346
Reriew of Public Occurrences During the
Jony,
The trade had been stopped in consequence of the seizure of opi- um at Canton, belonging to Mr. Innes. With reference to this and the opening of the trade, captain Elliot thus addressed the foreign secretary, viscount Palinerston, under date of January 2d.
"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 willful participation in the offense, 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 Hongkong
“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 com- merce, (having the governor's sanction for their conduct,) till effectual steps were taken for the suppression of this dangerous evil. Mindful of the embar- rassments which would ensue if his excellency (perceiving that all hope of inter- ference 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. I therefore desired the merchants to proceed directly to bis 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 faith fully endeavoring to restore a state of peaceful trade and intercourse, so I looked at his excellency's hands for reasonable countenance: and above all, for a just and dignified abstinence from measures of irritating pressure upon the general trade.
· Carefully considering the critical posture of those momentous interests con- fided to me. I resolved, as a preliminary measure, upon an appeal to the whole confinituity; not only with some hope that such a procceding 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 On the these practices, of the course which it was my determination to pursue. 15th
time, therefore, I convened a general meeting of all the foreign residents at Canton in this hall, and addressed them m the manner your lordship will find reported in the accompanying note, (See Chi. Rep., vol. VII., p. 452,) taken at the moment by my secretary. On the 18th. I promulgated the inclosed notice, (See Chi. Rep., vol. VII., p. 453,) and having ascertamed that the smuggling boats were still at Whampoa on the 23d, some of them wearing British ensigns and pendants - I addressed the accompanying note to his excellency the governor.
Sex Ciji Rep, vol VHF, p 19ò, fia an extract from this commequcation
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