tail was composed of black silk braid, very cleverly platted to conceal the joining.

The complexion of the men varies from an olive colour to a bright yellow. The face is broad and flat, with high cheek-bones, and a small, keen black eye. The expression of the face is intelligent, but they cannot be called a handsome race. The women are below the middle size, not well formed, being very narrow across the shoulders and hips; their complexion is the same as that of the men, but their faces are totally devoid of the same intelligent expression. Amongst the lower orders, the dress differs but little from that of the men, with this exception, that the jacket reaches to the knees. They wear the same sort of bamboo and straw hats; and those who are uncrippled, and can afford shoes, wear the same sort of shoes as the men; but those whose feet are deformed, invariably wear a covering on the legs and feet, and shoes. married women draw the hair up from the face into a topknot on the crown of the head, where it is dressed into numberless bows; these they ornament, either with artificial flowers, or silver filagree pins, six inches long, which they place in the hair, so as to stick out like one or more horns on each side. When undressed in this manner, the hair is platted into a large tail, exactly like the men. The widows and unmarried females wear the front part of the hair combed over the forehead, and cut straight across, like a boy's.

The

The women of all classes are very fond of trinkets, and wear as many silver and jade-stone rings, bracelets, and anklets, as they can afford-but gold is never used by them. dress of the upper classes is nearly as handsome as that of the mandarinsbut every part of their dress will be found of a different color.

The

The head-dress of all classes is nearly alike; except that the higher orders wear the best description of jade-stone, and enamelled and silver pins set with pearls. They do not wear linen; the under-jacket, being the dress worn next the person, is made of crape, and has tight long sleeves, embroidered round the wrists and neck; over this they wear another jacket, which is made either of flowered satin or crape; the sleeves are very wide and short,

reaching only to the elbow; an embroidered border encircles the bottom of the jacket and sleeves; the embroidery is either of gold, or silk and gold-the border is three inches deep, and is a different-colored silk or crape to that of the jacket, which is lined with a third color. The trowsers are exceedingly wide and long, and are embroidered round the ankle in a similar manner to the jacket, although not to match it. The great object in a lady's dress is, to combine as great a diversity of colors, and variety of embroidery, as possible. Over the trowsers, the wife wears a rich satin petticoat, very handsomely embroidered. This can only be used by the wife, and can never be worn by unmarried daughters or handmaids. The shoes have heels about an inch high, and the uppers are very elaborately embroidered in gold and silks, and bound round with gold tinsel. They do not wear stockings, but red and black ribbon is bound round the foot and leg. Like the men, they wear under their jackets a silken girdle, to which is invariably attached an embroidered bag, which contains their tobacco and pipe. They always carry a fan, which is either embroidered, or made of feathers, and is either of an oblong, round, or pointed form, and does not fold up. though the dress is anything but becoming, affording no opportunity to display symmetry or form, being perfectly loose, and fastened tight round the throat, still the tout ensemble is very pleasing.

Al

Infants, and children of all classes, are invariably dressed in jackets and trowers, the materials being the only variation, which are always in accordance with the wealth of the parents. Male children have the head shaved, leaving two circular spots of hair, one on each side of the head, before the ears, which are platted into tails. At eight years old the hair is allowed to grow on the top, or crown, and the rest of the head is shaved; the tail is then platted when the hair is of sufficient length. The hair of the females is allowed to grow, and is platted into a tail at two years old.

The Chinese have naturally a great dislike to innovations- the national dress never varying, their fashions never change. They, like all eastern nations, attach great value to dress and state; but there is no nation which re

spects so much the external accompaniments of rank and station as the Chinese. In contradistinction to the manner in which consular officers and her Majesty's plenipotentiary walk about the streets of Canton and in Victoria, unaccompanied by marks of state or authority, I will attempt the description of the visit of the mandarin of Cow-Loon (a small town on the shore opposite to Victoria), made to a missionary, residing in the latter place, which therefore cannot be considered as a state visit made to authorities. He crossed over in his boat, manned with twenty oars on each side, in which were his sedan-chair, chair-bearers, musicians, flag-bearers, and runners. Upon landing, dressed in his embroi dered silken robes, he entered his chair, which was borne by eight bearers. The runners preceded, flourishing their bamboos on each side, to clear the road from all who came between the air and the mandarin's dignity.

