Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 5.djvu/47

Rh CANTON, or more correctly undefined, is a large and populous of, in the  of undefined, situated on the eastern bank of the, which at Canton is somewhat broader than the  at , and is  300 s farther into the interior. The has an additional course of 80 s to the, the first part of which lies through a rich. Beyond this rises a range of s terminating in abrupt s along the course of the river. The bold shore thus formed compresses the stream at this point into a narrow pass, to which the have given the name of Hu-mun, or 's. This the translated into Boca Tigre, whence the designation of &ldquo;the Boque,&quot; by which it is commonly known among. When viewed from the s on the north, Canton appears to be little more than an expanse of reddish s relieved by a few large s,—two s shooting up within the s, and a five-storied near the northern, being the most conspicuous objects. These s rise 1200 above the river. Little or no is seen on them; and their acclivities, covered for s with s and s, serve as the  of this vast city. Three or four s are built on the points nearest the northern s. Facing the city on the opposite side of the river is the and  of Honan. The part of Canton enclosed by s is about six s in, and has a partition , running east and west, and dividing the into two unequal parts. The northern and larger division is called the old, and the southern the new. Including the s, the has a circuit of nearly ten s. The s stretch along  for four s, and the banks are almost entirely concealed by s and s. The s of the  are of, on a  of  and , are 20  thick, and rise to an average height of 25. On the north side the rises to include a  which it there meets with, and on the other three sides the  is surrounded by a, which is filled by the rising , when, for a time, the revolting mass of filth that lies in its bed is concealed from view. There are twelve outer s—four of which are in the partition, and two water s, through which s pass from east to west across the new city. The s are all shut at, and in the time a guard is stationed at them to preserve order. The s, amounting in all to upwards of 600, are long, straight, and very narrow. They are mostly and are not as dirty as those of some of the  in ; in fact, considering the habits of  and the inattention of  to these matters, Canton may be said to be a well-governed and comparatively cleanly. The s are in general small, seldom consisting of more than two stories, the ground floor serving as a in which goods are exhibited for sale, and the rest of the, with the  behind, being used as a. Here are to be found the productions of every quarter of the ; and the s are in general extremely attentive and civil. The are remarkably expert men of, and are generally of the most assiduous habits.

The s and public buildings of Canton are numerous, but none of them present features worthy of special remark. There are two s near the west of the old city, and 124 s, s, s, and other edifices within the city. One of the s called the Kwangtah, or Plain, is a, which was erected by the  voyagers who were in the habit of visiting Canton about ten centuries ago. It rises in an angular tapering to the height of 160. The other is an octagonal of nine stories, 170  in height, and was first erected more than thirteen centuries ago. A  at Honan, opposite the foreign, and named in  Hai-chwang-sze, or the  of the  , is one of the largest in Canton. Its grounds, which cover about seven s, are surrounded by a, and are divided into s, s, and a , where are deposited the es of s, whose bodies are. There are about 175 s connected with this establishment. Besides the Hai-chwang-sze the most noteworthy s in and about the city are those of the Five Hundred Gods, and of Longevity, both in the western s; the City, and the  of the. The number of s and s in Canton is not exactly known, but they probably exceed 2000, nine-tenths of whom are s. The s are gloomy-looking edifices. The areas in front of them are usually occupied by hucksters,, and idlers, who are occasionally driven off to make room for the mat-sheds, in which the performances got up by the wealthy inhabitants are acted. The principal, where the sits enshrined, is lighted only in front, and the inner apartments are inhabited by a class of men almost as  as the s they serve. The residences of the high officers of are all within the s of the old city. The residence of the -general used to be in the south-west corner of the new city, but it was utterly destroyed by the in 1856. The site remained desolate until 1860, when it was taken possession of by the authorities, who have erected a   upon it. The residence of the commander-in-chief is in the old city, and is said to be one of the best s in Canton. There are four s in the city, all large edifices. For the space of four or five s opposite Canton s and s are ranged parallel to each other in such close order that it resembles a floating ; and these marine dwellings are occupied by numerous families, who reside almost constantly on the water. In the middle of lie the, some of them of from 600 to 1000 s , which  to the north and to the. The various s and s among the people and 