. Pictorial history of China and India; comprising a description of those countries and their inhabitants. ire. A tradition certainly existed, that at some remote period these islandshad been conquered by a Chinese warrior, who became the founder of theJapanese monarchy, and whose descendants still occupied the princes are not always very particular about making a good titleto the territories they covet, wherefore the emperor might have thought it asufficient reason for his assumption of superiority, that the first prince ofJapan was a subject of China. The Japanese, however, m
. Pictorial history of China and India; comprising a description of those countries and their inhabitants. ire. A tradition certainly existed, that at some remote period these islandshad been conquered by a Chinese warrior, who became the founder of theJapanese monarchy, and whose descendants still occupied the princes are not always very particular about making a good titleto the territories they covet, wherefore the emperor might have thought it asufficient reason for his assumption of superiority, that the first prince ofJapan was a subject of China. The Japanese, however, made a successfulresistance ; and by the help of a storm, which destroyed the greater part ofthe Tartar fleet, they were fortunate enough to preserve that independencewhich they have maintained to this very day. The Tartar conquest produced no alteration in the manners and customsof the native Chinese, which indeed, as before observed, appear not to havebeen aflected by any of the revolutions that have taken place in the country;all the national festivals being observed as in former times, and the same. -=c! PCE-i o Cm&3 o o (^-J .-J ;^ -si THE MOGUL DYNASTY. 75 laws remaining in force that have so direct and powerful an influence on thecharacter and social habits of the people of Ciiina. The garments worn by the mass of the population were at this time stillmade of silk, for although cotton was then cultivated for the purpose of beingmanufactured, it was not so plentiful as silk, consequently it was much moreexpensive, and only used by persons of high rank ; but the case is now en-tirely reversed, since at tiie present day the rich alone wear silk, while thepoor are universally clothed in cotton. One of the great festivals observed in China in the reign of Kublai Khan,was the birthday of that great prince, which uas a universal holyday, andcelebrated throughout the empire with all kinds of public rejoicings. Sacri-fices were made in the temples, the cities were illuminated, and
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Keywords: ., bookauthorsearsrob, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, bookyear1851