Then followed musicians with wind-instruments and gongs, making most unearthly sounds, to the imminent risk of deafening her Majesty's subjects for life. After these came the flag-bearers with flags, three yards in length, on long poles, on which were inscribed, in large golden characters, the name, style, title, and dignities of the mandarin. The rear was brought up by a number of nondescripts.

This was not a mandarin of high rank by any means, being only of the fourth class.

From a desire to visit the residence of this mighty man, and to gratify the curiosity of one of Eve's fair daughters, I went over to Cow-Loon, accompanied by some friends, and attended by our servants. Upon landing, we saw a square, low fort, which we were informed was the official residence of the mandarin, and to which we accordingly repaired; and having been introduced to the mandarin, were granted permission to visit his city, as they call it. To our amazement, we found this mandarin, whom we saw before surrounded with so much state, without shoes or stockings, and hastily putting on his jacket to receive us. He had evidently been superintending the repairs of an old wheel. He invited us into the fort, which we went round to inspect, and found four guns of the very rudest construction, honey-combed, and wholly useless. These were

VOL. XXXII.-NO. CLXXXVII.

the only means of defence. My servants having informed the mandarin who I was, he sent his attendants to show us the way. After walking through a number of dirty alleys, we entered the gates of the city, which are always closed at night; each street is also closed by fastening together upright wooden bars. After night

fall, no one is allowed to walk about without a lantern. These precautions are general throughout the empire, and are adopted to prevent the depredations of robbers, who enter the streets, fire houses, and in the confusion thus occasioned, carry off the wives and children of mandarins and rich men, in order to extort ransom.

Let the reader conceive a collection of pig-styes, constructed of bamboos, plastered over with mud, and thatched with coarse paddy straw, in which are exposed for sale rice, paddy (which is rice with the husks), tea, dried fish, and fat pork, and he may form some idea of the streets we passed through, which are remarkably narrow; but as we proceeded, we found the dwellings of the richer inhabitants of a better description. At the door of one, an old man, evidently of the higher class, was standing, who gazed upon the face of my fair companion with marked astonishment-for the beauties of Britain do not correspond with a Chinaman's ideas of beauty in any one particular. His beau ideal of beauty consists in feet deformed and compressed into a mass three inches in length, bandaged up from infancy in bindings, never unwound till womanhood (consequently the odour from a beauty is not of "Araby the blest"), a fleshless figure, without those graceful undulations, we English consider so essential to female beauty; a dingy, yellow complexion, overplastered with white cosmetic, high cheek-bones, remarkably small piggish eyes, with pencilled eye-brows, meeting over the nose, low brow, with oblong ears, coarse black hair, anointed with stinking pork-fat, until it stands on end, then drawn up from the face to the top of the head, where it is dressed in a high top-knot, in which are stuck perpendicularly silver pins, and occasionally flowers.

The aforesaid old Chinaman looked, as I have said, at my companion's face, took a minute survey of her dress, which he appeared to admire. This I

E

can readily conceive, as, being the winter season, it consisted of what the Chinese value highly-namely, a velvet pelisse and sable fur. In China, this fur is exceedingly prized, and is only worn by mandarins of the first class. But to proceed with the old man. He next partially stooped to gain a view of her feet, which, when he did obtain, the marked feelings of surprise, mingled with disgust, which were depicted in his countenance, was most ludicrous, and I could hardly refrain from laughing aloud; for I naturally concluded that my old friend could not reconcile in his mind what he might consider costly dress and lady-like demeanour with uncrippled feet, as none but those of the lowest ranks in China have their feet the natural size.

A few doors further on, a Chinawoman, of apparently the same class, appeared at the door with her attendants, evidently drawn there to gaze upon the strange being of her own sex, who had appeared amongst them, and beckoning with her hand, she endeavoured to induce my companion to enter. Female curiosity, and a laudable desire to see the domestic arrangements within, might possibly have induced an English lady to pay the visit ; but this I would not consent to, knowing full well that I should not be allowed to accompany her, and having the fate of a fair countrywoman of ours too vividly impressed upon my

memory.

