and villages, to collect waste paper from dwelling-houses and shops, lest fragments bearing Chinese characters should be trodden under foot. Each man is provided with two baskets, and at his cry," Sow-suee-chu," or "spare the printed paper," the people rush to the doors and empty their waste-paper baskets into his. When his baskets are full, he takes them to a temple or guild provided with a furnace for the purpose of consuming such collections. In many instances, the ashes of this paper are put into earthenware vases, and flung into a tidal stream that they may be borne out to sea.

Besides the classics which I have mentioned, the Chinese have, of course, a numerous array of historical, political, and philosophical works, and of novels, and romances, and miscellaneous writings. But though they have been a literary nation. from a period long anterior to the Christian era, they have no public libraries, unless this name can be given to libraries1 reserved for the especial use of government officials. Although there are no public libraries for the use of the people, they cannot complain of the want of public lecturers. In many of the towns and cities there are men known as Kong-Koo, who take up their quarters in the halls of temples, and deliver lectures on the ancient history of China, and the writings of the sages. Each auditor pays a small sum of money to the lecturer, and a Chinese attending a course of these lectures, acquires a pretty fair knowledge of the history of his country. As the honorarium which the lecturer receives is very small, he seeks to add to his gains by driving a trade in fruit and cigars; and the table at which he is seated is covered with them. It is not unusual to see a person advance when the lecturer is discoursing, and remove an orange or a cigar, having first laid the price of it on the table.

There is no important country in the world in which the liberty of the press is so little recognized as in China. The ignorance in which the people are kept with regard to passing

The libraries of private gentlemen, it may be mentioned, are on a much smaller scale in China than in our own country. The famous Emperor Kien-lung Wong left a library of 168,000 volumes, but this appears small in comparison with European imperial libraries.

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THE PRESS.

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events, whether of a trifling or a serious character, is surprising. Until quite recently there was nothing in the shape of a Chinese newspaper throughout the length and breadth of the land, except the Peking Gazette,-now published daily—which is the official organ of a corrupt government. It is, I suppose, the oldest newspaper in the world, and is said to have been in existence long before printing was invented in Europe; and it is a singular proof of the stationary character of the Chinese, that it should so long have continued the sole newspaper of the empire. The intelligence which it contains, is generally of a meagre nature, and has reference to governmental details. Little reliance can be placed on the veracity of its communications, and, notably, serious defeats sustained by the Imperial troops are turned on its pages into glorious victories. A copy of the Gazette is forwarded to each provincial capital, and republished there under the strict surveillance of the local government. Should the publisher in his re-issue add or take away from the original, he is liable to a punishment of one hundred blows, and to a banishment of three years. In each provincial capital a court circular is published daily, containing the names of the visitors, official and non-official, who have called at the Viceroy's palace on the preceding day. It also announces the birthdays of the members of the Imperial family, and of the local officials of high rank.

The people derive a great deal of their information as to recent events from newsletters. These are sold in the streets. They abound so much in the marvellous as to be altogether unworthy of credit, and the barefaced mendacity with which they recorded the overthrow of the British and French troops by the Imperial forces has probably never been surpassed. The following is an extract from one of the newsletters sold in Canton during the late war :

"Hearing that Prince Tseng had fallen back to Tung Chow, the English and French divided their forces. The majority advanced to Tung Chow, and the English ordered a thousand cavalry to commence action. Prince Tseng also ordered his Tartar cavalry to give battle, and seven hundred English cavalry were killed by the discharge of gingalls. The infantry then advanced, and shooting and slaying commenced on both sides,

while the roar of cannon continued without intermission throughout the day. The fight lasted from seven in the morning until three or four in the afternoon, when the English and French were thoroughly routed-out of every ten men, eight or nine were killed. Therefore the officer Parkes, and the officers who were taken in company with him by Prince Tseng were all put to death at Tung. Chow, while of the defeated troops who returned to Takoo, there remained scarcely five thousand.

"On the occasion when the English and French advanced to attack Tung Chow, their design was to insult Pekin. Afterwards when Prince Tseng saw that the turbulent barbarians after their defeat dare not attempt to come up to Tung Chow to fight, though still intending to attack Pekin, he sent a despatch to the emperor to the effect that he had heard the turbulent barbarians intended to take Pekin, and that they ought to be allowed to enter the city, when they could all be hemmed in and taken alive: so the gates of the city ought not to be closed. Therefore, accordingly, the four gates of Pekin were opened wide; neither the dogs, nor the chickens were alarmed. Then upwards of twenty thousand English and French, having left the Takoo Forts, advanced straight to Pekin, and marched seven or eight days, without meeting hindrance from anyone, until they arrived at Yuen-ming-yuen, which is 100 lee from Pekin. This palace is of vast extent, and contains wonderful flowers, and strange fruits, besides curiosities in number beyond the power of computation. It is, indeed, the greatest palace in all the eighteen provinces of the Central Flowery Empire. The English troops entered the Palace and lived there for some days; and the general of the land forces with five hundred officers came to look at Pekin, to find out the true state of affairs. They saw all the walls armed with swords and guns and warlike weapons in thorough readiness-very unlike the city of Canton! Moreover, they saw the Tartar soldiers with arched eye-brows and glaring eyes, bracing their muscles and grinding their teeth, rubbing their fists and smoothing their palms, burning to spring down from the walls to seize their enemies. Yet as Prince Tseng had not given the word of command, they did not break their ranks. "The English soldiers, seeing this, returned to Yuen-mingyuen, and then Prince Tseng hearing that the turbulent barbarians had entered the palace was greatly rejoiced; and issued orders to the garrison of Pekin to attack the English and French, and to kill them all, not leaving so much as a single shred. The Tartar troops on receiving this order were greatly delighted, one and all; and one hundred thousand men rushed forward to the fight. They beleaguered the palace, and slew for a day and a night.