ૐ
71
thought in
many quarters
that if the French strike
dewwhere
than
in Fouquin;
they may probably strike
at the Chinese province
of Yunnan, which borders Fouquin, or at one of the
large islands off the coast-
Chusan, according to a
statement, which I have
already transmitted, "appears
to be protected by special treaty;
but Hainan and Formosa
are vulnerable to attack by a
comparatively small force.
The occupation of
these
islands
either
would,
however, be a
work of much
difficulty and expense; for
the
mountainous
interior
of both is held by wild tribes
of aborigines,
never yet
thoroughly subdued by the Chinese. I learn, moreover,
that three Chinese boats, with about a thousand troops on board,
were embarked at Swatow
on the 13th instant for
Amoy, the chief port of
Formosa.