seas, all was peace and quietness both on the ocean and the sea-shore. The admiral gained repeated victories over the bandits;(3 r.) but as soon as Wang pëaou died, the pirates divided themselves into different squadrons, which sailed under various colours. There existed six large squadrons, under different flags, the red, the yellow, the green, the blue, the black, and the white. These wasps of the ocean were called after their different commanders, Ching yĭh, Woo che tsing, Meih yew kin, O po tai, Lëang paou, and Le shang tsing. To every one of these large squadrons belonged smaller ones, commanded by a deputy. Woo che tsing, whose nick-name was Tung hae pa, the Scourge of the Eastern Sea,30 was commander of the yellow flag, and Le tsung hoo his deputy. Meih yew kin and Nëaou shih, who for this reason was called Bird and stone, were the commanders of the blue flag, and their deputies Meih's brethren, Yew kwei and Yew këe. A certain Hae kang and another person Hwang ho, were employed as spies. O po tai, who afterwards changed his name to Lustre of instruction,31 was(3 v.) the commander of the black flag, and Ping yung ta, Chang jih këaou, and O tsew he, were his deputies. Lëang paou, nicknamed Tsung ping paou, The jewel of the whole crew, was the commander of the white flag. Le shang tsing, nicknamed The frog's meal, was the commander of the green; and Ching yĭh of the red flag. Every flag was appointed to cruise in a particular channel. There was at this time a gang of robbers in the province Fo këen, known by the name of Kwei këen (6760, 5822); they also joined the pirates, who became so numerous that it was impossible to master them. We must in particular mention a certain Chang paou, a notorious character in after-times. Under Chang paou were other smaller squadrons, commanded by Suh ke lan (nicknamed Both odour and mountain) Lëang po paou, Suh puh gow, and others. Chang paou himself belonged to the squadron of Ching yĭh saou, or the wife of Ching yĭh,32 so that the red flag alone was stronger than all the others united together.
(4 r.)
There are three water passages or channels along the sea-shore, south of the Mei ling mountains;33 one goes eastward to Hwy and Chaou34; the other westward to Kao, Lëen, Luy, Këung, Kin, Tan, Yae and Wan;35 and a third between these two, to Kwang and Chow.36 The ocean surrounds these passages, and here trading vessels from all the world meet together, wherefore this track is called "The great meeting from the east and the south." The piratical squadrons dividing between them the water passages and the adjoining coasts, robbed and carried away all that fell into their hands. Both the eastern and the middle passage have been retained by the three piratical squadrons, Ching yĭh saou, O po tae, and Leang paou; the western passage was under the three others, nicknamed Bird and stone, Frog's meal, and the Scourge of the(4 v.) eastern sea. Peace and quietness was not known by the inhabitants of the sea-coast for a period of ten years. On the side from Wei chow and Neaou chow37 farther on to the sea, the passage was totally cut off; scarcely any man came hither. In this direction is a small island, surrounded on all sides by high mountains, where in stormy weather a hundred vessels find a safe anchorage; here the pirates retired when they could not commit any robberies. This land contains fine paddy fields, and abounds in all kinds of animals, flowers, and fruits. This island was the lurking-place of the robbers, where they stayed and prepared all the stores for their shipping.
1807. (5 r.)
Chang paou was a native of Sin hwy, near the mouth of the river,38 and the son of a fisherman. Being fifteen years of age, he went with his father a fishing in the sea, and they were consequently taken prisoners by Ching yĭh, who roamed about the mouth of the river, ravaging and plundering. Ching yĭh saw Paou, and liked him so much, that he could not depart from him. Paou was indeed a clever fellow – he managed all business very well; being also a fine young man, he became a favourite of Ching yĭh,39 and was made a head-man or captain. It happened, that on the seventeenth day of the tenth moon, in the twentieth year of Këa king (about the end of 1807), Ching yĭh perished in a heavy gale, and his legitimate wife Shĭh placed the whole crew under the sway of Paou; but so that she herself should be considered the Commander of all the squadrons together, – for this reason the division Ching yĭh was then (5 v.) called Ching yĭh saou, or the wife of Ching yĭh.40 Being chief captain, Paou robbed and plundered incessantly, and daily increased his men and his vessels. He made the three following regulations: —
First:
If any man goes privately on shore, or what is called transgressing the bars, he shall be taken and his ears be perforated in the presence of the whole fleet; repeating the same act, he shall suffer death.
Second:
1807.
Not the least thing shall be taken privately from the stolen and plundered goods. All shall be registered, and the pirate receive for himself, out of[Pg 14] ten parts, only two; eight parts belong to the storehouse, called the general fund; taking any thing out of this general fund, without permission, shall be death.
Third:
(6 r.)
No person shall debauch at his pleasure captive women taken in the villages and open places, and brought on board a ship; he must first request the ship's purser for permission, and then go aside in the ship's hold. To use violence against any woman, or to wed her without permission, shall be punished with death. 41
1807.
That the pirates might never feel want of provisions, Chang paou gained the country people to their interest. It was ordered, that wine, rice, and all other goods, should be paid for to the villagers; it was made capital punishment to take any thing of this kind by force or without paying for it. For this reason the pirates were never in want of gunpowder, provisions, and all other necessaries. By this strong discipline the whole crew of the fleet was kept in order.
The wife of Ching yĭh was very strict in every transaction; nothing could be done without a written application. Anything which had been taken, or plundered, was regularly entered on the register of the storehouse. The pirates received out of this common fund what they were in need of, and nobody dared to have private(6 v.) possessions. If on a piratical expedition any man left the line of battle, whether by advancing or receding, every pirate might accuse him at a general meeting, and on being found guilty, he was beheaded. Knowing how watchful Chang paou was on every side, the pirates took great care to behave themselves well.
The pirates used to call the purser, or secretary of the storehouse, Ink and writing master; and they called their piratical plunder only a transhipping of goods.
1807.
There was a temple in Hwy chow dedicated to the spirits of the three mothers,42 near the sea-coast, and many came thither to worship. The pirates visited this place whenever they passed it with their vessels, pretending to worship; but this was not the case – they thought of mischief, and had only their business to attend. Once they came with the commander at their head, as if to worship, but they laid hold on the image or statue to take it away. They tried in vain from morning to the evening, – they were
People living in the same state of society, have usually the same customs and manners. It is said of the celebrated
He called himself Hëo hëen (3728, 3676,) after having received a recompense from government for his robberies. See p. 75.
Our author anticipates here a little; this will be clear by a subsequent paragraph, p. 13.
The Chinese possess itineraries and directories for the whole empire, for every province, and for every large town or place; I shall therefore always extract the notices which are to be found in the
The subject concerning the population of China, and the amount of the
With the aid of the Chinese Itineraries and the new edition of the
I found no particulars concerning these two small
The town
The word
The pirates probably made use of the term
It will be very interesting to compare the regulations of Paou with those of the Buccaneers. When these pirates had got a considerable booty, each person, holding up his hand, solemnly protested that he had secreted nothing of what he had taken. – Voyage, l. c. p. 95.
The
