hong has not been officially declared insolvent, although we have the Vice
roy's sanction to the proposed liquidation of its debts ; to effect which, the
Co-hong has agreed to pay 125,000 dollars annually. We believe the arrange
ment to be made in perfect good faith ; but the informality attending it may
no doubt, be adduced hereafter to invalidate the settlement, should the Hong
become ultimately bankrupt. We do not hesitate, nevertheless, to accede to
the proposed terms, seeing that our own wish to carry on the Hong is echoed
by the Co-hong, and sanctioned by the Viceroy. We could expect nothing
from its formal bankruptcy but another tedious discussion ; and the substitu
tion for it, of another Hong of, perhaps, less character, and no better credit.
We expressed a doubt in our former Memorial to your Lordship, of the
Hong merchants to conduct their affairs beneficially, in the present state of
the trade between China and Great Britain ; which in addition to the above
causes, occasions distrust of the regular payment of the dividends on oar
claims, as now proposed. In foregoing, therefore, our pretensions to more
favourable terms, we repose always on the hope of aid from Her Majesty's
Government to procure fulfilment of the stipulations of our agreement, should
our fears of its infraction be unfortunately realized.
The chief object of our first Memorial to your Lordship is thus tempora
rily disposed of; but the other impediments to our trade therein complained
of still remain. established, and we have still,
therefore, to anticipate future debts, and their tedious and unprofitable liqui
dation, perhaps after such another twenty months' exasperating discussion
with the local authorities, and with the Co-hong, as that from which we have
just escaped. We venture again, therefore, to urge upon your Lordship's
consideration that part of our former Memorial, which suggests the interference
of Her Majesty's Government, whenever a fit opportunity may offer, to pro
vide for the earlier liquidation of debts which the Hongs may hereafter incur;
not less to save Her Majesty's subjects, who may unfortunately be implicated
in the debts, the direct loss attending their protracted payment, than to
obviate the necessity of their recurrence, by inducing the Imperial Govern
ment to remedy the inefficiency of the Co-hong, and to restrain the exactions
imposed upon it by the Local Authorities of Canton.
The attention of Her Majesty's Government may be engaged more
readily to this subject by the fact that it is proposed to pay Hingtae and King
qua's debts, and the Government claims, chiefly out of additional duties on
the foreign trade, lately imposed for this purpose. These duties are not only
a cause of much immediate vexation to the importers of British manufactures,
but an accumulation of them hereafter, occasioned by the recurrence of Hong
debts, during the progress of liquidation of those of Hingtae and Kingqua,
would probably amount to a prohibition of such imports by legal trade.
We have, &c,
(Signed)
Dent and Co. D. and M. Rustomjee.
Bell and Co. Turner and Co.
Gfbb, Livingston, and Co. Nanabhoy Framjee.
Dirom and Co. Joseph Cragg.
Fox, Rawson, and Co. Wm. Thos. Kinsley.
Daniell and Co.
323
No. 133,
Captain EfHot to Viscount Palmerston.—(Received April 18, 1839.)
Her Majesty's Cutter Louisa,
at anchor in Whampoa Reach,
My Lord, December 8, 1838.
I AM concerned to report, that the trade is at this moment cast into a
state of critical difficulty, by a circumstance which, so far as it has reached
my knowledge, I have now the honour to detail. It appears that the Governor
has lately incurred the severe displeasure of the Court, upon the ground of
a lax execution of the orders concerning the more effectual prevention of the
traffic in opium. A remarkable increase of activity has ensued, and on
Monday last, the 3rd instant, a seizure of opium was made by the Custom-
House officers at Canton, immediately in front of the foreign factory inhabited
by Mr. James Innes. The two native Coolies who were landing the boxes
were apprehended, and are said to have confessed, (I am very much afraid
under the infliction of cruel punishment,) that they were that gentleman's
servants; that the opium was his, and that it had been brought from a ship
at Whampoa.
It further seems that one of these Coolies declared, that the name of the
master of the ship was " Ki-le-wun," a sound which the examining Man
darins decided must signify the name of the master of the American ship,
Thomas Perkins, whose name I am told is Cleveland. All the Hong
merchants were summoned before the Governor on Tuesday the 4th, and
have subsequently announced to the foreign merchants in a written form,
that his Excellency has issued orders for the departure from China, both of
Mr. Innes and the ship, within three days.
The Hong merchant who secured the ship has already been sent down to
this place, and is at this moment undergoing the unmerited and degrading
punishment of the cangue or wooden collar; wholly unmerited indeed, my
Lord, even if this opium had come from on board the ship in question, for this
unfortunate man could neither have known nor prevented its introduction; but
it is beyond a doubt that it did not come from her at all, and almost as certain
that it did come from one of the numerous small craft now at anchor in this
river. These severe and unjust proceedings have had their immediate origin,
in fact,, either in the confused pronunciation of the wretched Coolie, or as
probably in the fabrication of a name, wrung from him by inquiry under
torture.
In the first excitement of alarm and indignation after the Governor's
excessively harsh treatment, (for there is reason to believe they were several
hours on their knees before him with the instruments of punishment laid out
to intimidate them,) the Hong merchants were goaded into a written menace
to pull down their house, in which Mr. Innes lives, if he did not leave Canton
within the period specified by his Excellency. But the general body of the
mei chants, with becoming spirit, and at the same time in a calm and judicious
manner, expressed their determination to resist such rash proceedings at all
hazards. It must also be mentioned, to the great credit of these unhappy
men, that a better spirit soon exercised its influence, and they have frankly
recalled their hasty expressions. The trade has not yet been stopped by any
written instrument under the Governor's hand, or at least which has yet been
transmitted to the foreigners, but the Hong merchants have written to tl.em
to say, that they have his Excellency's orders to discontinue all trade what
ever, till his injunctions are obeyed, and for the last three days there has been
an entire cessation of business. I should observe, that these tidings only met
me at this anchorage, where I arrived yesterday morning for the adjustment
of certain difficulties on board some of the merchant-ships now here.
