LX 

  1. So the Jesuits brought in astronomy

  2. (Galileo’s, an heretic’s)
  3. music and physics from Europe,
  4. Grimaldi, Intorcetta, Verbiest,
  5. Koupelin. Subject of yr/ Majesty,
  6. prescribed of the tribune of rites:
  7. True that the Europeans have passed zealously many dangers
  8. and have brought us astronomy, and founded cannon
  9. which have served us in civil wars,
  10. and that one shd/ reward their services in negotiating with the ORosians.
  11. They have not made any trouble.
  12. We permit lamas, hochangs and taotsés to go to their churches
  13. It wd/ seem unwarranted to forbid only these Europeans
  14. to go to their temples. We deem therefore
  15. that they be so permitted
  16. indiscriminate to pray and burn perfumes.
  17. 3rd day 2nd moon of the 31st year of KANG HI
  18. 17 grandees of the Empire, whereof eleven cabinet ministers of this EMPEROR
  19. Les pères Gerbillon, Fourtères, Bournat
  20. took quinine to the palace, anno domini 1693
  21. Hence the Jesuit church in Pekin in the Hoang Tchang
  22. that is the palace enclosure.
  23. And Feyenkopf in the Kaldan war

  24. was fighting Eleutes and Mohamedans and the
  25. Emperor shot six quail de suite with six arrows
  26. and sent the Crown Prince an Eleute horse
  27. saying: I don’t know that chinese bean fodder will suit him.
  28. Herewith some Kalkas sheep for prime mutton.
  29. yr affectionate father KANG HI
  30. Hoang Ho is frozen. In fact the Ortes country seems to be
  31. pretty much as we thought it in Pekin,
  32. small huntin’ quite pleasant, a lot of pheasants and hares.
  33. pasturage excellent. Hoang Ho fruz ½ a ft. thick.
  34. Ortes very orderly, have lost none of their mongol habits,
  35. their princes in concord, no usury.
  36. Clever especially in lookin’ after their animals,
  37. clumsy bowmen, but hit their mark.
  38. And General Feyenkopf wrote him
  39. that the Eleutes had caved in
  40. and KANG HI gave a fur cap to the envoy
  41. and his (KANG HI’S) horse sweat pink
  42. as in legend the horses of Taouen land, the
  43. Tien ma, or horses of heaven
  44. and this horse in particular had been taken in the battle of Tchaomed
  45. and they had a grand show in Pekin for next new year’s
  46. Mongols, Kaldans and Eleutes.
  47. ‘It is easy after this to be sure
  48. that all lamas are traitors.
  49. Keep these prisoners in separate rooms,
  50. sold to the Tipa who is a liar. I have taken
  51. the sun 38°  34’
  52. i.e. one degree 20 less here than in Pekin’
  53. KANG HI
  54. Dogs bark only at strangers. And at Paichen
  55. KANG HI was pleased with the pasture land,
  56. delayed his return to the capital,
  57. stayed stag-hunting outside the great wall
  58. while Kalda had grabbed Samarkand and
  59. Bokara for the mohammeds
  60. 1699 peace year in all Tartary
  61. Grimaldi, Pereira, Tony Thomas and Gerbillon
  62. sent in their placet sic:
  63. European litterati
  64. having heard that the Chinese rites honour Kung-fu-tseu
  65. and offer sacrifice to the Heaven etc/
  66. and that their ceremonies are grounded in reason
  67. now beg to know their true meaning and in particular
  68. the meaning of terms for example Material
  69. Heaven and Changti meaning? its ruler?
  70. Does the manes of Confucius
  71. accept the grain, fruit, silk, incense offered
  72. and does he enter his cartouche?
  73. The European church wallahs wonder if this can be reconciled.
  74. And the archbish of Antioch spent a year in Canton
  75. mousing round but not coming to Pekin
  76. but was, next year, permitted,
  77. Monseigneur Maillard de Tournon
  78. from Clemens, papa (Number XI) the Kiao Hoang
  79. and the Portagoose king sent an envoy
  80. and they cured KANG HI with wine from the Canaries
  81. w’ich putt ’em up a jot higher
  82. And too much rice went to Batavia
  83. so our lord KANG layed an embargo
