Canton, China

Having filled our water, cut our wood, and got our ship in a sailing posture while the blustering hard winds lasted, we took the first opportunity of a settled gale to sail towards Manila.

On June 4, 1687, we left Pulo Condore with the wind at south-west fair weather at a brisk gale.

The pepper-junk bound to Thailand remained there, waiting for an easterly wind. But one of his men, a kind of a bastard Portuguese, came aboard our ship and was entertained for his knowledge in the several languages of these countries.

The wind continued in the south-west but 24 hours or a little more, and then came about to the north, and then to the north-east.

The sky became exceeding clear. Then the wind came at east and lasted betwixt east and south-east for eight or ten days. Yet we continued plying to windward, expecting every day a shift of wind because these winds were not according to the season of the year.

We were now afraid lest the currents might deceive us and carry us on the shoals of Pracel, which were near us a little to the north-west, but we passed on to the eastward without seeing any sign of them; yet we were kept much to the northward of our intended course.

Pratas Island

The easterly winds still continuing, we despaired of getting to Manila.

So we changed course to visit the island Pratas about the latitude of 20 degrees 40 minutes north.

It is a small low island with rocks around. It lies between Manila and Canton, the head of a province, and a town of great trade in China.

The Chinesedread its rocks more than the Spaniards dreaded Bermuda for many of their junks coming from Manila have been lost there.

But the danger of the place did not daunt us.

We were resolved to try our fortunes there if the winds would permit. We did beat for it 5 or 6 days. But at last were forced to leave that design also for want of winds; for the south-east winds continuing forced us on the coast of China.

Isle Of St. John, On The Coast Of The Province Of Canton; Its Soil And Productions, China Hogs, Etc.

We landed on June 25.

This island is in latitude about 22 degrees 30 minutes north, lying on the south coast of the province of Quantung or Canton in China.

It is of an indifferent height and pretty plain, and the soil fertile enough. It is partly woody, partly savannahs or pasturage for cattle; and there is some moist arable land for rice.

The skirts or outer part of the island, especially that part of it which borders on the main sea, is woody: the middle part of it is good thick grassy pasture, with some groves of trees; and that which is cultivated land is low wet land, yielding plentiful crops of rice; the only grain that I did see here.

The tame cattle which this island affords are china-hogs, goats, buffaloes, and some bullocks. The hogs of this island are all black; they have but small heads, very short necks, great bellies, commonly touching the ground, and short legs.

They eat but little food yet they are most of them very fat; probably because they sleep much. The tame fowls are ducks and cocks and hens. I saw no wild fowl but a few small birds.

The Inhabitants And The Tartars Forcing The Chinese To Cut Off Their Hair

The natives of this island are Chinese.

They are subject to the crown of China, and consequently at this time to the tartars.

The Chinese in general are tall, straight-bodied, raw-boned men. They are long-visaged, and their foreheads are high; but they have little eyes.

Their noses are pretty large with a rising in the middle. Their mouths are of a mean size, pretty thin lips.

They are of an ashy complexion; their hair is black, and their beards thin and long, for they pluck the hair out by the roots, suffering only some few very long straggling hairs to grow about their chin, in which they take great pride, often combing them and sometimes tying them up in a knot, and they have such hairs too growing down from each side of their upper lip like whiskers.

The ancient Chinese were very proud of the hair of their heads, letting it grow very long and stroking it back with their hands curiously, and then winding the plaits all together round a bodkin thrust through it at the hinder part of the head; and both men and women did thus.

But when the Tartars conquered them they broke them of this custom they were so fond of by main force; insomuch that they resented this imposition worse than their subjection and rebelled upon it but, being still worsted, were forced to acquiesce; and to this day they follow the fashion of their masters the tartars, and shave all their heads, only reserving one lock, which some tie up, others let it hang down a great or small length as they please.

The Chinese in other countries still keep their old custom, but if any of the Chinese is found wearing long hair in China he forfeits his head; and many of them have abandoned their country to preserve their liberty of wearing their hair, as I have been told by themselves.

The Chinese have no hats, caps, or turbans; but when they walk abroad they carry a small umbrella in their hands wherewith they fence their head from the sun or the rain by holding it over their heads.

If they walk but a little way they carry only a large fan made of paper, or silk, of the same fashion as those our ladies have, and many of them are brought over hither; one of these every man carried in his hand if he do but cross the street, screening his head with it if he has not an umbrella with him.

The common apparel of the men is a loose frock and breeches. They seldom wear stockings but they have shoes, or a sort of slippers rather.

The men’s shoes are made diversely. The women have very small feet and consequently but little shoes; for from their infancy their feet are kept swathed up with bands as hard as they can possibly endure them; and from the time they can go till they have done growing they bind them up every night.

This they do purposely to hinder them from growing, esteeming little feet to be a great beauty. But by this unreasonable custom they do in a manner lose the use of their feet, and instead of going they only stumble about their houses, and presently squat down on their breeches again, being as it were confined to sitting all days of their lives.

They seldom stir abroad and one would be apt to think that, as some have conjectured, their keeping up their fondness for this fashion were a stratagem of the men to keep them from gadding and gossiping about and confine them at home.

They are kept constantly to their work, being fine needlewomen, and making many curious embroideries, and they make their own shoes; but if any stranger be desirous to bring away any for novelty’s sake he must be a great favourite to get a pair of shoes of them, though he give twice their value.

The poorer women trudge about streets and to the market without shoes or stockings. These cannot afford to have little feet, being to get their living with them.

The Chinese both men and women are very ingenious as may appear by the many curious things that are brought from thence, especially the porcelain or China earthenware.

The Spaniards of Manila that we took on the coast of Luzon told me that this commodity is made of conch-shells, the inside of which looks like mother-of-pearl.

But the Portuguese lately mentioned, who had lived in China and spoke that and the neighbouring languages very well, said that it was made of a fine sort of clay that was dug in the province of Canton. I have often made enquiry about it but could never be well satisfied in it: but while I was on the coast of Canton I forgot to enquire about it. They make very fine lacquer-ware also, and good silks; and they are curious at painting and carving.

China affords drugs in great abundance, especially China-root. But this is not peculiar to that country alone; for there is much of this root growing at Jamaica, particularly at 16-mile walk, and in the Bay of Honduras it is very plentiful. There is a great store of sugar made in this country; and tea in abundance is brought from thence; being much used there, and in Tonquin and Cochin-china as common drinking; women sitting in the streets and selling dishes of tea hot and ready made; they call it chau and even the poorest people sip it.

But the tea at Tonquin of Cochin-china seems not so good, or of so pleasant a bitter, or of so fine a colour, or such virtue as this in China.

I have drunk of it in these countries; unless the fault be in the way of making it, for I made none there myself; and by the high red colour it looks as if they made a decoction of it or kept it stale. Yet at Japan I was told there is a great deal of pure tea, very good.

The Chinese are very great gamesters and they will never be tired with it, playing night and day till they have lost all their estates; then it is usual with them to hang themselves.

This was frequently done by the Chinese factors at Manila, as I was told by Spaniards that lived there. The Spaniards themselves are much addicted to gaming and are very expert at it; but the Chinese are too subtle for them, being in general a very cunning people.