Your Lordship may be assured that I will avail myself of the first proper •
2 T 2
324
opportunity to make an earnest effort to end the actual disquieting condition
of circumstances. I shall also seize every occasion to keep your Lordship
informed of the progress of events ; and I have now the honour, &c,
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
•
December 9, 1838
P. S. I learn this morning that the Governor has extended the period
for the departure of Mr. Innes and the American ship to ten days.
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT.
No. 134.
Captain Elliot to Viscount Palmerston.— (Received April 13, 1839.)
My Lord, Canton, December 13, 1838.
MY despatch of the 8th inst., will have prepared your Lordship for grave
difficulties in Canton ; and it is now my duty to report an event which has just
passed, to the imminent hazard of the lives and property of the whole foreign
community. Yesterday forenoon, at about 11 o'clock, the foreigners were
struck with astonishment by a sudden preparation in the square in the imme
diate front of the factories, for the strangling of a criminal. It was at once
determined to resist this unprecedented and intolerable outrage: and the
officer in charge of the small body of police on the spot was requested to take
instant measures for conveying this resolution to the higher authorities; and,
in the mean time, the foreigners themselves removed the tent and the other
apparatus which had been prepared. This officer appears to have con
ducted himself with remarkable moderation, offering no resistance to these
proceedings; neither did the considerable crowd which had already assem
bled, evince any unfriendly dispositions towards the foreigners, but, it would
seem from general concurrence, rather the contrary. Between 1 and 2 o'clock
in the afternoon, however, when the crowd had become exceedingly dense,
but was still perfectly inoffensive, and collected from motives of mere curiosity,
some rash foreigners provoked the people by forcibly pushing in amongst
them, and assailing them with sticks. They returned this wanton attack with
showers of stones, and other violence, and in a few minutes the foreigners
were driven in within the gates of their respective factories, which were■
immediately closed. But the fury of the crowd, consisting by this time, as I
am credibly informed, of at least 6,000 people, was now intensely excited,
and for some hours the aspect of circumstances is represented to have been
very disquieting indeed. At about 2 o'clock, intelligence was forwarded
to me at Whampoa, which reached me at about 4 o'clock in the afternoon,
and I repaired immediately to Canton. Before my departure, I issued a
circular to the commanders and commanding officers of British ships at that
anchorage, directing, that in case it should become necessary to dispatch a
force to Canton, they should place themselves under the guidance of Captain
Marquis, of the ship Reliance ; and I requested that gentleman to attend to
my further instructions in that respect. On my own way up I was met by
still more serious accounts, and I therefore thought it necessary to forward
instructions to Captain Marquis to send the boats with all despatch. On my
arrival in Canton, at about 6 p. m., I found that the soldiery had already
dispersed the mob, and that the prisoner had been executed at one of the
usual places appointed for that purpose. This wretched man seems to have
suffered for the offence of selling opium; and I am without any doubt that
the intention, or rather the manifestation of an intention, to strangle him in this
square, was with the purpose to fix upon the foreign community generally,
the seriousness of the Governor's determination with respect to the late affair
reported in my despatch of December 8.
I sent for the Hong merchants immediately on my arrival in Canton, and
desired them to announce it to the Governor, with the expression of my
sincerest disposition to render my presence useful in the maintenance o{
325
peace, and of the complete restoration of the tranquil course of events. They
have not yet brought me His Excellency's answer; and the departure of the
ship by which this despatch is to proceed, obliges me to conclude.
I have, &c,
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
Canton, December 14, 1838.
P.S. Every thing is now in a state of tranquillity, and I believe I may
confidently assure yuur Lordship, that the trade will be resumed in the course
of a few days.
I hope that the measures which I find it necessary to take with
that purpose, will not incur the disapprobation of Her Majesty's Government.
They shall be reported by the next occasion.
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT.
No. 135.
Viscount Palmerston to Captain Elliot.
Sir, Foreign Office, April 15, 1839.
SINCE my despatch of February 27th was written, your despatches
of the 2nd and 13th December, 1838, have been received.
I reserve any observations or instructions I may have to send or
make to you on the subject of your despatch of December 13, till I
receive the further accounts which you announce your intention to send.
These accounts will probably contain all the information that may be
requisite for enabling Her Majesty's Government to form an opinion upon
the proceedings that have occurred at Canton, and which appear, by intel
ligence to the 31st of December, contained in the London newspapers of
this morning, to have ended in a satisfactory manner ; but should you,
however, not already have stated the point specifically, I wish to be in
formed whether the foreigners, to whom you allude in your despatch as
having resisted the intention of the Chinese authorities to put a criminal
to death in the immediate front of the factories, were British subjects
only, or the subjects and citizens of other countries also. I also wish to
know upon what alleged ground of right these persons considered them
selves entitled to interfere with the arrangements made by the Chinese
officers of justice for carrying into effect, in a Chinese town, the orders of
their superior authorities.
I am, &c,
(Signed) PALMERSTON.
No. 136.
Captain Elliot to Viscount Palmerston.— {Received April 18, 1839.)
My Lord, Canton, December 31, 1838.
THE departure of a ship for Bengal affords me an occasion to report that
the public intercourse between this Government and myself is renewed ; his
Excellency having consented to communicate with me, on all important
subjects, under the Seals of the Kwang-Chow-Foo and Kwang-Hee.
In return for this substantial concession, I have agreed to incur the
responsibility of communicating with his Excellency, under the character
"Pin:" but it has been clearly explained that this course has been adopted
upon the ground, that native officers of my own rank address his Excellency
in the same form ; an understanding necessarily involving the principle, that
British officers of the first and second ranks will claim the right to communi
cate upon an equal footing with native authorities of the like degrees.
Despatches containing the full account of these proceedings, and the
circumstances and reasoning which have led me to close with this arrange-
326
merit, shall be transmitted to your Lordship in a few days. It will be satis
factory to Her Majesty's Government to know that the obstructions to the
trade are removed, and that it will have resumed its usual course to-morrow
or next day.
I have, &c,
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
January I, 1839.
