Indian Antiquary Vol 31

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 27

JANUARY, 1902.) LETTERS FROM PORTUGUESE CAPTIVES IN CANTON.
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are obliged to supply all furniture of colored tables, chairs, beds, owers and other trifles for the houses of the mandarins. [f. 116] Those who have not lands are obliged each one to give certain persons; and, if he have no person, money; and, if he have no person or money, he in person has to serve and eat at his own cost and fee the person he serves. Besides these duties they are liable for the following.'
Throughout the whole country of China there are now rivers, now dry land. On the high roads froia stage to stage there are houses ready, with each one its mandarin clerk, where they have rice, meat, fish, fowls and every other sort of food and preparation of the kitchen; and boats with kitchens, tables, chairs and beds. They have also beasts ready, rowers for the service of the mandarins and every other person who travels by the rivers, that is, every mandarin or other person whom the king sends or the mandarins who in connection with their government carry letters; for whicb purpose they give them mach, - if they go by land, horses; if by sea, boats, beds, and every necessary.a1 Indeed” the persons are already farnished for these houses. The persons of the districts are obliged to give this for a certain time, now some, now others for this reason, they have nothing left that they do not spend ; and if anyone refuses he is immediately imprisoned and everything is sold, and he dies in prison. No one refuses what the mandarin demands, but with head to the ground and face on the earth listons to and regards the mandarin like another lightning-flush. Hence it is that the people oome to be poor; moreover for any cause whatever they are at once beaten and put in prison, and the least penalty is seven quintala of rice and two or three maces (P) * of silver to them, and of these they pay five hundred and a thousand taels,whence I verily believe that the fines that are exacted for the king from the persons that are imprisoned is a very large sum of silver, and I am certain that in the prisons of Cantão there are constantly as many as four thousand men imprisoned and many women. And every day they imprison many aud release fewer; and they die in the prisons of hunger like vermin.27 Hence the people come to have a hatred of the mandarins, and desire changes in order to obtain liberty.
st. 116v] The cities, towns and walled villages of the country of Chin.- All the walls are broad built on the surface of the ground: the walls have no foundations; they stand on the earth. The face of the outer part is of stone from the ground to half-way ap the wall; the rest of brick. Some are all of stone. I mean the outer face; inside they are of mod. At the gateWays they make great arches and great gates, and above the gates sentry-boxes of wood. From these mid-walls they remove the earth for the mud-walls. The villages and wallsso lie within walls and ditches. Those that I saw were all on the surface of the ground: they have no other fortresses. The cities, towns and villages that have walls open their gates at sunrise and shut them at sunset.31 They intrust the keys to the mandarin who has charge of them : at night he receives them, and in the morning every gate has & person who guards it with ten or
1 of. Guapar da Crus in Parohas, Pilg. III. p. 185; Mendons (Hsk, Soo. ed.), L. p. 108. 11 The orig. bus jabe, which may possibly be an error for ja ba. u Cl. Gaspar da Crux in Parohms, Pilg. III. p. 187 : Mendowa (Hak. Soo. ed.), I. p. 148.
* The orig. has como outro rela pando," the last word being apparently an error for relapado, an ancient form of relampago.
» The orig. has "dous trore me," which would mean "two, three and shall." As this is not intelligible I suggest that the"." is an interpolation, and that "mo" should be " ," for mache, matos, or mame. (Cf. Mondosa, Hak. Soo, od. I. p. 82; and Gaspar da Crus in Purchas, Pilg. III. pp. 175, 178.)
* The orig. has tates, an evident error for tacs.
Cf. Gal Pereira in Parobne, Pilg. III. p. 208; Guapar da Oras in Parohas, Pilg. III. p. 189. » Of. Gal Pereira in Parcbas, Pilg. III. p. 200; Gaspar da Crus in same, PP. 170, 173; Mendors (Hak. Soc. ed.), I. Pp. 24, 26; Mid. King. I. p. 728.
* If the orig. is correct, the only sense I can make of this is, that the earth was dag out to form ditebus and used for filling in the walls. (CJ. Gaspar da Crus in Parchas, Pilz. III. p. 171.)
0 The words ". muros" in the orig. may be an interpolation of the copyist's, # of. Guapar da Crus in Parohas, Pilg. III. p. 178; Mendoza (Hak Soo, ed.), I. p. 180.