The Town Of Chusan, Of Which The Houses Are Very Mean, Is
About Three Quarters Of A Mile Farther From
The shore, and is surrounded
by a fine stone wall, flanked at irregular distances by twenty-two
square bastions or
Towers; and has four great gates, on which a few old
iron guns are planted, seldom or never used. The chumpeen, or governor
of the island, resides here, and the town contains about three or four
thousand beggarly inhabitants, mostly soldiers and fishers; for, as the
trade of this island has only been granted of late, it has not hitherto
attracted any considerable merchants.
This island abounds in all sorts of provisions, as cows, buffaloes,
deer, hogs, both wild and tame, geese, ducks, poultry, rice, wheat,
calavanccs, cole-worts, turnips, carrots, potatoes, beets, spinach, and
so forth. It has, however, no merchandise, except what comes from
Ning-po, Stan-chew,[326] Nankin, and other inland towns and cities. Some
of these I hope to see, when I have acquired a little of the Chinese
language. Tea grows here in great plenty on the tops of the hills, but
is not so much esteemed as that which grows on more mountainous islands.
Although tolerably populous, this island is far from being what it was
in the time of Father Martini, who describes it under the name of
Cheu-xan. The superstitious pilgrimages mentioned by him, must refer
to the island of Pou-to,[327] which is nine leagues from this place, and
to another island three miles to the eastwards, to which the emperor
proposes coming to worship at a pagoda greatly renowned for its
sanctity, in the ensuing month of May, being his birth-day, and the
fortieth year of his age. One of his bonzes is already come there, to
get all things in order.
[Footnote 326: Probably Hang-tcheon, a city about forty miles W. from
Ning-po. - E.]
[Footnote 327: Pou-teou, is directly E. from the eastern end of
Tcheou-chan. - E.]
Sec.2. Ancient and modern State of the Country, and of the coming of the
English to reside there.[328]
In my former letter, I informed you that the emperor designed to have
come to worship at Pou-to in May last, being the fortieth year of his
age, but I ought to have said of his reign. After every thing was
prepared for his reception, he was dissuaded from his purpose by some of
his mandarins, who made him believe that the thunder at that place was
very dangerous. This Pou-to is a small island, only about five leagues
round, and at the east end of Chusan. It has been famous for the space
of eleven hundred years, for the superstitious pilgrimages made to it,
and is only inhabited by bonzes to the number of three thousand, all of
the sect of Heshang, or unmarried bonzes, who live a Pythagorean life.
They have built four hundred pagodas, two of which are considerable for
their size and splendour, and were lately covered with green and yellow
tiles, brought from the emperor's palace at Nankin. They are adorned
within by stately idols, finely carved and gilded, the chief of these
being an idol named Quonem. To-these two pagodas there are two chief
priests, who govern all the rest. They have many walks and avenues cut
in different directions through the island, some of which are paved with
flag-stones, and overshaded by trees planted on both sides. The
dwellings of the bonzes are the best I have seen in these parts, all of
which are maintained by charitable donations. All the Chinese junks
which sail from Ning-po and Chusan touch at Pou-to, both outwards and
homewards-bound, making offerings for the safety of their voyages. There
is another island named Kim-Tong,[329] five leagues from hence, on the
way towards Ning-po, where a great many mandarins are said to live in
retirement, after having given up their employments. On that island
there are said to be silver mines, but prohibited from being opened. The
rest of the circumjacent islands are either desert, or very meanly
inhabited, but all of them abound in deer.
[Footnote 328: The sequel of these observations is said by Harris to
have been taken from another letter to the same correspondent with the
former, and dated in November, 1701; but, from circumstances in the
text, it would appear to have been written in 1702. - E.]
[Footnote 329: Probably that named Silver-island in modern maps. - E.]
It is not long since this island of Chusan began to be inhabited. Yet in
the days of Father Martini, about fifty years ago, it was very populous
for three or four years; at which time, in the fury of the Tartar
conquest, it was laid entirely desolate, not even sparing the mulberry
trees, which were then numerous, as they made a great deal of raw silk
here. It continued in this desolate condition till about eighteen years
ago, when the walls of the present town were built by the governor of
Ting-hai, as a strong-hold for a garrison, in order to expel some
pirates who had taken shelter on the island. As the island began to grow
populous, a chumpeen was sent to govern it for three years, to whom
the late chumpeen succeeded, who continued till last April, and procured
licence to open this port to strangers. On the last chumpeen being
promoted to the government of Tien-ching-wei[330] near Pekin, he was
succeeded by the present governor, who is son to the old chumpeen of
Emoy. They have no arts or manufactures in this island, except lacquered
ware; the particulars of which I cannot as yet send you. They have begun
to plant mulberry-trees, in order to breed up silk-worms for the
production of raw silk; and they gather and cure some tea, but chiefly
for their own use.
[Footnote 330:
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