commercial insignificance of a settlement where
the shipping.
Return of 1847 amounts to 229,463 Tons for European vessels, and Tons 840,990 for Chinese Junks. The Statement appended to this Paper of the Sugar Trade lately established, is of itself sufficiently satisfactory.
All this trade exists in spite of the 15th article of the Supplementary Treaty, which not only restricted the Trade with Hongkong to Chinese vessels from the five Ports only, but required that Chinese should ship goods in none but Chinese junks. The above has fortunately become a dead letter, being in direct contradiction to the following instruction from Viscount Palmerston, dated 3rd February 1841.
"You are authorized to propose a condition that if there be ceded to the British Crown, an island off the Eastern coast of China, to serve as a commercial station for British subjects, the Chinese merchants and inhabitants of all the towns and cities on the coast of China, shall be permitted by Chinese Government to come freely and without the least hindrance or molestation to that island, for the purpose of trading with the British subjects therein established." My Despatch Nr. 169 of 1847, to Viscount Palmerston, will show that I prevented Keying from stopping shipments by Chinese subjects on board of British ships at all the Ports.
As to the want of vigour on the part of the Governor of Hongkong, in protecting the interests of British subjects in their intercourse with the Chinese", on which the Committee decline expressing any opinion, I content myself with referring to my Despatches of four years to the Foreign Offices.
I have anticipated the recommendation of the Committee, that the jurisdiction of the Consuls over civil suits should be extended beyond 500 Dollars, by