ether the affair in which
they had been engaged had been disastrous, and an unusual gloom was cast
over the ship's company. The frigate stood round the group of islands;
a complete archipelago, with numerous intricate passages between them.
Sometimes she brought up, and the boats were sent away, and strict
search was made for the piratical fleet; indeed no trouble or exertion
was spared, but all was without result. No tidings could be gained
either of the brig or the fleet of piratical junks. At length the
frigate entered the Chinese waters, and anchored off Canton.

One Chinese city is very much like another. They are surrounded by
castellated walls, some thirty feet in height, and coated with blue
brick, which gives them a very toyshop appearance. The wall is about
twenty feet at the base, diminishing by the inclination of the inner
surface to about twelve feet. The thin parapet is deeply embattled with
intermediate loopholes, but there are no regular embrasures for
artillery. The Chinese till lately have seldom used cannon, but have
usually stuck to the bow and arrow. At each gate there is a
semicircular enclosure, forming a double wall. Over the two gateways
are towers of several stories, in which the soldiers who guard them are
lodged. Also, at about sixty yards apart along the whole length of the
wall, are flanking towers projecting about thirty feet from the curtain.
Some of the cities have ditches before the walls. The interiors of
most Chinese cities are also very similar. The houses are very low, and
the streets, which are narrow, are paved with flag-stones, suited
however only for the passage of people on foot, or for sedan-chairs.
The road is often crossed by ornamental gateways, with square openings
in the centre, one on each side, not an arch. These have been erected
to the memory of distinguished individuals. Another feature in the
streets are the slabs of stone covered with inscriptions, about eight
feet high, and placed on the back of a tortoise carved out of the same
slab. The plan of the houses is very similar in all respects to that of
those discovered in Pompeii, with open courts and rooms opening out of
them. They have more lattice-work and paint, and the ornaments and
designs are of course very different. The shops are generally open to
the street, those of one description being placed together, as is very
much the custom in Russia, Portugal, and other European countries.
Suspende