This lady had a great desire to inspect the interior economy of a begum's residence in India. After some difficulty, she succeeded in causing herself to be invited, and fully resolved upon a personal and minute inspection of all their wardrobes. She went, in a high state of feminine excitement, at the appointed hour, and was received with great state and marked kindness by the begum, who introduced her visitor to the various members of her household. Upon entering the ladies' apartments, the visitor, to her horror, too late discovered that female curiosity was as strongly implanted in the breasts of the begum's ladies as in her own, and with the advantage of numbers on their side. In short, the inspection was their's, and not her's-for they literally undressed her, and not even contented with this victory, they pinched her skin, to ascertain if the white were natural. The visitor was

at length too happy to make her escape, with her toilette not so carefully or becomingly arranged as at her en

trance.

Walking further through the town, we came to a theatre, on the walls of which were described, in large characters and pictures of glowing colours, the performances. These consisted of dramatic representations, feats of horsemanship, and fireworks. Near to this was the Joss house, or place of worship. We saw here what is to be seen in all of them-high lanterns, a huge, big-bellied Joss, bedaubed with gaudy colours and tinsel; near to him his wife and child equally gaudy. Before these were placed offerings and lighted joss-sticks. A short distance off was Qui (their devil) a large grotesque, black monster, partially of human form, with open mouth, wings from his shoulders, long talons on his hands, and cloven feet. Before him were to be found the same offerings as before Joss; indeed, the Chinese appear to worship Qui more than Joss, as they say if you do not worship him he will injure you.

Having walked through the town, we found, situate on its outskirts, gardens, which supply the market of Victoria with fruit and vegetables. In each of these enclosed gardens is to be found a large earthen pot, uncovered, in which is accumulated all descriptions of filth, which, though very proper for manure, sends forth anything but an agreeable perfume.

Although our party attracted universal attention, men, women, and children issuing forth as we passed along, we were not molested or crowded upon unpleasantly; and although we stopped to purchase some curiosities essentially Chinese, during the whole time we did not hear the expression of "Fan-Qui" once used. This we considered was partly owing to our being dressed as English gentlemen, since the negligé dress adopted by the English in China is not calculated to produce respect from a nation attaching such importance to externals. We remarked every description of shop here with the exception of an opium shop, which is not uncommon in Hong-Kong. Thanking the mandarin, and remunerating his attendants, we returned home, highly pleased with our trip. We shall resume our narrative next month.

THE natural history of man, and the study of the earth's crust, have excited more than a purely scientific interest; their intimate connexion with questions relating to the origin and antiquity of our race, has given them importance with many who otherwise would have bestowed no attention on such investigations. With the ancients, destitute of positive revelation, and with scarcely any deep conviction of the moral importance and destinies of the human family, questions respecting the origin of mankind called forth but little curiosity, and were very summarily decided. The opinion that the world was eternal, was extended to the various races of its inhabitants, or, on the contrary, animals originated spontaneously from mud and slime acted on by the sun's rays, was very general, and was admirably adapted to blunt the edge of curiosity. When such notions prevailed, the varieties of the human race were easily accounted for the blue-eyed, flaxen-haired, and white-skinned German differed from the woolley-headed Negro because they were autochthones, that is, sprung from the soil of their respective countries. The social system of the Greeks and Romans contained no element that could stimulate inquiry respecting the origin or history of mankind. Believing themselves superior to all others, they looked upon the barbarians, as they called them, much in the same manner as the people of the United States do on the Cherokees or the Negroes. In countries where slavery prevails-that is, where the social edifice is based on oppression-but little attention is paid to the migrations of nations, or the scientific study of their dialects. In this point of view, it is interesting to compare the narrations of modern travellers with the ancient historians. The travels of Humboldt, the writings of Foster, who accompa

nied Captain Cook, afford such stores of precise knowledge respecting the various tribes they visited, as contrast strongly with the carelessness and contradictions which we find in Tacitus, Strabo, or Ammianus Marcellinus. We could scarcely find out what was the complexion of the ancient Egyptians from the united testimonies of the Greek and Roman writers, so indifferent were they respecting such inquiries. It was not until such investigations obtained a moral interest that they were cultivated with zeal and attention; and if we have too often occasion to complain of the bigotry with which scientific investigations have been treated, we must, in justice, remember the important considerations which gave an impulse to pursuits which would otherwise have been neglected. The intolerance which sometimes impeded the progress of geology has also been the means of increasing the number of students. The study of philology might still have been confined to the niceties of the Greek and Latin languages, had not the translating of the Scriptures into the vernacular languages of Europe required the study of the Semitic dialects, and taught scholars that there were other laws of speech than those displayed by the Indo-European tongues.

