When the commodore lay first at Macao, one of his officers, who had been extremely ill, desired leave of him to go on shore every day on a neighbouring island, imagining that a walk upon the land would contribute greatly to the restoring of his health:  The commodore would have dissuaded him, suspecting the tricks of the Chinese, but the officer continuing importunate, in the end the boat was ordered to carry him.  The first day he was put on shore he took his exercise, and returned without receiving any molestation, or even seeing any of the inhabitants; but the second day, he was assaulted, soon after his arrival, by a great number of Chinese who had been hoeing rice in the neighbourhood, and who beat him so violently with the handles of their hoes, that they soon laid him on the ground incapable of resistance; after which they robbed him, taking from him his sword, the hilt of which was silver, his money, his watch, gold-headed cane, snuff box, sleeve-buttons, and hat, with several other trinkets:  In the mean time the boat’s crew, who were at some little distance, and had no arms of any kind with them, were incapable of giving him any assistance; till at last one of them flew on the fellow who had the sword in his possession, and wresting it out of his hands, drew it, and with it was preparing to fall on the Chinese, some of whom he could not have failed of killing; but the officer, perceiving what he was about, immediately ordered him to desist, thinking it more prudent to submit to the present violence, than to embroil his commodore in an inextricable squabble with the Chinese government by the death of their subjects; which calmness in this gentleman was the more meritorious, as he was known to be a person of an uncommon spirit, and of a somewhat hasty temper:  By this means the Chinese recovered the possession of the sword, which they soon perceived was prohibited to be made use of against them, and carried off their whole booty unmolested.  No sooner were they gone, than a Chinese on horseback, very well dressed, and who had the air and appearance of a gentleman, came down to the shore, and, as far as could be understood by his signs, seemed to censure the conduct of his countrymen, and to commiserate the officer, being wonderfully officious to assist in getting him on board the boat:  But notwithstanding this behaviour, it was shrewdly suspected that he was an accomplice in the theft, and time fully evinced the justice of those suspicions.

When the boat returned on board, and reported what had passed to the commodore, he immediately complained of it to the mandarine, who attended to see his ship supplied; but the mandarine coolly replied, that the boat ought not to have gone on shore, promising, however, that if the thieves could be found out, they should be punished; though it appeared plain enough, by his manner of answering, that he would never give himself any trouble in searching them out.  However, a considerable time afterwards, when some Chinese boats