XIII. But the greatest injustice that the vulgar have been guilty of in this particular, is in the conception they have formed of the abilities of the Chinese. Why do I say the vulgar? When you hear men dignified with university honours, whenever they have a mind to heighten an extravagant action, or mode of proceeding that is contrary to all reason, say at every turn, _this could hardly have happened among the Chinese_; which amounts to the same thing, as making the conduct of the Chinese, the standard for measuring extreme barbarism. This certainly cannot tally very well with the idea those people entertain of themselves, which is, that they are the quintessence of policy, ingenuity, and penetration; for it is a proverb among them, that the Chinese have two eyes, the Europeans but one, and that all the rest of the world are totally blind. XIV. The truth is, that they have great reason to believe this; for they excel in their civil government and policy all other nations. Their precautions for preventing civil, and avoiding foreign wars are admirable; and learned and wise men, are not held in such estimation by any other people in the world, as by them, and it is to such only, that they confide the reins of government. This alone, is sufficient to give them credit for being the most rational of mankind. The excellence of their inventive faculty is evident, from their being the first people, who hit upon the three famous inventions, of printing, gun-powder, and the nautical needle; for the knowledge of these in China, is supposed to be much anterior to our acquaintance with them in Europe; and there are also some well-grounded suspicions, that they were communicated to us from the Chinese. They excel exceedingly, in whatever arts they apply themselves to attain; and notwithstanding our utmost exertions, we in Europe, have not been able to equal, nor even to imitate them in many. XV. There is great reason to believe they excel us in their knowledge of medicine, and in their mode of applying it. Their physicians, are both physicians and apothecaries; and it was formerly the custom in all nations to unite the two professions in one; would to God it was the same now! They keep in their houses all the medicines they make use of, which consist of various simples, whose virtues they have well examined and understand; which they collect, prepare, and apply. They are very attentive to, and take a long time in examining the pulse; and it is very common for them to be near an hour in exploring its movements. But the information they get from this circumstance, and the appearance of the tongue is such, that by revolving these particulars in their mind; they without asking any questions, either of the sick person or those who attend him, pronounce on what sort the distemper is, the symptoms that attend it, the time the patient was taken ill, together with all the antecedent and subsequent circumstances, that have accompanied, and will accompany it.