To the north of the Hill of Heaven is a large and high terrace, on which is a most magnificent hall in honour of _Chang ti_, or the sovereign Lord, and of his ancestors. On the frontispiece of this hall the present Tartar emperors have caused an inscription to be placed to _Ap cai han_, or the Lord of heaven. To this Tartar inscription answers the Chinese character _Kien_; which has the same meaning as the character _Tien_, heaven; and it signifies the _Chang ti_, who is intended to be honoured in this hall. The tablet for the _Chang ti_ is in a place, which shews, that the honour paid to _Chang ti_ is of a different kind from the honour paid to ancestors. Without the eastern gate of _King tching_, Nº. 145, is _Ge tan_, or Hill of the Sun. At the vernal equinox the emperor sends hither a prince or great man to honour the sun, that is, the spirit of the sun. This inclosure, tho’ elegant enough, has nothing very remarkable; nor is the ceremony very ancient. Without the north gate of _King tching_, at Nº. 183, is _Ti tan_, or the Hill of the Earth. At the summer solstice the emperor goes thither to sacrifice to the earth on the hill. Many of the learned men at present distinguish this sacrifice in the _Ti tan_ from the sacrifice in the _Tien tan_. But, according to the doctrine of Confucius, the sacrifice to the earth has the same object as the sacrifice to heaven. In both the supreme Lord _Chang ti_ is to be honoured. I do not know, whether the emperor adheres to the pure doctrine of Confucius, and whether he does not pretend to honour the earth, or spirit of the earth, by performing a sacrifice, which originally had for its object the _Chang ti_, as we are assured by Confucius. The inclosure of _Ti tan_ is a vast one; but is not at all equal in beauty to the _Tien tan_. Without the western gate of _King tching_, Nº. 211, is _Yue tan_, the Hill of the Moon. At the autumnal equinox the emperor sends thither a prince or great man to honour the moon, or spirit of the moon. This ceremony is not very ancient. This inclosure is a neat one, and pretty large. Between the two north gates of _King tching_, Nº. 183 and 188, is a vast esplanade for the exercise of the troops both horse and foot. To the north of this esplanade are two beautiful temples of idols for the lamas. These two monasteries are very elegant. The emperor and the Tartars _Mon gou_ lay out great sums on these two monasteries and the two temples of the lamas.