The ruins and remains of the Bogue forts, at the entrance of the Bocca Tigris, are sufficient to give one an idea of the frail defences,--which they proved to be,--when exposed to the fire of European guns; and one of our party, at the first glance, remarked “that they must have made a man-of-war laugh.” There were ten of those fortifications, all of which were completely destroyed. One of them, situated on the mainland, was called _hie shoe_, from its resemblance in form to a Chinese lady’s shoe. A little further on we passed Tiger Island, so called because its outline, as seen when approaching from the river, is not unlike that of a tiger couchant. Whampoa,--or the yellow anchorage,--where we arrived early in the afternoon, is a reach extending four miles along the river. It is twelve miles distant from Canton. Ships cannot ascend further than this point, but freight is carried to, and from them by means of large cargo-boats. The old town of Whampoa, with its tall pagoda, is situated on an island of the same name, which lies at the north of the anchorage. The banks of the stream on that side are very low; and although only the highest buildings, with an occasional minaret-like cupola, are visible above the foliage of the trees, it is strikingly Oriental in appearance. The people of the town have never been very friendly to foreigners, and consequently the place is but rarely visited. As we neared the anchorage, the low flat shores were far from wearing an inviting look, nor were the two miserably squalid villages of Bambootown, and Newtown,--which are occupied by fishermen and boat-people,--in the least attractive; although acting as foil, they helped to set off the picture, making the green hills and fertile little valleys of the large islands look all the more agreeable. On Dane’s Island are two extensive dry docks,--one belonging to an American firm, and the other to an English company. The latter is a very large stone structure, where the English mail-steamers and naval vessels are repaired and refitted. Although at that time there was less foreign shipping in the harbor than usual, still a number of vessels from the United States, as well as from England, and other European ports, were at anchor in the reach, and that part of the settlement in the vicinity of the docks, bore quite a business aspect.