other large or heavy packages, are not conveyed overland in wagons or by horses, but are slung on bamboo poles and carried by men, however long the distance may be. The boats on the canals and many of the rivers have to be towed or tracked by ropes; and this labor also, which in most countries is done by horses, is in China performed by men; so that, either on land or water, the number of laborers employed in the transit of merchandise is immense. To the resistance of all these interested parties in the interior and on the coast has been attributed the failure of the embassy.

The death of Kia-king, when sixty-one years of age, in 1820, is said to have been hastened by his excesses, and by his uneasiness and fear on learning, during a journey in the provinces, the sad condition to which the empire had fallen during his reign. There were, however, strong suspicions of secret assassination.

The emperor's will, a very singular document, was published to the people. In it was this passage: "The Yellow river has from the remotest ages been China's sorrow. Whenever the mouth of the stream has been impeded by sand-banks, it has, higher up its course, created alarm by overflowing the country. On such occasions I have not spared the imperial treasury to embank the river and restore the waters to their former channel. Since a former repair of the river was completed, six or seven years of tranquillity had elapsed, when last year, in the autumn, the excessive rains caused an unusual rise of the water, and in Ho-nan the river burst its banks at several points, both on the south and north sides. The stream Wu-chi forced a passage to the sea, and the mischief done was immense. During

the spring of this year, just as those who conducted the repair of the banks had reported that the work was finished, the southern bank at I-fung again gave way." The mention of this subject in the emperor's will is a sufficient proof of its importance. If the science of European engineers could put an effectual stop to the evil, it would be the most important physical benefit that was ever conferred on the empire. Even the European trade at Canton was annually taxed to meet the repairs of the Yellow river.

"The emperor's will," says Sir J. F. Davis, "proceeds to state the merits of his second son, the late sovereign, Tau-kwang, in having shot two of the assassins who entered the palace in 1813, which was the reason of his selection. It has been even supposed that Kia-king's death was hastened by some discontented persons of high rank, who had been lately disgraced in consequence of the mysterious loss of an official seal. The emperor's death was announced to the several provinces by despatches written with blue ink, the mourning color. All persons of condition were required to take the red silk ornament from their caps, with the ball or button of rank; all subjects of China, without exception, were called upon to forbear from shaving their heads for one hundred days, within which period none might marry, or play on musical instruments, or perform any sacrifice." Kia-king was succeeded by his second son, Tau-kwang.

CHAPTER XII.

TAU-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.

HE emperor Tau-kwang, whose name signifies "Light

THE

of Reason," ascended the throne in the year 1820; and if he possessed not the wisdom and talents of his grandfather, Kien-lung, he endeavored to maintain the dignity of his exalted station, and was consequently more respected than his predecessor, the weak-minded and vicious Kia-king.

The distant Tartar tribes have always been found very troublesome dependants, and no sooner was Tau-kwang seated on the throne than a serious insurrection broke out in the western territories, which had been annexed to the empire by Kien-lung. Kashgar was one of the chief scenes of the revolt, which, after a struggle of several years, was at length suppressed by the Manchu imperial troops, who are said to have been guilty of dreadful barbarity toward the insurgents.

Peace was scarcely restored in the west when the internal repose of the country was disturbed by another rebellion of the Miau-tsz. The cause of this fresh outbreak does not appear to be known, but they poured down in great numbers from their native hills, under the command of a chieftain who assumed the name of Wang, or king, and not only displayed the imperial ensign of

the golden dragon, but wore a yellow robe, which is a direct assumption of the imperial dignity. All the mountain tribes, each governed by a separate chief, enlisted under the banner of this daring leader and descended to the plains, where they defeated the imperial troops and possessed themselves of four towns, from which they expelled the soldiers and mandarins, but did not injure the rest of the inhabitants, declaring by a public proclamation that they were not the enemies of the people, but of the government. By the spring of 1832 they had established themselves in the country to the north-west of Canton, holding a number of walled cities, and treating the industrious portion of the inhabitants with great kindness. At this time it was rather more than suspected that a good many members of the "Triad Society," whose object is the emancipation of the Chinese and the overthrow of the Tartars, had got among the mountaineers and were directing their measures and movements. Li, the governor of Canton, received orders from Peking to put an end to the rebellion; and with that view he assembled what he supposed would be a sufficient force to defeat them, but they were more formidable than he had expected, and his army was repulsed with great loss; in consequence of which misfortune he was degraded and deprived of his government, for the spirit of the law is that if a general is commanded to conquer he ought to obey. Another officer, the governor of Ho-nan, met with better success, and having retaken one of the towns occupied by the mountain bands, was rewarded with a peacock's feather, which is the highest badge of military distinction known among the Tartars. Still the rebellion was not terminated, and the Miau-tsz

held out with determined obstinacy for nearly six years, when in 1838 two imperial commissioners were sent from Peking to treat with them upon amicable terms, and induced them to return quietly to their homes-by what means is not exactly known, although it is suspected large presents were not spared. It was then publicly announced that the rebels had been obliged to make the most humble submission; but as they are as independent now as they were before, it is quite evident they were rather appeased than subdued, and, if they really were bribed to withdraw, will most probably repeat the same profitable experiment. About the same period there was also an insurrection in the island of Formosa, which was successfully quelled by the government.

In 1838 a war broke out of a totally different nature from any that had yet disturbed the Celestial Empire. The commercial intercourse between England and China had been carried on through the East India Company, and so it continued till the year 1833, when the term of its last charter expired, and all British subjects were equally at liberty to send out ships to China for tea and other produce of that country, which till then had never been exported by any vessels but those belonging to the privileged company. Independent merchants were less watchful against creating trouble with the Chinese, and less honest and less responsible in their dealings with them than the company. Troubles sprang up, and mutual suspicion and hatred increased between the two nations. But the great cause of the war was the fearful evils inflicted upon the Chinese, from the highest to the lowest, by the growth and illegal introduction of opium. The company had carried on an extensive trade