P.S. I open my despatch to acquaint your Lordship that the senior
Hong merchant has this moment waited upon me, and announced the
commands of the Government to re-open the trade ; and the cargo permits
will be issued to-day.
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT.
No. 137.
Captain Elliot to Viscount Palmerston.—(Received May 13, 1839.)
My Lord, Canton, January 2, 1839.
THE necessity of closing my despatches of the 2nd, 13th, and 31st
December of last year, to save the ships tlien upon the point of sailing, pre
vented me from furnishing a detailed report of the course I had pursued with
the purpose to reopen the trade, and to place it on a more secure and
honourable footing than it has lately rested.
The Inclosure No. 1, is the copy of a letter my Secretary had received
from Mr. Innes, inclosinga protest to be handed to me. Inclosure No. 3, is my
reply to Mr. Innes, written on the day before the dangerous riot in front of
the factories. Inclosures Nos. 4, 5, and 6, are the continuance of that
correspondence.
In the further disposal of this part of the subject, I have now to inform,
your Lordship that Mr. Innes applied to the Provincial Government for a
passport, and left this place for Macao, on the 16th ultimo, having previously
forwarded a declaration to his Excellency, confessing that the opium was
his; that it came from his boat, and not from the American ship; and
absolving the two Coolies from all wilful participation in the offence, upon
the ground that they were ignorant of the contents of the boxes.
The difficulty which remained to be removed before the trade could be
opened, was the illicit traffic in opium carried on in small craft within the river,
a considerable number of which were stationary at Whampoa, receiving their
supplies from time to time in other vessels of a similar description, from the
opium ships at Lintin or Hong Kong.
The senior Hong merchants, on the evening of my arrival in Canton, (the
12th ultimo,) complained in bitter terms that they should be exposed to the
cruel and ruinous consequences which were hourly arising out of the existence
of this forced trade, not merely at Whampoa, but at the factories themselves,
of which they were the proprietors ; and therefore, under heavy responsibility
to the Government. And they insisted that they would not carry on the
lawful commerce, (having the Governor's sanction for their conduct,) till effec
tual steps were taken for the suppression of this dangerous evil.
Mindful of the embarrassments which would ensue if his Excellency (per
ceiving that all hope of interference upon my part were vain,) should effect this
and far more inconvenient objects, by the immediate interruption of the ordinary
manner of intercourse, and by the protracted stoppage of the trade, I felt that
the moment had arrived for my own interposition.
1 therefore desired the merchants to proceed directly to his Excellency,
and announce my arrival in Canton ; adding, that as no mere difficulties in points
of form should deter me, in the actual emergency, from faithfully endeavouring
to restore a state of peaceful trade and intercourse, so I looked at his Excel
lency's hands for reasonable countenance: and above all, for a just and digni
fied abstinence from measures of irritating pressure upon the general trade.
Carefully considering the critical posture of those momentous interests
327
confided to me, I resolved, as a preliminary measure, upon an appeal to the
whole community; not only with some hope that such a proceeding might
have the effect of clearing the river of these boats, but because (if the case were
otherwise) I felt it became me distinctly to forewarn Her Majesty's subjects
concerned in these] practices, of the course which it was my determination to
pursue.
On the,l7th ultimo, therefore, I convened a general meeting of all the
foreign residents at Canton in this hall, and addressed them in the manner your
Lordship will find reported in the accompanying note, taken at the moment by
my Secretary. On the 1 8th, I promulgated the inclosed notice, and having
ascertained that the smuggling boats were still at Whampoa on the 23rd, (some
of them wearing British ensigns and pendants,) I addressed the accompanying
note to his Excellency the Governor.
His Excellency's reply forms Inclosure No. 10; and Inclosure No. 11 is
my renewed request that this mode of direct official intercourse on affairs of
importance should be declared to be general, and not for the occasion. Inclo
sure No. 12, is the Governor's assent to this principle, signified, indeed, through
the senior Hong merchant, but he was desired to place the original document,
bearing his Excellency's seal, in my hands, in order that I might duly authen
ticate the fact to my Government. I was contented with this acknowledgment,
and the flag was rehoisted on the 30th ultimo at 11 o'clock. On the 31st, I
was enabled to desire the senior merchant to report the departure of all the
boats from Whampoa; and he has this day announced to me the official com
mands of the Government to open the trade, which I have just signified to the
community, in the accompanying circular.
The Inclosure No. 14, is a general notice to Her Majesty's subjects, which
I have also issued to-day, announcing the renewal of the public intercourse, and
publishing those portions of my correspondence with the Governor, which it
concerned them to know.
But I have not felt myself at liberty to publish those parts which relate to
the manner of my intercourse ; upon the ground that it is the special attribute
of Her Majesty's Government to dispose of that subject, and that it may be
highly inconvenient they should be generally promulgated without your Lord
ship's sanction.
Having now drawn the statement of these proceedings to a close, I may
turn to a more particular explanation of the motives and the manner of my
interposition.
It had been clear to me, my Lord, from the origin of this peculiar branch
of the opium traffic, that it must grow to be more and more mischievous to
every branch of the trade, and certainly to none more than to that of opium
itself. As the danger and the shame of its pursuit increased, it was obvious that
it would fall by rapid degrees into the hands of more and more desperate men ;
that it would stain the foreign character with constantly aggravating disgrace,
in the sight of the whole of the better portion of this people; and lastly, that it
would connect itself more and more intimately with our lawful commercial inter
course, to the great peril of vast public and private interests.
Till the other day, my Lord, I believe there was no part of the world where
the foreigner felt his life and property more secure than here in Canton ; but
the grave events of the 12th ultimo have left behind a different impression.
For a space of near two hours the foreign factories were within the power of an
immense and excited mob, the gate of one of them was absolutely battered
in, and a pistol was fired out, probably without ball, or over the heads of the
people, for at least it is certain that nobody fell. If the case had been other
wise, Her Majesty's Government and the British public would have had to
learn that the trade and peaceful intercourse with this empire was indefinitely
interrupted by a terrible scene of bloodshed and ruin. And all these desperate
hazards have been incurred, my Lord, for the scrambling and, comparatively
considered, insignificant gains of a few reckless individuals, unquestionably
founding their conduct upon the belief, that they were exempt from the
operation of all law, British or Chinese.
