THE FRIEND Of China and hongkong GAZETTE.
As method, is the soul of business," we shall re- duce the few following items of news, we have at pre- sont to communicate, into something like a systematic urrangement, and begin with an account of the magical transformation that has taken place in the Western
village of the Island...--
If any place over presented a dismal and dilapitated aspect, it had a pre-eminort claim to that unenviable distinction, previous to its occupation by the 41st Regiment, N., and by way of rendering it still more conspicuous: a few stately buildings, to comparative preservation, towered up in painful contrast to the sur- rounding ruins. Chin-fishwy-like, not a inch of ground was allowed to escape the
of
Brick and Mortar," and as many hour squeezed into a "given space, as the laws of nature would permit. The village was in a great measure in. debted for its ruinous condition, to the Chinese them- selves, who very characteristically, diverted themselves during the sickly season, and at a time when it was altogether untenauted, with the innocent pastime of nocturnal excursions, for the purpose of lifting and appropriating to theinselves, all the doors and windows that in the least, interfered with the ventilation of the houses.
Since its occupation, by the above-named Reginent, however, it has undergone a wonderful change, and who would recognize in the present snug-looking dwellings of the officers, the comfortable and cleanly barracks of the men, the parade ground, and the bustle and acti vity with which it is enlivened, the deserted and ruin- ous village of only yesterday It is now, likewise sup- phed with another great convenience, a capital market- place, where the Chinese find a ready sale for all those articles most in demand by the natives.
All these improve.nents, we understand, are mainly to be ascribed to the unwearied exertions of Captain HI, who, in conjunction with our worthy Com mandant, has conferred another great boon upon the place, by the construction of a fine road, sweeping. round a hill on the Amoy side of the Island, broad enough for three persons to ride abreast.
A beautiful little Theatre, has just been got up which, for its rapid completion, and decided elegance and finish, reflects the greatest credit upon the assi- duify and taste of the managers. Xhout a fortnight ago. it was,
for the first time thrown open to the public, After an appropiate prologue by Mr G-n, the enter tainment of the pyening commenced with the laughable Burletta of the King a Gardener," and was concluded with the well-known Farce, All the World's a Stage" The Band of the Royal Irish was in attendance, and performed with their accustomed felicity, the overture to Semiramide, and a variety of other airs. Laying aside the office of a critic ambition to aspire-we must confess that the Scenery was really excellent, the Dresses good, and the several Parts throughout, remarkably well sustained. Between the Acts. Mr M-n, favoured, the audience with a Comic Song, which, its amusing character.
traders and one-half to each of the others. The ex. ports to England consisted exclusively of tea; the ex ports to Anierica chiefly of tea, along with small
ties of pankeens, raw i
to the const and river fisheries, and keeps alivo, the manufactures in the coal-district North west of Pekin. The Western ten-districts are on a smaller scalɔ, and
after-a-rnder-fashion, for-Sotchien, Kocitchoo; Yunnnn the North of Siam and Burwah, and the Thibets, while the Eastern group are for the wealthier coast-lands, stand and appreciate aright the commercialampahilities. "and the whole of the rest of the world To under. of China. if is necessary to master thoroughly the con- dition and relations of these two groups of provineca,,
some minor articles, the exporis to sugar, and India were to a trifling amount tea, china werd, sugar, naukeens, cas. sia and camphor, but the imports from that country were chiefly balanced by bills and bullion. The in- ports from England consisted of woollens in value one half of the whole, cottons one-quarter, metals, and inia- cellunédus articles another quarter. The imports from America were in value cottons one-half woollens one-
Unless fresh misunderstandings intervene, the throw- quarter, and miscellaneous articles another quirter,
ing open of the four new porta to. British onterprise The imports from 1
will soon and materially alter the condition and direc- India wero opium to the value of more then two millions of pounds; cotton, tin, pepper,
tion of the commerce of the Eastern ten-districts, and of all the countries which trade with them. To Can- betel nut, and other articles to the value of about a
ton the new arrangement will in all probability be a million. The articles of export are exclusively the heavy blow Its chief articles of export are tea and produce of the Chinese provinces South of the Yang bullion; the former will henceforth be shipped in ware) aro imported to a considerable amount. and portation of silver, if tolerated, can be effected as easi tse-kiang. Two of their stuples (cotton and earthen-ference at the ports in the tea-provinces; and the ex pre-
the whole of the commodities they produce are not ly at Shanghai as at Canton. If return-cargoes can be enough to pay for the necessary imports, woollen and obtained, the first of our manufactures likely to find an cotton cloths and opium, (also become a necessary for increased sale in China are our woollens. The incle- them,let moralists say what they will,) for the latter ency of the winters even in the provinces at the is always paid in cash."
