countrymen who were lately arrived from England would be capable of answering the numerous enquiries we were prepared to make both about public and private occurrences, and to relate to us many particulars which, whether of importance or not, would be listened to by us with the utmost attention, after the long suspension of our correspondence with our country to which the nature of our undertaking had hitherto subjected us. CHAPTER 31. MACAO--INTERVIEW WITH THE GOVERNOR--A VISIT TO CANTON. The city of Macao is a Portuguese settlement situated in an island at the mouth of the river of Canton. It was formerly a very rich and populous city, and capable of defending itself against the power of the adjacent Chinese governors, but at present it is much fallen from its ancient splendour; for though it is inhabited by the Portuguese and has a governor nominated by the King of Portugal, yet it subsists merely by the sufferance of the Chinese, who can starve the place and dispossess the Portuguese whenever they please. This obliges the Governor of Macao to behave with great circumspection, and carefully to avoid every circumstance that may give offence to the Chinese. The river of Canton, at the mouth of which this city lies, is the only Chinese port frequented by European ships, and this river is indeed a more commodious harbour on many accounts than Macao. But the peculiar customs of the Chinese, only adapted to the entertainment of trading ships, and the apprehensions of the Commodore lest he should embroil the East India Company with the Regency of Canton if he should insist on being treated upon a different footing than the merchantmen, made him resolve to go first to Macao before he ventured into the port of Canton. Indeed, had not this reason prevailed with him, he himself had nothing to fear, for it is certain that he might have entered the port of Canton, and might have continued there as long as he pleased, and afterwards have left it again, although the whole power of the Chinese Empire had been brought together to oppose him.