70 HUNTING EXCURSION. single individual's being destitute. When excessive rains or drought occurred in any part of the empire, I have remitted the land-tax, and I have conferred grain. As soon as distress was reported immediate relief was given. "Last year, on the sixtieth anniversary of my birth, when the public servants and people were presenting their sincere congratulations, I thought what benefit I should confer, and finally proclaimed a remission of all debts for land-tax, to the amount of upwards of twenty millions, with a wish that every family and every individual should enjoy abundance; and all ranks ascend together the heights of general joy. "This year, during the spring and summer, and onward to autumn, the rains were seasonable, and from every province plenty was announced to me, which afforded real pleasure to my heart. "In the middle of autumn, I, with a feeling of reverential obedience to the instructions of my ancestors, was proceeding to Muh-lan, on a hunting excursion, and, to avoid the heat, stopped at the mountain-cottage. I have hitherto enjoyed robust health; and although advanced beyond the sixth decade of my life, I could ascend or descend a hill, or could visit the rivers or the plains without a feeling of weariness. On this occasion, in the course of my journey, the intense heat of the atmosphere affected me; and yesterday, having whipped COURAGE OF THE IMPERIAL HEIR. 71 my horse across the mountain of Wide Benevolence (Kwang-jin), when I came to the hill-cottage I felt the phlegm rise to suffocation, and apprehended I should not recover; but, in obedience to the law of the departed sages of my family, I had already, in the fourth year of my reign, in the fourth month, on the tenth day, at five o'clock in the morning, previously appointed an heir to the throne, which appointment I myself sealed, and locked it up in a secret box. "When the rebels in the eighteenth year attempted to climb over the palace walls, the imperial heir with his own hand fired, and shot two of them, which caused the rest to fall with terror to the ground, and the sacred abode was in consequence preserved in quiet. The merit of this conduct was very great; and as the purpose of making him heir was not to become apparent, I then created him to be styled The Wise ;' thereby rewarding his singular services. "The present disease will end my life. The 'divine utensil' (the throne) is supremely important; and it becomes proper to transfer it to another I therefore command all the Ministers of the Imperial Presence-all the Statesmen of the Military Board-all the Great Officers of the Imperial Household, in an assembled body, to open the secret deposit. The Imperial Heir is benevolent, dutiful, wise, and valorous, and will be 72 DUTIES OF A SOVEREIGN. able to sustain the trust committed to him. Let him ascend the Imperial Throne, and succeed to the universal rule! "The duty of a sovereign prince consists in knowing men's characters, and giving repose to the people. I have long discussed clearly this subject; but to carry these duties into effect is truly difficult. Let them be duly considered; let them be strenuously maintained. Attach yourself (O my son!) to the good and virtuous: love and feed the black-haired people; and preserve our family dominion over the great patrimony to myriads of ages. "The Le-ke classic says, that dutiful sons perpetuate well the designs of their fathers, and illustrate well the affairs of their ancestors. May your strenuous efforts never be intermitted! "I have arrived at the high honour of being the Son of Heaven; my years have extended beyond a sexagenary cycle; the happiness I have attained may be denominated great. I hope my successor will be able to continue my purposes, and will cause the world to enjoy the felicity of general tranquillity; and thus my wishes will be gratified. "When I received the Imperial Seal, I had two elder brothers and one younger brother, who at the same time received royal titles. In the spring of this year, the royal brother King-tsin first departed this life, and only the royal brothers E-tsin and Ching-tsin remain: these for offences were deprived YU DIED IN A HUNTING EXCURSION. 73 of their emoluments, which punishment is hereby entirely remitted. "The Shoo-king relates that the ancient Emperor, Yu, closed his career on a hunting excursion; my fate has therefore been that of others; and further, this place, Lwang-yang, is one which, according to rule, must be annually blessed by the imperial presence; and my predecessor, his late majesty, was born here. Why should I be indignant (at dying here)? "Let the state mourning be agreeable to former usage, and be put off after twenty-seven days. Announce this to the empire, and cause every one to hear it. "Kea-king, 25th year, 7th moon, 25th day." You will probably think that the language of the will and the actions of the emperor but ill agree. That such a man as Kea-king should have had three hundred million mourners, and that high honours should have been paid to his memory, is a striking instance How flattery fawns upon the great, and flings CHAPTER IX. EXPEDITION TO CHINA. The Opium War.-Different Opinions respecting it.-The less of Opium and War the better.-Amount of Tea and other Articles bought of the Chinese in a Year.—Amount of Opium, Metal, and Cotton sold to them.-Sycee Silver.— Light-heartedness of British Sailors.-Surprise of the Chinese on seeing the British Force.-The Defences of the Chinese. -Hostilities.-Bad Faith of the Chinese.-Hong Kong ceded to the British.-The Factories plundered.-Forts of the Bocca Tigris destroyed.-Canton attacked and ransomed. I HAVE already told you of the immediate, though not the sole, cause of the war between the British and the Chinese, and though you may not clearly understand the merits or demerits of it, you know that it was, in some way or other, connected with Opium; it is, indeed, by many called the Opium war. China has long supplied Great Britain with tea, but as the Chinese always overvalued themselves as a people, and undervalued foreigners, so frequent disagreements took place. In all these disagreements, owing to their comparative weakness, and the distance of their resources, the English were |