CANTON, Quang-tong, or Koanton, one of the southern provinces of China; bounded on the north-east by Fokien, on the north by Kiang-si, on the west by Quang-si and the kingdom of Tonking, and every where else by the sea. The country is diversified with hills and plains, and the soil in general so fertile that it produces two crops annually. Besides many of the fruits of Europe, and those common in other parts of the Indies, the province of Canton produces some peculiar to itself. Abundance of valuable aromatic woods are also to be met with in this province, as well as eagle-wood, ebony, &c.; and in the mineral kingdom the province furnishes gold, precious stones, tin, quicksilver, and copper. Silk and sugar are also cultivated here, and pearls are fished up on the coasts; so that every thing which can contribute to the pleasure or convenience of life is to be met with in Canton. "One begins (says F. Premare) to have an idea of China, on entering the river Canton. Both sides of it present large fields of rice which resemble green meadows, and extend beyond the reach of sight. They are intersected by an infinite number of small canals, in such a manner that the barks which pass and repass in them seem at a distance, while the water which carries them is concealed, to glide along the grass. Farther inland the country appears covered with trees and cultivated along the valleys; and the whole scene is interspersed with villages, rural seats, and such a variety of delightful prospects, that one is never tired of viewing them, and regrets to be obliged to pass them so quickly.
All the coasts of this province abound with fish, and furnish vast numbers of crabs, oysters, and tortoises of an immense size. The inhabitants keep a prodigious number of tame ducks, which they hatch in ovens or dunghills, though it does not appear that they borrowed this custom from the Egyptians. The docility of these creatures exceeds what we should be apt at first to imagine. The inhabitants load a number of small barks with them, and carry them in flocks to feed on the sea-shore, where they find shrimps and other animals proper for their nourishment. But though the ducks from the different barks are thus unavoidably mixed together in the day-time, they are easily collected by only beating on a basin, on which
they immediately collect themselves into different flocks, and each returns to its proper bark.
In this province the Chinese have also a method of preserving not only the flesh of their ducks in such a manner that it loses nothing of its original flavour, but their eggs also. The latter operation is performed by covering the eggs with a coat of clay mixed with salt. When mixed in this manner, it seems that the salt has the property of penetrating through the pores of the shell, and thus impregnating the substance in the egg, which it could not do by simple solution of water.
Canton, though it suffered much in the Chinese wars, is at present one of the most flourishing provinces of the empire; and being at a great distance from court, its government is one of the most important. A great number of fortresses, many of which are cities provided with numerous garrisons, have been built along the coasts for the suppression of pirates and robbers; for which purpose also a certain number of troops are kept properly posted in different parts of the province. It is divided into ten districts, which contain as many cities of the first class, and 84 of the second and third. The air in general is warm but healthy, and the people are very industrious. They possess in an eminent degree the talent of imitation, so that if they are only shown any European work they can execute others like it with surprising exactness. The most remarkable cities in the province besides Canton the capital are, 1. Chao-teheu-fou, chiefly noted for a monastery of the bonzes in its neighbourhood, to which the adjacent country belongs, and the origin of which is traced back for 8 or 900 years. It has under its jurisdiction six cities of the third class; near one of these grows a reed of which several instruments are made, which cannot be distinguished from real ebony. The air of Chao-teheu-fou, however, is unhealthy; and great numbers of the inhabitants are carried off annually by contagious dilemper, which prevail from the middle of October to the beginning of December. 2. Kao-teheu-fou, situated in a delightful and plentiful country. In the neighbourhood is found a singular kind of stone much resembling marble, on which are natural representations of rivers, mountains, landscapes, and trees. These stones are cut into slabs, and made into tables, &c. Crabs are also caught on the coasts here, which very much resemble those of Europe; but, says M. Grosier, they have this singularity, that when taken out of the water, they become petrified without losing any thing of their natural figure. 3. Kina-teheu-fou, the capital of the island of Hai-nan. See HAI-NAN.