I owe it to myself to say, that foreseeing the serious consequences which
must arise from the further growth of this evil, I wrote more than a year and a
half since, to the General Chamber of Commerce, moving them to use their
best efforts to put it down. It is also an act of similar justice to that body,
(and to the great majority of the foreign community settled here,) to state, that
328
this peculiar form of the traffic has been practised or countenanced by very
few amongst them. But it was extending itself widely amongst persons not
forming part of the resident society, and in no long lapse of time, it must have
brought to Canton the refuse of all the countries in our neighbourhood.
Indeed, judging of the future from the past, I feel warranted in saying, that
within the space of one year from this time, there would have been at least
three hundred armed and lawless men carrying on this business in the very
heart of our regular commerce. And if the extent of the mischief hourly
impending, was in some sense susceptible of estimate, I must remark that no
satisfactory course of remedy has ever yet presented itself to my mind. But
that Her Majesty's Government would have been driven into the necessity of
very urgent, expensive, and hazardous measures upon the most painful grounds,
appeared to me to be a certain result of the protraction of this forced traffic
within the river, and at the factories ; and with this conviction I resolved to
use all lawful means in my power to draw it to a conclusion, and to prevent its
recurrence.
I should observe in this place, that the remarkable vigour, not merely of
the local, but of the general government, for some months back, furnished addi
tional cause to apprehend some exceedingly serious dilemma. And regarding
the subject in every point of view, I could not but perceive that a person in my
station should lose no time in taking such a position as would give weight to
his representations in any moment of emergency.
I made up my mind to incur the responsibility of making my communi
cations under the character " Pin," because I was sensible that it was vain
to hope this Government would consent to give way upon such a point, so long
as there was an absence of really pressing necessity ; and in that situation of
affairs, I am as sure the change would pass without difficulty, and probably
without comment. Indeed, I felt I could shape my own proceedings on the
present occasion in such a manner as would necessarily involve the principle, that
British officers should intercommunicate upon a footing of equality with native
officers of the same ranks; and more than that, I am afraid it will be impos
sible to get from this Government without driving it to extremities upon /
matters of form. I would also respectfully press upon your Lordship the
assurance that the idea of the character is that of respectful repo. t, not of
solicitation, or petition ; and regard being had to the lofty tone assumed by all
Asiatic Powers ; to the particular genius of this language and government ; to
its strangeness to foreign intercourse ; and, above all, to the fact, that it is the
manner of address used by native officers, even of the third rank ; I cannot but
hope that I shall be excused for determining not to continue the interruption of
the public communications in a moment of crisis (with the trade actually
stopped, and with other serious evils impending) upon such a ground as that.
The next point I have to notice in my own correspondence with the
Governor, is the request that he would command the officers who might be
employed in the duty of dismissing these boats from the river, to accompany
me to their ordinary place of anchorage. I advert to this subject, because it
has been put prominently forward in the torrent of censure which has been
poured upon me through the medium of the Canton newspapers. My Lord, I
requested his Excellency to let the officers place themselves in communication
with me, because I was not without reason to believe that some of the thought
less people in those vessels might be contemplating the forcible opposition of
the authority of this Government; and I hoped that my presence in my own
boat would prevent such dangerous absurdity. But assuming for a moment
that they had been wild enough to do so, and life had been lost, it was my duty
to take every care in my power, that the persons of British subjects (be their
crime what it might) did not fall into the hands of the Chinese Government ;
and it was further incumbent upon me to protect the property of British
subjects, guiltless of those illegal practices which had induced the stoppage of
the trade, from inconvenience of any description. I was also mainly influenced
in this respect, by the desire to establish the general principle, that measures of
an urgent nature affecting Her Majesty's subjects, needed the admission of Her
Majesty's officers.
The opening of this official communication, forwarded to me by the Foo
and Hee, needs a few words of comment. These officers, it will be observed,
command me to heed the Governor's edict ; and I have enough of experience
ot the temper of this Government to know, that if I had returned it upon that
329
pretext, I should have driven them into one of those impracticable moods of
offended dignity, the sure fruit of which would have been the contumelious
refusal of all official communication, and an obstinate adherence to their own
policy of working out their ends by measures of general pressure upon the
whole trade.
I preferred, therefore, to pass it without notice for the present, determining,
on the first occasion that the Governor desired to communicate with me on any
important subject in the only way by which he knows such communications
can reach me, to send a brief note before hand to the officers, requesting them,
for the sake of precision, to signify that they are communicating his Excel
lency's pleasure, and not their own. I shall at the same time take occasion to
hint, that this course will obviate the disagreeable necessity which would other
wise devolve upon me, of returning the edict to his Excellency for correction,
pointing out the inaccuracy, and complaining of their own unreasonable
adherence to an arrogation of his Excellency's authority, rather than of simple
obedience to his commands. With the essential point in my hand, I felt that
it would be unwise to risk its complete accomplishment by difficulties upon
what I am well aware are the mere tricks of wordy assumption, so characteristic
of Chinese negociation, and which I can set to rights without hazard on some
future and more favourable occasion.
Neither did I object to receive the Governor's assent to the principle, that
all communications of importance must be forwarded through the officers, in
an answer addressed to the Senior Hong Merchant ; because I sincerely felt
that his Excellency had made as much of substantial concession for the present,
as a functionary in his station could venture upon, without the express orders
of his Court. And after what had been gained, I perceived how necessary it
was to refrain from exciting the ready feeling, that to grant anything, is only to
feed the spirit of demand.
I hope, my Lord, that this attainment of direct official communication
between the two countries will, on the whole, be satisfactory to Her Majesty's
Government. It is the first permanent intercourse of the kind which has ever
existed between this ancient Empire and the Western world ; and with the rule
plainly admitted, and the countenance of Her Majesty's Government, prudent
and watchful officers will, I trust, find it less perplexing to improve and extend
the manner, than it has been to establish it.
