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and near the navel of the male is a sack which contains the musk of our shops.

707. Religion and Government. The Tibetans are the followers of the Lama, the sovereign pontiff of Asiatic Tartary. This personage, who is called the priest of priests, is seen only in a secret apartment of his palace, sitting cross-legged on a cushion, adorned with gold and precious stones. The religion bears a great affinity to that of Hindoostan, which is idolatry. The principal idol is Mahamoonie, which seems to be the same as the Budha of Bengal, and the Fohi of China. The Tibetans hold the waters of the Ganges in great veneration, and loads of it are carried over mountains on men's shoulders.

This country is under the dominion of China, but the principal authority is exercised by the lama, or spiritual chief.

708. Population, Character and Manners. The population of Tibet is not ascertained, but the climate being cold, and the country mountainous, the inhabitants are supposed not to be numerous. In person they are said to resemble the Chinese and other Tartar races, and they are represented by travellers as mild and peaceable. When the lama dies, it is believed that his spirit passes into his successor, tho an infant. His body is preserved in a shrine, but the bodies of other priests are burnt. The bodies of common people are exposed to beasts and birds of prey, and an annual festival is held in honor of the dead. Marriages are preceded by a feast of three days; mutual consent is the only bond of union; but what is singular, females are indulged in a plurality of husbands.

709. General View of the Tibetans. The language of Tibet is said to be the same as that of the western provinces of China, but we have no correct information on the subject. The country contains few large towns. Lassa, the capital, is nearly in the center, on a spacious plain, with houses of stone. About 7 miles east of this city is the mountain of Putela, on which is the palace of the Lama. The monasteries, inhabited by gylongs or monks, are numerous, and many of them edifices of re

spectable architecture. The worship of the Tibetans is performed in chapels or temples, where great numbers assemble, and chant their service in recitative and chorus, accompanied with a band of music.

710. Trade and Manufactures. The Tibetans are said not to be an industrious people. The principal manufactures are that of shawls from goat's hair, and some woollen cloths. The exports of this country are chiefly gold dust, diamonds, pearls, coral, lamb skins, and musk, which are sent to China. To Bengal, through Nipal, are exported gold dust, tincal and musk. The same commodities and rock salt are sent to Nipal; and from Bengal, Tibet receives broadcloths, spices, trinkets, and some valuable stones; and from China it receives tea, which is a considerable article of consumption.

JAPAN.

711. Situation and Extent. The empire of Japan consists of several islands in the Pacific, not far from the coast of Asia, and eastward of China. It extends from the 30th to the 41st degree of north latitude, in the direction of north east and south west, and in length is little less than 1000 miles. The three principal islands are Nipon, Kusiu and Sikof. Nipon is 750 miles in length, and from 80 to 150 miles in bredth. The other islands on the south west are smaller. On the north is Jesso, a large island, sometimes considered as a part of the Japanese empire, but the inhabitants are savage,

712. General Description of Japan. Japan is much diversified with mountains, hills and plains, but being extremely populous, like China, every spot of earth is cultivated. The number of inhabitants is not known, but by comparing it with China, it must amount to 30 millions. The precious metals are found in great abun dance in Japan; and the climate being hot, the tropical fruits are produced in great perfection. The quadru peds are few, there being no sheep nor goats, the want of wool being supplied by silk and cotton. Few horses are sech, and fewer cattle, as the Japanese eat neither

their flesh nor milk, but fish, fowl and vegetables. The rivers are small, and the hills are covered with cultivated plants, The camphor and varnish trees, the vine, cedar, tea tree and bamboo grow wild in Japan, and are planted also for various uses.

713. Japanese. The Japanese are evidently of the same race as the Chinese and Tartars, but their language has become different. Their religion is polytheism; they worship in temples, where no idols are to be seen, tho they are said to keep small idols in boxes. Christianity was introduced in the 16th century by the Jesuits, but their pride and avarice, which made them aspire to the councils of the empire, occasioned them to be massacred or expelled. The government was formerly in the hands of pontiffs, or spiritual monarchs, but is now in the hands of the kubo, or secular monarch. The laws are represented by travellers as salutary, crimes and punishments few, and the police excellent.

