Various - History of the Pirates Who Infested the China Sea From 1807 to 1810 стр 3.

By the kindness of Dr. Morrison, the translator had the pleasure to converse with a member of the Mahometan clergy at Canton. He stated, that in the Mosque at Canton is a tablet, whereon it is written, that the religion of the Prophet of Mecca was brought to China, Tang ching yuen san nëen, that is, in the third year of the period called Ching yuen, under the Tang dynasty, i. e. 787 of our era.9 The compilers of the Memoirs, &c. have taken their extract from the historical work of Ho (4051, M.); they seem not to have any knowledge of Matuanlin, where the Arabs are spoken of under the name of Ta she. See the notes to my translation of the Chronicle of Vahram, p. 76. During the time the translator was at Canton, there arrived a pilgrim from Pekin on his way to Mecca.

"The Fa lan se are also called Fo lang se, and now Fo lang ke. In the beginning they adopted the religion of Buddha, but afterwards they received the religion of the Lord of Heaven. They are assembled together and stay in Leu song (Spain?); they strive now very hard with the Hung maou or red-haired people (the Dutch), and the Ying keih le (English); but the Fa lan se have rather the worst of it. These foreigners, or barbarians (e jin) wear white caps and black woollen hats; they salute one another by taking off the hat. Regarding their garments and eating and drinking, they have the same customs as the people of Great Leu song and Small Leu song (Spain and Manilla)."

This extract is taken from the Hwang tsing chĭh kung too, or the Register of the Tribute as recorded under the present dynasty (Memoirs, l. c. p. 10 v., p. 11 r.). I am not sure if Ke tsew (10,869) keu (6,063) Leu song, can really be translated by the words they are assembled together and stay in Leu song. The use of tsew in the place of tseu (10,826) is confirmed by the authorities in Kang he; but does Leu song really mean Spain? The Philippinas are called Leu song (Luzon), from the island whereon Manilla is, and in opposition to Spain (Ta Leu song, the great L. s.), Seao Leu song, the small Leu song. It may be doubted whether Leu song without Ta, great, can be taken for Spain. The Chinese have moreover learned from Matthæus Ricci the proper name of Spain, and write it She pan ya. The Dutch, the English, and the Germans, are, from a reddish colour of their hair, called Hung maou. This peculiar colour of the hair found among people of German origin, is often spoken of by the ancient Roman authors; as for instance in Tacitus, Germania, c. 4. Juvenal says, Sat. XIII. v. 164,

It would carry us too far at present to translate the statements of the Chinese concerning the Portuguese and Dutch. Under the head of Se yang, or Portugal, may be read an extract of the account of Europe (Gow lo pa) the Chinese received by Paulus Matthæus Ricci (Le ma paou). The Chinese know that the European Universities are divided into four faculties; and his Excellency Yuen is aware of the great similarity between the ceremonies of the Buddhists and those of the Roman Catholic church (l. c. 17 v). The present Translator of the "History of the Pirates" intends to translate the whole of the 57th book of the often-quoted Memoirs, and to subjoin copious extracts of other works,[Pg xxviii] particularly from the Hae kwŏ hëen këen lăh, or "Memoirs concerning the Empires surrounded by the Ocean." This very interesting small work is divided into two books; one containing the text, and the other the maps. The text consists of eight chapters, including a description of the sea-coast of China, with a map, constructed on a large scale, of the nations to the east, the south-east, and the south; then follows a topography of Portugal and Europe generally. Concerning England we find:

"The kingdom of the Ying keih le is a dependent or tributary state10 to Ho lan (Holland). Their garments and manners in eating and drinking are the same. This kingdom is rather rich. The males use much cloth and like to drink wine. The females, before marriage, bind the waist, being desirous to look slender; their hair hangs in curls over the neck; they use a short garment and petticoats, but dress in a larger cloth when they go out. They take snuff out of boxes made from gold and threads."

This extract is taken from the "Register of the Tribute as recorded under the present dynasty."

"Ying keih le is a kingdom composed of three islands: it is in the middle of four kingdoms, called Lin yin:11 Hwang ke, the yellow flag (Denmark), Ho lan, and Fo lang se. The Great Western Ocean (Europe) worships the Lord of Heaven; and there are, firstly, She pan ya (Spain), Poo keăh ya (Portugal), the yellow flag, &c.; but there are too many kingdoms to nominate them one by one. Ying keih le is a kingdom which produces silver, woollen cloths,12 camlets, peih ke, or English cloth, called long ells,13 glass, and other things of this kind."

This extract is taken from the Hae kwŏ hëen këen lăh, book i. p. 34 v. 35 r; and I am sorry to see that in the "Memoirs" it is abbreviated in such a manner that the sense is materially changed.

"Ying keih le," says the author of the Hae kwo hëen këen lăh (l. c.), "is a realm composed out of three islands. To the west and the north of the four kingdoms of Lin yin, the Yellow flag, Holan, and Fo lang se, is the ocean. From Lin yin the ocean takes its direction to the east, and surrounds Go lo sse (Russia); and from Go lo sse, yet more to the east, Se me le (Siberia?). Through the northern sea you cannot sail; the sea is frozen, and does not thaw, and for this reason it is called the Frozen Ocean. From Lin yin, to the south, are the various empires of the Woo and Kwei (Crows and Demons), and they all belong to the red-haired people of the Great Western Ocean. On the west and on the north there are different barbarians under various names;

but they are, in one word, similar to the Go lo sse (Russians), who stay in the metropolis (Pekin). It is said that the Kaou chun peih mow (?) are similar to the inhabitants of the Middle Empire; they are of a vigorous body and an ingenious mind. All that they produce is fine and strong; their attention is directed to making fire-arms. They make researches in astronomy and geography, and generally they do not marry. Every kingdom has a particular language, and they greet one another by taking off the hat. They worship," &c. (The same as p. xxx.)