I have, &c,
(Signed) CHARLES ELLTOT,
Chief Superintendent.
Inclosure 1 in No. 137.
Mr. James lnnes to E. Elmslie, Esq., Secretary to Her Majesty's Superintendents.
Sir, Canton, December 7, 1839.
I HAND you in an attested copy of the protest against the Co- Hong, I
verified before you an oath last night, and its attendant list.
I beg that you will place both in the possession of Her Majesty's Chief
Superintendent at Macao, in case of the parties, whose property is in peril, being
disposed to look for redress through the intervention of the British Government.
I served on Howqua's confidential purser with my own hand, last night, the
principal documents of which inclosed is a true copy; and a Chinese translation
of the protest, made out by Mr. Morrison, accompanied the other papers.
I beg the favor you will acknowledge receipt, and I remain, &c,
(Signed) JAMES INNES.
Inclosure 2 in No. 137.
PROTEST.
Canton, December 6, 1838.
KNOW all men, by these presents, and more particularly do you, Howqua,
Mowqua, &c, called the Co-Hong, understand, that you, having threatened to
2 U
330
break down and unroof the house T dwell in, one Creek factory; be it known to
you, that the goods, per list and valuation attached, are the property of the
parties therein named ; and should you, hy breaking down my factory where
they are deposited, lead to loss, robbery, or destruction of the property, I, on
the part of the owners, hold you liable, jointly and severally, for the value as
stated in the list sent The sum at peril is, sterling pounds, 23,370/. 13s. 9d.,
equivalent to Spanish dollars, 101,981.
J furnish a copy of the list, valuation, and of this protest to Her Majesty's
Superintendent at Macao, for the information of the British Government.
, A true copy, served in Chinese and English on Howqua.
(Signed) JAMES INNES.
James Innes makes oath and declares the annexed to be a true and correct
list of goods in his custody, as mentioned in the above protest.
(Signed) JAMES INNES.
Before me, this sixth day of December, 1838, at Canton, in China.
(Signed) EDWARD ELMSL1E,
Secretary and Treasurer to the Superintendents.
[Here follows the list of goods.]
Inclosure 3 in No. 137.
Captain Elliot to Mr. James Innes.
Her Majesty's Cutter Louisa,
At anchor in Whampoa Reach,
Sir, December 11, 1838.
YOUR protest against the steps lately menaced in your respect by the Hong
merchants, has been duly submitted to me ; and I need hardly observe, that
Her Majesty's Government would, of course, hold the Government of this
Empire responsible for any violence committed on your person or property,
except such as should be lawfully ordered by the proper authorities of this
province, upon clear proof of the allegations against you.
In connexion with this part of the subject, 1 seize this occasion to express
my sincerest gratification that these rash threats were met by the general body
of the foreign community with becoming firmness, and yet calmly and
judiciously. Neither can I withhold a tribute of respect towards the unfortu
nate and goaded Hong merchants, for their early return within the influence of
a better spirit. Turning now to other points, I consider myself called upon,
after the most attentive reflection, to counsel and enjoin you forthwith to place
yourself in communication, either with the Governor directly, or with the Co-
Hong, for his Excellency's information, as you may judge best, setting forth
your request that all immediate proceedings, on account of this matter, against
all parties whatever, should be stayed; and expressing your readiness to conform
to any decision which the officers of your nation may take, after full examina
tion of the charges against you.
And I now formally and unreservedly hold myself responsible, as Her
Majesty's officer, for all loss or detriment which may be occasioned by the effect
of any unsustainable decision of mine, either upon your own interests or
property, or upon those of any other parties intrusted to your management.
I entertain a persuasion that you will not need any assurance of the perfect
sincerity of my dispositions to end this matter in a manner which may be most
conducive to your well understood interests; and above all, to what you will
consider to be of paramount importance ; namely, to your continued fair
standing in the estimation of that class of people to which you belong by birth,
and feeling, and education.
I am almost in the certainty, and I do not speak lightly, that the protrac
tion of the present state of things will be attended with very disastrous
consequences, for which no triumph or no advantages of any nature could ever
compensate you ; but which, at the same time, I feel bound to record my
deliberate conviction would be morally chargeable upon you, if you persist in
rejecting all reasonable modes of ending the actual condition of difficulty.
331
I do conjure you, Sir, iD anxious terms, timely and wisely to withdraw
yourself from a very unsuitable position. And I perceive no more becoming
mode of effecting that object, than the one which I have now submitted to you.
It makes the case, to all intents and purposes, the case of Her Majesty's
Government ; and if wrong be done, either by the provincial authorities, or by
myself, effectual means of redressing it will always remain to be used.
I have, &c, !
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
Inclosure 4 in No. 137.
Mr. James Innes to Captain Elliot.
Sir, Canton, December 12, 1838.
I THIS forenoon had the honour to receive your letter of the 1 1 th of
December, 1838.
I shall take into consideration the purport of your communication, and,
on advising with my friends, let you know my resolution.
I have, &c,
(Signed) JAMES INNES.
Inclosure 5 in No. 137.
Mr. James Innes to Captain Elliot.
Sir, Canton, December 13, 1838.
I HAVE been duly honoured with your letter of the llih instant (as
acknowledged yesterday by me) and I feel particularly obliged by your consi
deration for me and my interests ; yet, all things considered, I do not feel
myself in a position to avail of your proffered services, not doubting you will be
too happy to be freed from the trouble, provided matters are arranged so that
the Coolies are safe and free from torture, and the trade no longer obstructed on
my account. I have, &c,
(Signed) JAMES INNES.
Inclosure 6 in No. 137.
Captain Elliot to Mr. James Innes.
Sir, Canton, December 13, 1838.
I HAVE to acknowledge your letter of this day's date.
It would certainly be more agreeable to me not to interpose at all on this
occasion, supposing (I use the freedom to avail myself of your own language,
for the &ake of clear mutual understanding) that the Coolies are safe and free
from torture, and that the trade is no longer obstructed on your account.