  84. (a bit before Tommy Juffusun’s)
  85. and a tsong-ping or second class mandarin
  86. putt up a petition:
  87. AGAINST Europes and Xtianity
  88. That there had been nine red boats into Macao
  89. Dutchmen, red-heads or Englanders.
  90. Japan, sez Tching mao, is the only considerable kingdom
  91. to east of us
  92. and Japan kept peace even all through the great Ming rebellion.
  93. Siam and Tonkin pay tribute,
  94. only danger to us is from these Europeans
  95. by Hong-mao I mean any nordic barbarian
  96. there are Yenkeli and Yntsa (meanin’ froggies)
  97. and Holans
  98. all equally barbarous
  99. I have knocked around at sea for some years
  100. and the Dutch are the worst of the lot of them,
  101. poifik tigurs,
  102. their vessels stand any wind and carry a hundred cannon
  103. if ten of ‘em get into Canton
  104. who knows what cd/ happen.
  105. I think we shd/ stop this danger at source
  106. or at least make ’em disarm before coming into our harbours
  107. or have ’em come in one at a time
  108. or unlade in a fortress.
  109. They wormed into Japan via Manilla they have been
  110. kicked out but still try to get in again
  111. They spend money, gather the dregs of the people, make maps
  112. I don’t know what they are up to
  113. and that’s not my province
  114. All I know is they refuged in Manilla
  115. And now they are top dog in Manilla
  116. I rest my case in the tribunals of Empire
  117. trusting that this bind-weed will not be permitted
  118. to root in and fortify
  119. Humbly to yr MAJESTY
  120. Tching Mao, a sea captain
  121. Dug up edict of ’69
  122. PERMIT only Verbiest and his colleagues
  123. We vote to pardon all converts
  124. provided they pull down their churches, and again May eleventh
  125. MISSIONARIES have well served in reforming our mathematics
  126. and in making us cannon
  127. and they are therefore permitted to stay
  128. and to practice their own religion but
  129. no chinese is to get converted
  130. and they are not to build any churches
  131. 47 europeans have permits
  132. they may continue their cult, and no others.
  133. Jesuits appealed that they be not
  134. confounded with Dutchmen
  135. Let stay, if wd/ promise never see Europe again
  136. various churches were levelled and
  137. there came an embassy from PETER of Russia
  138. 1720
  139. with cavalcade and drawn sabres
  140. and a new bloke from the Kiao-hoang of Roma.
  141. Tibet was brought under and ’22 was a peace year
  142. The Emp’r’r went huntin’ as usual
  143. and tiger huntin’ in Haitse and died the 20th of this month
  144. at 8 in the evening
  145. ‘no DYNASTY has come in with such justice
  146. as ours has. I have not wasted the treasures of empire
  147. considering them as the blood of the people
  148. 3 million a year on river embankments
  149. I order that YONG TCHING succeed me
  150. THOU SHALT NOT
  151. lend money to sojers.
  152. Huntin’ keeps manchu fit
  153. avoid the hot summer in Pekin.’
  154. He began taking trips into Tartary.
  155. History translated to manchu. Set up board of translators
  156. Verbiest, mathematics
  157. Pereira professor of music, a treatise in chinese and manchu
  158. Gerbillon and Bouvet, done in manchu
  159. revised by the emperor as to questions of style
  160. A digest of philosophy (manchu) and current
  161. Reports on the mémoires des académies
  162. des sciences de Paris.
  163. Quinine, a laboratory set up in the palace.
  164. He ordered ’em to prepare a total anatomy, et
  165. qu’ils veillèrent à la pureté du langage
  166. et qu’on n’employât que des termes propres
  167. (namely Ch’ing ming)

    ching ming

  168. En son Palais divers ateliers
  169. wanted the best European models
  170. fer paintin’ an’ scuppchure, his works in one hundred volumes
  171. wuz emperor KANG HI 61 years
  172. from 1662 and came after him