The trade from the tea-districts to the Northern mountain-regions which abound in the Chinese empiro, mouth of the Yang-tse-kiang, and still more in the provinces of China. to Chinese Tartary, to Russin and render warm clothing in great request. This it is that to Independent Tartary, is active and to had undert of tea into Russia alone, in 1830; n-nto time a cody clerable importation of Tuts from The occasions ready of Russian There was mounted to five millions and a half pounds. This was America; but the increasing scarcity of the game, and the amount of the legitimate traffic at the station of the rising of furs in the general market owing to the Kiachla, but gives no idea of the busy trade along the purchase of them by Russians to send to Kiachtain- Great Canal, supplying the whole of the provinces of duced the Americans to substitute woollen cloths; and China, except Sethuen, north of the Yang-ise king, it has been found to answer. The game is decreasing the whole of Central Asia, north and west of China in Siberia as well as in America; and, with four har- Proper, and numerous remote hordes within the Rus-bours in the very heart of the trading provinces, we sian frontier, who procured supplies of tea of which will have better opportunities of bringing our woollens Government knew nothing. Some idea of the state into competition with the furs introduced at one poin- of this trade may be gathered from what was witnessed of a remote frontier. The woollens of France, Bel- by Timkowski on his route from Klachta to Khalgan gium and the Rhine provinces, must come into com- on the Great Wall. At Urga, he met several cara- petition with us; but even with that competition, there vans of forty camels, laden with tea, for Uliassutai, a
are fair grounds for expecting a decided advantage to station in Chinese Tartary west of the road he travel our woollen manufactures, if our traders act judicious. led. From the 25th September to the 2d October tre lyf It is not China alone that we have to look to met daily small parties of travellers, all of whom Chinese traders will carry our woollens into the very carried ventures of Tea; on the 2nd October he met heart of Central Asia. The immense frontier of Asia- Chinese Caravan, with two hundred cars laden tic Russia cannot be guarded against their entrance. with fine black tea, for. Kiachta; on the 6th and Oth
quantities are carried there to be worked
portance, most likely, will be our exporta Next in im tions of cotton-twist to China. Already considerable creased impetus given to its internal industry by our
up the
more-direct and extensive trade with the ten districts its demand for this partly-manufactured commodity. cotton twist, and have a strong mechanical_turn, it is not unlikely that the exportation of machinery, and their noble and numerous rivers, will induce them to
а
fuer quality; on the 4th November he inet "the great he mat caravans with equal quantities, the last of still tea-caravan for Kiuchta", on the 6th, another scarcely less numerous; from the 12th to the 14th, (the day on which he reached Khalgan) he met
At Khalgan,
|
caravans of 100, 200 and 250 camelserous tea-will increase the domestic manufactures-of China, and
he was informed that there was constantly a depot of
to which we have no tea large enough to load at any nme 2,000 camels/As the Chinese have already begun to work up our
and the perfect manner in which it was personified, occasioned great laughter, and was repeatedly encor ed The House was well illuminated, and the tout, en- semble produced an effect, at once striking and brill- iant.
A Racket Court of stately dimensions, is in progress of building, which, it is expected, will be completed in the course of a fortnight, or three weeks...
