In 1885 I was transferred to Shanghai. I set out on a P. & O. steamer, and just as we were pulling up anchor to leave. Hongkong, a Blue Funnel ship came in with her flag half-mast—she was carrying the embalmed remains of Sir Harry Parkes, which were to be conveyed to England for burial. Sir Harry Parkes had spent his life in the service of Great Britain in the East.
While he was a cadet in Peking some antiforeign riots took place, he was captured and carried round the streets of Peking in a cage and subjected to the grossest indignities. Afterwards he became Ambassador in Tokyo and from Tokyo went io Peking. It is said that the Chinese Government were greatly disturbed at this—they remembered the indignities Sir Harry had suffered zs a young man and were afraid that in some way he would seek to take his revenge. Needless to say, that is not the way of a British Ambassador I much preferred Shanghai to Hongkong. Life was freer and there was a democracy in the air that one did not find in Hongkong. For all its charms, Hongkong had an official air, and the various grades of society were kept well in their places. Besides, there was more scope for sport in Shanghai than there had been in Hongkong—houseboat trips at the week-end, and if anyone was fortunate enough to get three weeks' holiday in November or December—a trip round the shooting districts was absolutely "qu!
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.