Identifier: residencechinese00fort (find matches)
Title: A residence among the Chinese: inland, on the coast, and at sea. Being a narrative of scenes and adventures during a third visit to China, from 1853 to 1856
Year: 1857 (1850s)
Authors: Fortune, Robert, 1813-1880
Subjects: Travel
Publisher: London : J. Murray
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Internet Archive

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
raditions — Apicnic — Character of the people for sobriety — An evening stroll — The temple at night — Huge idols — Queen of Heaven and child — Superstitions of Chinese women. My chief object in coming to China at this timewas to procure a number of first-rate black-teamanufacturers, with large sujDplies of tea-seeds,plants, and implements, such as were used in thebest districts, for the Government plantations inthe north-west provinces of India. Leaving Tai-ping-Wang to fight his battles in the province ofKiang-su and elsewhere, I sailed for the town ofNingpo in the jDrovince of Chekiang, and on myarrival at that port started immediately for the teadistricts in the interior. I had engaged a smallcovered boat, such as is used on the canals in thispart of the country. It was divided into threecompartments : that in the stern was occupiedby the boatmen, who propelled the boat by apowerful scull, which worked on a small pivot;the centre was occupied by myself, and the fore-
Text Appearing After Image:
C;uAP. II. BOAT AND BOATMEN. 23 part by my servants. The length of time theseboatmen are able to work this scull is very extra-ordinary. It is customary with them to go oncontinually both day and night, from the com-mencement of a journey until its end. Whenworking in rivers, when it is calm, or when thewind is a-head, they have to anchor when the tideis against them, and in this way rest for six hoursat a time; but in canals, when the tide is not felt,they go on always both night and day. Andwhat is more wonderful still, the greater part ofthe work is done by one, and that one is often-times a mere boy. The boatman in each boat isgenerally the owner, and the boy is engaged byhim to assist in the working of the boat. Hencethe former is the master and the latter the mail;and as a matter of course the man has to do thegreater part of the work. But these boys are wellfed and kindly treated by their masters, and theyseem happy and contented with their lot in life.This continual working wi

Note About Images