A direct application from the Provincial Government upon the subject,
would necessarily change my position in this respect.
I have, &c,
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
Inclosure 7 in No. 137.
Observations made by Captain Elliot at a General Meeting of all Foreign
Residents at Canton, assembled in the British Hall.
Canton, December 17, 1838.
CAPTAIN ELLIOT observed that the events of last week must have
necessarily engaged the anxious consideration of the whole foreign commu
2 U 2
332
nity in China, and he might therefore wave any forms of excuse for trespassing
upon their attention. To the other foreigners, who had done him the honour
to attend the meeting, he had, in the first place, to return his sincere and
respectful thanks for the countenance they had afforded his own countrymen in
the firm and judicious resistance which had been made to the menaced destruc
tion of Mr. Innes's house ; and he begged the whole meeting to assure them
selves that he regarded the outrage upon their feelings, by the attempted execu
tion of a criminal before their doors, with the same feelings of indignation by
which they had been excited.
Seeking, however, for the immediate source of this critical interruption of
the usual course of events, he felt bound to say that he found it in the existence
of an extensive traffic in opium, conducted in small boats upon the river. The
present results of that traffic should be shortly stated and considered ; the actual
interruption of the legal trade ; the seizure and imminent jeopardy of innocent
men ; the daily exposure of every native connected with the foreigners to
similar disastrous consequences ; the life and property of the whole foreign
community at the mercy of an immense mob for the space of at least two
hours ; the distressing degradation of the foreign character ; the painful fact that
such courses exposed us more and more to the just indignation of this Govern
ment and people, and diminished the sympathies of our own : of its futurity it
might be safely predicted that it would fall into the hands of the reckless, the
refuse, and probably the convicted, of all the countries in our neighbourhood.
Attentively considering these and other points, Captain Elliot felt that it
became him to explain the course which it was his purpose to pursue, with the
view to the re -establishment of a safer and more creditable condition of circum
stances. He should forthwith serve a notice upon the boats in the river, to the
effect, that if they were British owned, and were either actually or occasionally
engaged in the traffic, they must proceed outside within three days, and cease to
return with any similar pursuits ; that failing their conformity with these
injunctions, he should place himself in communication with the Provincial
Government, and frankly and fully express the views of his own upon the neces
sary, and perfectly admissible treatment of so serious an evil. He could not,
however, help indulging the hope that the general reprobation of the whole com
munity would have the effect of relieving him from the performance of a duty
on many accounts extremely painful to him. And Captain Elliot concluded by
anxiously conjuring the community to lend him their hearty support and co-ope
ration on the present occasion. To the other foreigners present, he would use
the freedom to observe, that he was the only agent in this country whose
pursuits were unmixedly public ; and so long as he was advocating the prin
ciples of truth and justice in our relations with this Government and people, he
might take the liberty to say that he was, in some sense, the representative of
their honoured countries as well as of his own.
(Signed) EDWARD ELMSLIE,
Secretary and Treasurer.
Inclosure 8 in No. 137.
Public Notice to Her Majesty's Subjects.
I, CHARLES ELLIOT, Chief Superintendent of the Trade of British
Subjects in China, moved by urgent considerations immediately affecting the
safety of the lives and properties of all Her Majesty's subjects engaged in the
trade at Canton, do hereby formally give notice and require, that all British
owned schooners, cutters, and otherwise rigged small craft, either habitually or
occasionally engaged in the illicit opium traffic within the Bocca Tigris, should
proceed forth of the same within the space of three days from the date of these
presents, and not return within the said Bocca Tigris, being engaged in the said
illicit opium traffic
And I, the said Chief Superintendent, do further give notice and warn all
Her Majesty's subjects engaged in the aforesaid illicit opium traffic, within the
Bocca Tigris, in such schooners, cutters, or otherwise rigged small craft, that if
any native of the Chinese Empire shall come by his or her death, by any wound
feloniously inflicted by any British subject or subjects, any such British subject
or subjects, being duly convicted thereof, are liable to capital punishment, as if
333
• the crime had been committed within the jurisdiction of Her Majesty's Courts
at Westminster.
And I, the said Chief Superintendent, do further give notice and warn all
British subjects, being owners of such schooners, cutters, or otherwise rigged small
craft engaged in the said illicit opium traffic within the Bocca Tigris, that Her
Majesty's Government will in no way interpose if the Chinese Government shall
think fit to seize and confiscate the same.
And I, the said Chief Superintendent, do further give notice and warn all
British subjects employed in the said schooners, cutters, and otherwise rigged
small craft engaged in the illicit traffic in opium within the Bocca Tigris, that
the forcible resisting of the officers of the Chinese Government in the duty of
searching and seizing, is a lawless act, and that they are liable to consequences
and penalties in the same manner as if the aforesaid forcible resistance were
opposed to the officers of their own, or any other Government, in their own, or
in any foreign country.
Given under my hand and seal of office, at Canton, this eighteenth day of
December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-
eight.
(L.S.) (Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
; Chief Superintendent of the Trade of British
Subjects in China.
Inclosure 9 in No. 137.
Captain Elliot to the Governor of Canton.
Canton, December 23, 1838.
THE Undersigned, &c, &c, deliberating on those serious risks to which
the lives and properties of many innocent men, both natives and foreigners, are
exposed, considers that it is his duty respectfully and plainly to lay his thoughts
before your Excellency.
Seeking for the immediate source of this dangerous state of things, he
finds it in the existence of an extensive opium traffic, conducted in small craft,
within the river.
From one condition of undisturbed lawlessness to another, and still more
hazardous, the course is sure and rapid.
Illegalities will be committed, and more frequently the difficulty of distin
guishing between the right and wrong, will daily become more difficult ; violent
affrays will be of constant recurrence ; life, and probably the life of innocent
men, will be sacrificed ; some general catastrophe will ensue ; and there will be
employment, profit, and impunity for none but the reckless and the culpable.
