260
Review of Public Occurrences During the
MAY,
who prepare the drug for use, buying and selling by wholesale; and, also, that the native retail dealers in foreign commodities, under the open pretext of selling articles of commerce, make secret sinuggling their business, and in nowise differ from the larger preparers of the drug.
***There surely must be a fixed place of anchorage for the vessels of the fo. reigners: how then is it, that, while previous to the year 1821, the clandestine establishment of warehousing vessels was never heard of, these vessels have of late been suffered to remain for whole years at anchor on the high seas, thus leading to unlawful combination between them and natives, and to unrestrained smug- gling? Let it be the responsible duty of the governor of Kwangtung and his col- leagues, to give strict orders to the hong-merchants, to be enjoined on the resident foreigners of the said nation, requiring them to compel the warehousing vessels now anchored there, one and all, to return home, and not to permit them under any pretext to linger about. Let them also ascertain where are the dens and hiding-places of the opium-dealers, and inflict punishment on each individual, without the slightest indulgence. Thus the source of the evil may be closed up, and the spirit of contumacy suppressed. Let a copy of the memorial be, together with these commands, transmitted to Tang and Kí, and by them let the com- inands be enjoined on Wán. Respect this.'
"This having been with respectful obedience transmitted to us, the governor and lieutenant-governor, we have examined the subject. Opium is a poison capa- ble of destroying life; and the pure silver may not by law be exported. The aim and object of the foreign recciving-ships is gain alone; and by presuming for a long period to remain at anchor, enticing the natives and combining with them in clandestine traffic, those concerned in these ships have greatly infringed the laws of the celestial empire. Having respectfully received the above commands, we issued especial orders to the hong-merchants, requiring them earnestly and zeal. ously to enjoin the same on the said superintendent Elliot, and directing, that he should pay immediate obedience to the declared imperial pleasure; that he should send away home every one of the receiving vessels now anchored in the various offings, and should no longer suffer then to linger about as heretofore. This is on record.
"After thus doing, we successively received reports from the military com. mander at Tápang, from the sub-prefect at Macao, and from the civil and naval authoritios of Hiángshán, to the effect, that thero were twenty-five receiving-ves. sels anchored off the Motáu island (in Kapshuymún), as also in the offings of the Ninc islands and Cabreta point, and in the anchorage of the Typa; from which places they successively moved on the 29th and 30th days of August; and on the 2d and 3d of September, nineteen of the said receiving-ships proceeding from the Motáu islands to Tsienshátsuy offing, and two of them from the Nine islands, and one from off Cabreta point, to the same place; further, that on the 8th of Septeni. ber, two vessels moved from Tsienshátsuy to the Typa, and on the 9th, one from the same place to Cabreta point; while only a Dutch ship, which had in the year 1834, anchored off the Nine islands, and had at this time removed to Tsienshátsuy weighed anchor on the 7th, and proceeded to sea, beyond the great Ladrone islands. We also received a communication from the naval commander-in-chief to the same effect, adding that Tsienshátsuy is to the castward of Motáu; and sug- gesting the great necessity for driving off the numerous vessels which have now
aken up their anchorage there