preside . By a severe sentence he was at once hurled from the pinnacle of rank and honour to the very foot of the official ladder . At the time when we were presented to him by the Viceroy ,
Houan was engaged , with that patient resignation the secret of which the Easterns alone possess , in regaining step by step the position from which he had so suddenly fallen . The blue button already decorated his cap , which had not yet regained its peacock ' s feather . Amidst the servile crowd who surrounded the Viceroy , the expressive look , the noble
physiognomy of his intimate councillor , inspired a powerful sympathy . Ki-ing , to his honour , had not abandoned his protege in his disgrace , and from the confidence which he showed him publicly , might be inferred , that in his heart he protested against a decree which was probably aimed , in the person of Houan , at the champions of that moderate cause , the chief of which was as yet beyond the power of attack .
In China no diplomatic conference takes place without a banquet . A dinner of thirty covers awaited us in a low saloon , ill lighted by the oblique rays which fell from above on an inner court . Comfortably wrapped in their warm pelisses , the mandarins defied the cold and humid temperature , against which we were very imperfectly sheltered by our thin uniforms .
A Chinese dinner is no longer a novelty ; but it is always a frightful affair—we may add , an awful reminiscence—to a European stomach . The dessert alone might have found favour in our eyes , and this led the way to the repast . Two long rows of pyramids , three or four inches high , and composed of almonds , sweetmeats , dried fruits and preserves ,
presented as we entered the banquet-room a graceful coup d ' oeil , which would have made a child jump for joy . After this simple service , appeared a number of tin dishes filled with indescribable viands , all fuming Avith nauseous oily vapours and melted fat . The servants now quickly laid before the guests small bowls , filled to the brim with pheasants' or
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Visit To Canton.
contributions to the public treasury . Few among the great officers of the empire can boast an illustrious origin . Houan , the intimate adviser of the Viceroy , the mandarin to whose influence rumour attributed in part the diplomatic skill of Ki-ing , was born in the Shan-tong , of obscure parents . He had attained the rank of mandarin of the second orderaud
, was a member of the imperial college of the Han-lin , when he was accused by his enemies of venal partiality in the examinations over which he was called to preside . By a severe sentence he was at once hurled from the pinnacle of rank and honour to the very foot of the official ladder . At the time when we were presented to him by the Viceroy ,
Houan was engaged , with that patient resignation the secret of which the Easterns alone possess , in regaining step by step the position from which he had so suddenly fallen . The blue button already decorated his cap , which had not yet regained its peacock ' s feather . Amidst the servile crowd who surrounded the Viceroy , the expressive look , the noble
physiognomy of his intimate councillor , inspired a powerful sympathy . Ki-ing , to his honour , had not abandoned his protege in his disgrace , and from the confidence which he showed him publicly , might be inferred , that in his heart he protested against a decree which was probably aimed , in the person of Houan , at the champions of that moderate cause , the chief of which was as yet beyond the power of attack .
In China no diplomatic conference takes place without a banquet . A dinner of thirty covers awaited us in a low saloon , ill lighted by the oblique rays which fell from above on an inner court . Comfortably wrapped in their warm pelisses , the mandarins defied the cold and humid temperature , against which we were very imperfectly sheltered by our thin uniforms .
A Chinese dinner is no longer a novelty ; but it is always a frightful affair—we may add , an awful reminiscence—to a European stomach . The dessert alone might have found favour in our eyes , and this led the way to the repast . Two long rows of pyramids , three or four inches high , and composed of almonds , sweetmeats , dried fruits and preserves ,
presented as we entered the banquet-room a graceful coup d ' oeil , which would have made a child jump for joy . After this simple service , appeared a number of tin dishes filled with indescribable viands , all fuming Avith nauseous oily vapours and melted fat . The servants now quickly laid before the guests small bowls , filled to the brim with pheasants' or