Maggs Bros.

“The materials contained in this small volume, were at first intended to be attached to the Chinese Dictionary, printing by order of the Honorable the East India Company, and to be bound up with it. However, as subjects of frequent reference, they will probably be more convenient, printed in the present form, and bound up by themselves.” (Preface). This is an interesting and wide-ranging overview of China, that often says as much about the author as it does about the country. The section on geography gives an “outline of the Empire of the Man-chow family”, new dependant nations, and tribute-states; the chapter on the government states the names of institutions, officers, and ranks; and in the final chapter headed ‘Conclusion’ he ends with the following question: “Love to one’s own country is perfectly compatible with benevolent feelings to all mankind; and the prosperity of this nation, with the prosperity of that. It seems quite a mistake to think that attachment to one’s own People is manifested by a violent dislike of others. - Will the day ever come when the various Tribes of men shall live together like Brothers?” (p. 125).

Morrison joined the London Missionary Society in 1804 eventually arriving in Canton (Guangzhou) in 1807 where he was appointed translator to the East India Company. His efforts in bringing a genuinely new perspective on China, and one that was not driven by commercial instincts, cannot be overstated. The work was printed by Peter P. Thoms (1791-1855) at the East India Company Press in Macao, at a time when a Portuguese ban on printing in their eastern territories was still in force. In Macao it was only lifted in 1820 (possibly due to the fact that the British had ignored the ban??). Cordier, Sinica 65; Löwendahl, China illustrata nova 793; Lust 126. Lust 126; Löwendahl 793.