Sir John Francis Davis, an English diplomatist and orientalist, born in London in 1795. He entered the public service at an early age, in 1816 was attached to Lord Amherst's embassy to China, and in 1834 was joint commissioner with Lord Napier for arranging commercial and other matters with the Chinese government. From 1843 to 1848 he was British plenipotentiary and chief superintendent of British trade in China, and governor of Hong Kong. He was created a baronet in 1845, and, after his return to England, a knight commander of the bath in 1854, and subsequently became deputy lord lieutenant of Gloucestershire. His works relating to China are considered of high authority. Among them are: "The Chinese: a general Description of China and its Inhabitants " (2 vols., 1836); " Sketches of China" (2 vols., 1841); "China during the War and since the Peace" (2 vols., 1852); "Chinese Moral Maxims," "Chinese Novels," "Chinese Plays," and Poeseos Sinicae Com-mentarii. He has also written " The Massacre of Benares".