We

It is only from a very recent period that the natural history of man has been cultivated with any degree of success, and the reason is abundantly obvious the instruments of investigation required to be created. could not point out the essential conditions of the physical structure of man, until the science of comparative anatomy had been constituted; we could not prove the Oriental origin of the Celtic race, before we had obtained a knowledge of the other Indo-European languages; and the common origin of the native tribes of America

is only proved by philological investigations respecting their dialects. It is, in fact, owing to the very complicated nature of the investigation, that so many very absurd opinions have been set forth respecting the natural history of our race: few can combine an adequate knowledge of all the preliminary branches of inquiry, and hence one-sided and erroneous views were almost inevitable. The bones of other animals were mistaken for those of man; and hence stories of pigmies and giants. These who knew nothing of the differential anatomy of the man and the ape, believed that the lower was gradually transmuted into the higher animal. Even Linnæus could find no distinction between man and the ourang, and places them in the same genus, as homo sapiens and homo troglodytes, besides enumerating various races of wild men, among whom a countryman of our own, the homo ferus ovinus Hibernus, takes his appropriate place. M. Bory St. Vincent instead of one admits no less than twenty-seven species of man, displayed in all the arid and formal language in which naturalists describe the various kinds of mosses or insects.

Lord

Kames is profound respecting the original savage state of man, of which he knew nothing; and yet from his investigations arrived at the conclusion that the forgeries of Macpherson are the genuine compositions of Ossian.

If inadequate knowledge and premature speculations have thus produced a fruitful progeny of errors, other mistakes have originated from a want of analysis-the different and distinct questions have not been separated, nor has their bearings been seen with sufficient clearness. We will, therefore, offer a few remarks, on a subject concerning which much misconception prevails. The rather af fected term, Unity of the Human Race, introduced into the science by Blumenbach, is one of those vague phrases to which no very definite idea can be attached. It may mean that man is a species distinct from all other animals, or, that all the individuals of the human race belong to a single species. It is obvious that, frequently as these statements are confounded, it is most important to keep them separate-they demand different modes of proof, and one of them carries us much further in

That

our inferences than the other. the human race belong to differeut species from any other group of individuals in the animal kingdom, is a fact which no one denies; but it is certain that the physical structure of man presents something far more important than what naturalists call a specific difference. Man does not differ in structure from the ourang, merely in the same sense as the horse does from the zebra, or the buffalo from the oxhe belongs not only to a distinct species, but to a distinct genus. Thus the difference is even greater than between two genera-man differs from the ourang in the same sense as the ape tribe differs from the group of carnivorous animals. This enormous difference in structure between man and the ourang, although admirably illustrated by D'Aubenton, nearly a century ago, is strangely overlooked by such speculators as believe, with La Marck, that one species can be transmuted into another. The refutation of those doctrines, retailed at second-hand by the compiler of the "Vestiges of Creation," might very safely be decided by even a cursory study of the human skeleton, as contrasted with that of the ourang or Chimpansee. These remarkable anatomical peculiarities of the human race involve not merely physical, but intellectual and moral consequences. The long and helpless infancy involves education, and this, in its turn, the family relations and sympathies; and the physical peculiarities of the hand, and erect walking, would be unable to preserve the race from speedy extinction, unless they were combined with intellect, and some degree of free agency and accountability-essential conditions of the social state.

If it is one of the best-established, and self-evident truths in science, that man, even when physically considered, is thus separated, by an impassable hiatus, from the most elaborately-constructed of the lower animals. other very important question remains

An

Is there more than one species of the human genus? Does the Mongol, the Negro, and the European, belong to as many distinct species, created at different times and places, or are all the endless varieties of form, colour, and temperament, merely the results of physical causes, modifying one ori