The Government of the British nation will regard these evil practices with
no feelings of leniency, but, on the contrary, with severity and continual
anxiety; in proof of this, the Undersigned has now to acquaint your Excellency
that he has already, on the 18th day of this month, formally required all boats
(owned by British subjects) engaged in this traffic, to leave the river within
three days.
He cannot faithfully declare that these injunctions have been fulfilled ; and
he has therefore now to request that your Excellency will signify your pleasure,
through the honourable officers, the Kwang Chow Foo and Kwang Hee, so that
all those concerned in these pursuits may know that he has received your
Excellency's authority for this notice.
The Undersigned is without doubt, that the continuance of this traffic in
the inner waters will involve the whole foreign community at Canton in some
disastrous difficulty; and his gracious Sovereign would not interpose for the
protection of their property, on the behalf of those British subjects who con .
tinue to practise these dangerous disorders, after your Excellency's public
warning shall be authentically made known to them through the officers of
their own nation.
It is further to be desired, that your Excellency would command the
honourable officers who may be employed on this occasion, to proceed to the
station of the boats with the Undersigned, in order that the peaceful and
well-disposed may not be involved in the same consequences as the perverse.
He can assure your Excellency that he has not requested that the communi
334
cations should be forwarded through the honourable officers from any vain or
idle pretensions on his own part, but only that he may be able to impress on
his own countrymen, in cases of emergency, that he is acting at your Excel
lency's requisition, that his representations may be more effectual, and that his
own Government may see he has had proper authority, as well as urgent occasion,
for his proceedings.
Neither does the Undersigned desire to trouble your Excellency upon
trifling affairs. So soon as the intercourse is renewed, all such matters can be
conducted between the official Hong merchants and himself, agreeably to your
Excellency's further arrangements.
Influenced by motives of solicitude for the character of his country, and
the general protection of the interests of a good trade, the Undersigned feels it
right to submit his own views to your Excellency of this moment ; and he has,
therefore, used the character "Pin" in this address; but he requests your
Excellency to signify, through the honourable officers, that it is a mode of
address used by native officers, even of the second rank, so that it may be seen
by the Government of his own country that he has acted upon admissible
principles.
He can assure your Excellency that there is no disposition to press incon
venient changes on the Government of the Empire, but only such modifications
as are needful for the conduct of authentic intercourse, so that peace and
honourable trade may always subsist.
The Undersigned, in conclusion, respectfully, but very earnestly, entreats
you Excellency tu pardon the two Coolies who were lately apprehended in the
act of landing opium belonging to Mr. Innes. Clear as it is from the declara
tion of that gentleman, that these poor men were ignorant of the contents of
the boxes, their present unhappy condition is a distressing reflection.
Your Excellency's clemency on this occasion would be grateful to the
Government of the British nation, and to the whole foreign community
in China.
The Undersigned avails himself of this occasion to renew to your Excel
lency the sentiments of his highest consideration.
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT,
Chief Superintendent.
Inclosure 10 in No. 137.
The Prefect and Commandant of Canton, jointly, to Captain Elliot.
CHOO, the Prefect of Kwang-Chow-Foo, and Han, Commandant of the
same department, jointly issue commands to the English Superintendent,
Elliot.
On the 25th of December, 1838, they received from the Governor of
Kwangtung and Kwangse, Tang, the following official document : —
" I received, on the 23rd of December, the subjoined address, from the
English Superintendent Elliot.
[The address of December 23 (Tnclosure 9) is here inserted.]
" Upon receipt hereof, the document being authenticated, I have given it
due consideration.
" The said Superintendent came, I find, to Canton, in obedience to com
mands received from his Sovereign, to exercise controul over the merchants and
seamen ; to repress the depraved, and to extirpate evils. Having such
commands given to him, he must needs also have powers. It is very inexplicable,
then, that these boats having, in violation of the laws, entered the river, he
should now find it difficult to send them out again, owing to his not having the
confidence in all.
" But seeing that he has now addressed me as above, and that in his
address he has plainly stated, that the Government of the British nation will
regard these evil practices with no feelings of leniency, but, on the contrary,
with severity and continual anxiety: seeing this, it is clear that he yet has a
distinct understanding of his duty as a represser of the evil and protector of the
good. Nor has he sought to excuse the difficulty he has met with by pleading
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inability. It is not, then, befitting in me to adhere obstinately to the letter of
the law, and so isolate him from the object for which he has come hither.
"The request is therefore granted; and the Prefect and Commandant of
Kwang Chow, shall be directed, in the adoption of modified measures suited to
the occasion, to give you sealed commands, so that you may have authority tor
proceeding in obedieuce thereto. But hereafter, in any affairs wherein you are
concerned, commands shall continue to be received through the medium of the
Senior Houg merchants. The present measure must not be drawn forward as a
precedent.
"The Superintendent aforesaid must faithfully order away every one of
the said boats, and must never permit them to return. Should any dare
perversely to disobey or make sport of his commands, he is authorized instantly
to represent the case, that proceedings may be thereon taken.
"I, the Governor, having under my sway the whole land of Yue, and
having on occasions to make most vigorous exercise of power, it may well be
conceived that these boats trouble me not one iota.
" As soon as these boats shall have sailed, the merchant ships may at once
have their trade re-opened as usual. There has been no intention to cause any
protracted stoppage of it : and there is therefore no ground for anxiety on
that point.
" With reference to documents presented by foreign countries to officers
of the Celestial Empire, on any affairs, all others are required to use the term
Pin. This is one of the fixed statutes regarding intercourse between the
central and foreign nations, and a rule, therefore, which it is in an especial
degree impossible to overleap. The Superintendent aforesaid not being a blind
and unenlightened man, how can he plead ignorance of this? Besides, the
Sovereigu of his nation has ever been reverentially compliant. And if you, a
subject and servant of that Sovereign, show that you indeed estimate the
sentiments felt, and carefully and diligently fulfil your duties conformably to
them, you will receive a high meed of praise. How can your well-doing be
found fault with as being wrong? On this point also the said Superintendent
need give himself no anxiety.