When he crossed the disert i July from Khalgan to Kischta, the tea caravans which he passed seemed quite as frequent. Tкower travelled along the principal line of affic north of the Great Wall, but there are many minor routes to the east and west of it; and an equally-it ated line conducts from the Ho- ungho westward to Kashgar on the South, Gulaja on North.” Tea is a necessary of life in China and Chi nese Fartary, and scarcely less so in Russia, and a-
mong the independent nomades and great trading
athe
towns between the Chinese frontier, the Oxus, and the Caspian, and alle Countries are suppli Eastern groups.
tries. The returnstrom uantity 18 re orts than that COTIS ntly The Chinese prohibited in
The particulars of the Koolangsoo Reace and Regatta, have already appeared in your columns, and we may add, that from the great amusement afforded by the former, a repetition of that || "quired truly English aport will take place soon, when the Sporting Public will be put in possesion, through your papar, of the race run. ning qualities, and bolting propensities," of the Koo langsoo stecia.
Perhaps you are not aware that Hunting" is carried on here with great spirit; the nature
nature of the ground, and peculiarity of
the Chinese Foxess investing it with all the crotting We meet regularly twice a week,wanther pernitung-and bave, generally speaking, capital bursts and most animating runs,
The Chinese New Year was ushered in on the 30th January by a great waste of gun-pawder, in the shape of fireworks and: roaring of ** Big Guns" The grand festival took place 4d of February, when several persons were invited over to
to partake of the hospi Chinaman of some
The table was laid out and supplied, exclut Anglaise," both as regards eatables and drinkables form was erected in the immediate neighbourho sion of the guest, where a Band of juvenile their agility, by going through a variety of the mo Amusing pantomimer, tele
You, this perceive, Mr Editor, that however motive powers may be circumscribed, no such rentr to check the national instinct," of making oursel comfortablo whorever we are, abroad or at Island of China, or on the happy shores land.
CHINESE
Great Britain amo
BLUE BUTT
(Continued from our last.)
About 1830, the at
pounds the c
ed from six to di
sand to som
importation of
nearly thit
count import
lance the
inds would take silver, but its exp
Take
ke large quantities of steam boat machinery Other articles of our manufactures w ll by degrees (not slow) enter in the wake of these two; but they will be the first. The great difficulty at the outset will be to find appropriate articles for return-cargoes. Even with its existing limited foreign commerce, Chinn
for no- pays Its supply of the precious metals is scauty, and ren-, inconsiderable portion of its imports in bullion and bills.
dered mere so by the prohibition to export silver from. Russia. The slow progress of just views of the com- merca in the precious metals by more civilized nations affords little room for hope that Russia will soon aban- don its unwise interference, or the Chinese Govern. ment ceuso to have cause for being alarm'd at the de- rangement of their currency. It is extremely question.
Russia. The returna from Tartury and Northern able whether the cultivation of tea in Chin can be ex
China consist of cattle, some ortices of domestic ma- nufacture, 20me Articles of European manufacture, which find their way into Central Asin, and drugs
gin-seng from the land of the Mantchoos, and rhubarb from the mountainous gion on the upper Hoang-ho
The teas send to the Nort the finest blacks, and the tile tea above mentioned – a villanous compound of the ref
of the bet Ky blood of
nimal substanco,
tended, or its use elsewhere, so as to balance a very mo- derate increase in the importation of our manufactures. If it can be extended in China. so con it in the adjoin. Silk, cotton, tobacco. China can produce, abundant in ing countries; and this will neutralize the increase, quantity and excellent in quality, but not more so than
countries as easily or more easily accessible. The truth is, that the wealth and resources of China are yet ses, ferns, boiled up very imperfectly developed time will be required to develop them and till that is done, China can afford. us nothing like the market which dreamers talk of The extended trade with China will not of itself prove a panacea for our economical ailments Spectator
domestic
om
* → The grand attraction for customers in England is "cheap. the Chinese look mainly to good quality, of which they BIO most shrewd judresnone of your manufacturing “Devils dust"
for them
MISSIONS TO CHINA The London Missionary Society which nearly forty years since commenc ed a mission to China, and sent out Drs. Morrison and Milne, by whom, and especially by the former,
ulean tasks of translating the Scriptures, ese, and forming a Chinese and English
were accomp.
is about to avail
ing which Providence has now send ten or twelve addikt missiona Empire The Angl
pported by this society at
College:
Hong
miles from China), is also
Together with
apparatus; some attoned on t
pecial
otional service
Surre
Amur
pel next Tuesday, and a public. inee
Cha
eter
can
in the propo
of one half to the country.
Fends greaters energy
Hall on 17th January, Herald ] _____|