714. Manners and Customs. The Japanese are a highly civilized people. The ceremony of marriage is performed at an altar, the bride lighting a torch, by which the bridegroom lights another. The wife is subject to the absolute control of the husband, by which domestic tranquility is insured. The bodies of distinguished persons are burnt after death, but those of common persons are buried, and periodical visits are made to the tombs, besides a festival in honor of the dead. Rice is the principal food; a liquor made of rice is the chief drink; wine and ardent spirits are unknown. The houses in Japan are of wood painted white, and no more than two stories high. The apartments are all separated by moveable partitions, which slide in grooves. The Japanese use neither chairs nor tables, but sit on mats, with their food in a wooden bowl. Their dress consists of trowsers, and a loose gown or robe, fastened by a girdle. The top of the head is shaved, and the hair of the sides tied over the top. Stockings are not used, and shoes are made of rice straw.

715. Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. The Japanese cultivate literature and the useful arts. They print in the same manner as the Chinese, and are excellent

artists in iron and copper, as also in silk and cotton. From this country we derive the name of japanned ware. Their principal edifices display great magnificence, and the imperial palace, like that in China, consists of a great number of buildings, occupying an immense space. The pillars and ceilings are of cedar, camphor, and other valuable woods, but the only furniture consists of white mats fringed with gold. The emperor, when he gives audience, is seated on a carpet.

The roads in Japan are kept in excellent repair. The principal trade is with China, consisting in the exchange of raw silk, sugar, drugs, copper, lackered ware, &c. The Dutch seem to have monopolized the trade of Europe to Japan.

. 716. Chief Towns. The capital of Japan is Jedo, situated on a bay, on the south east of Nipon. The inhabitants affirm this city to be 60 miles in circumfe.. rence; but the extent is certainly great, and its population doubtless equals that of the great cities of China. A fire in 1772 is said to have consumed the city for six leagues by three in extent. The harbor is shallow, the city is intersected by a river and canals, and many of the houses are magnificent. Miaco is the spiritual capital, 160 miles from Jedo, on a great plain. It is cele brated for its manufactures and commerce. Nogasaki is the port to which alone foreigners are permitted to resort, and this privilege is confined to the Dutch and Chinese.

TUNKIN.

717. Situation and Description. Tunkin, which is of ten written in the French manner, Tonquin, is situated at the south west of China, south of Yunnan, and north of Cochin China. The extent of this country is so little known to Europeans, that some authors say it is 1000 miles in length; others allow only 500 miles for its length and 400 for its bredth. The center of it is near the 20th degree of north latitude. The inhabitants in color and shape bear a general resemblance to other eastern Asiatics. The country produces the tropical fruits in abundance; rice is the principal food of the in

habitants, and the clothing, as in China, consists of silk and cotton. The houses are small and low, formed mostly of bamboo, and mud walls, covered with thatch, but a few of them with bricks. The country is full of villages, surrounded by trees. The capital is said to contain 20,000 houses.

718. Manners and Commerce. The Tunkinese are said to be dextrous and ingenious, and their manufac tures, especially of silk and lackered ware, are excellent. They are so addicted to gaming, that when they have lost all their property, they will stake their wives and children. They are courteous to strangers, but the great men are said to be haughty, and the poor thievish.They buy their wives, and the rich are indulged in lygamy. In times of scarcity, the men will barter their wives and children for rice. When a man dies, he is buried on his own ground, and if he was the master of a family, a feast is made. The religion is paganism→→ Their chief trade is with the Chinese, English and Dutch, and their principal commodities are gold, musk, silks, calicoes, drugs, earthen and lackered ware, and salt.

COCHIN CHINA.

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719. Situation and General Description. Cochin China, or Western China, lies south of Tunkin, between the Ocean on the east, and a chain of mountains on the west, which separate it from Camboja. The extent of this country is not exactly known, but it is said to have 700 miles of sea coast. Cochin China, as well as Tunkin and Camboja, was formerly a part of the Chinese empire, but these revolted in the 13th century, when the Monguls invaded China, and have since been governed by their own kings. The shore has numerous harbors, filled with junks, which are vessels of a particular structure, and considerable trade is carried on with China, Japan, and the neighboring isles.

720. Productions of the Country, Manners. Rice is the principal grain cultivated for food; yams, sweet po tatoes, melons, sugar, and all the tropical fruits are in abundance. The exports are chiefly gold in dust or bars, copper, silk, sugar, ebony, and bird's nests.

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