"As to the two offenders, Lew Aying, and his fellow, they are natives of
the land, and it having been clearly proved and recorded that they, in com
pliance with Innes's desire, took a letter and received opium, they have been
sent for final trial to the Commissioner of Justice. The care and intelligence
exercised by the Celestial Empire, in the infliction of punishments, insure a
correct judgment in regard to their offence, so that they may neither suffer
oppression nor obtain impunity. It is not necessary, therefore, to beg any
favour for them.
" Besides requiring the senior Hong merchants, Howqua, &c, to proceed
in the first place, to enjoin on the said Superintendent these commands, that he
may know them, I also issue these instructions to the Prefect of the Depart
ment, that he may forthwith proceed, in concert with the Commandant of the
same Department, to give sealed commands, directing the said Superintendent
Elliot to act in obedience hereto. He must direct that the foreign boats of all
nations, every one of them, leave the river within three days, and he must not
allow them to linger thereafter for a single instant. Should any offer resistance,
he must, on the one hand, expel them with severity, and, on the other hand,
make representation, that measures may be taken in consequence. Let him also
be directed, for the future, to give pressirg attention to the duty of restraining
the foreigners of every nation, and of preventing boats and ships from bringing
opium, or other prohibited commodities, into the river. The small boats for
the conveyance of letters, when entering and going out, must also conform to
the established rules, by stopping to be examined at the Custom-House stations
which they pass. He must not suffer them to resist this regulation, lest they
be expelled altogether. Be earnest and speedy ! earnest and speedy !"
The Prefect and Commandant, having received this document, proceed to
give commands, which, when the said Superintendent Elliot receives, he must
forthwith conform to. He must direct that the foreign boats of all nations,
every one of them, leave the river within three days ; and he must not allow
them to linger thereafter for a single instant. Should any offer resistance, he
must, on the one hand, expel them with severity, and on the other hand, make
representation, that measures may be taken in consequence. He must also, for
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the future, give pressing attention to the duty of restraining the foreigners of
every nation, and of preventing boats and ships from bringing opium, or other
prohibited commodities, into the river. The small boats for the conveyance of
letters, when entering and going out, must also conform to the established
rules, by stopping to be examined at the Custom-house stations which they
pass. None must resist this regulation, lest they be expelled altogether.
Oppose not these my commands.
Taoukwang, 18th year, 11th month, 10th day (26th December, 1838.)
(L.S.) of the Kwang-Chow-Foo.
(L.S.) of the Kwang-Chow-Hee.
True Translation.
(Signed) J. Robt. Morrison,
Chinese Secretary and Interpreter.
Inclosure 11 in No. 137.
Captain Elliot to the Governor of Canton.
Canton, December 28, 1838.
ELLIOT, the English Superintendent, has the honour to address His
Excellency the Governor, &c, and to offer his thanks for the communication of
the 26th instant through the honourable officers, the Foo and Hee.
By these means he will be enabled to obtain the confidence of all in his
authority for acting; to put into effect your Excellency's great and wise desire
to remove the evil and quiet the well-disposed ; and to bring to an end all those
irregularities (so far as his own countrymen are concerned) which have
disturbed the tranquil state of trade and the conduct of affairs.
It remains for him, however, to draw two or three points under your
Excellency's further consideration.
The grounds whereon the Undersigned has ventured to use the word "Pin"
on his addresses are these alone : —that by the rules of the Celestial Empire, all
subordinate officers make use of the word in their addresses to superior
officers, and that it is reasonable that he should conform to such usage.
With reference to your Excellency's direction, that hereafter, in any affairs
wherein he is concerned, commands shall continue to be received through the
medium of the senior Hong merchants, it would be his duty at once to conform
to this, were he not apprehensive that there may be affairs of importance, on
which he must continue to request instructions in reply to his addresses,
through the medium of the honourable officers. The Undersigned, looking not
merely to the passing moment, but anxiously seeking to set matters on a stable
and permanent footing, feels it for this reason necessary to renew this request,
in regard to matters of importance, seeing that such a mode of communication
must be essential to his being placed in a position to act.
To this end he has again troubled your Excellency, &c
(Signed) CHARLES ELLIOT.
Inclosure 12 in No. 137.
The Governor of Canton to Captain Elliot.
TANG, Governor of Kwangtung and Kwangse, &c, &c, commands the
Hong merchants, Howqua, Mowqua, and Pankequa, to make themselves fully
acquainted with the contents hereof.
On the 28th of December, 1838, the English Superintendent, Elliot, laid
before me the subjoined address.
[The address of December 28 (Inclosure 11) is here inserted.]
This address appearing before me, and being authenticated, I have given it
due consideration.
The Superintendent aforesaid had already, on a recent occasion, addressed
me in reference to the boats delaying to leave the river, and the difficulty he
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found in requiring their departure, and had solicited commands through the
Prefect and Commandant, in order that he might have authority for his pro
ceedings. I, the Governor, seeing that his request was dictated by a desire to
remove the bad and protect the well-disposed, did therefore break through the
rules, and assent to what he solicited.
With reference to the matter of his present address, as above stated, when
hereafter there shall be any really important matter, wherein it may be requisite
for the said Superintendent to act in concert, it will of course be fitting to
make an arrangement requiring the Prefect and Commandant aforesaid to give
him directions. For such matters as are of an ordinary nature, the old regu
lations still subsist, and, in conformity with them, commands must still be
received through the medium of the senior Hong merchants. The Super
intendent aforesaid must not indeed, in opposition to these regulations, make
any idle requests. I, the Governor, being intrusted with the scales of Govern
ment, can by no means make the established ordinances of the Celestial Empire
adapt themselves to the requests of men.
With reference to the boats aforesaid, which have so trifled with the laws
as still to protract their stay, the Superintendent has not, in his address, stated
what measures he has, in accordance with my commands, adopted for their
expulsion, or whether they have yet sailed or not.
I proceed to issue these commands to the senior Hong merchants aforesaid,
requiring them immediately to make faithful inquiry on this point, and to report