CO129-059 - Sir Bowring - 1856 [11-12] — Page 208

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disguise

are

working upon the fears

of our better disposed and respectable

Chinese, whilst the freedom of our fort has filled our Chinese "tenements" with the vilest of

Chinese of all classes, and

seeing

that all the wealth of our Canton Merchants, as well as of some American and nearly all the

Parsee merchants, is lodged at present in How Mong's house

it is not

imprising

that those who have

nothing to lose, and every thing to gain, should

seize

the present

opportunity

to cause disturbance

in the hope of plunder; and it is less probable that our better disposed

Chinese Inhabitants have combined

under coercion to shut their Shops,

for they distinctly told me

yesterday that 4 or 500 bad men not belonging to Hongkong had threatened to break open their Shops, but they were not able to point them out

possibly

these

may be members of the Triad Society. Further inquiries will enable me to form some correct judgment of the real cause which has led to this grave opposition to legitimate Authority.

I am informed that one period

supposed to

yesterday the mob was consist of from 30 to 40,000, but