The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-03-20 00:00:00

par!iaincitt. HOUSE OF LORDS.-MONDAY, Many petitions were presented, chiefly on the subject of the Church of Scotland. The Earl of ABERDEEN said that he had received from Scotland several letters remonstrating with him for, as they alleged, preventing the Government from bringing forward some measure to settle that subject ; he wished to avail him self of this opportunity to declare that he had not ever made any such attempt; he certainly had urged the Government not to bring forward any proposition touching this question-, except after the maturest and most anxious consideration. Lord MELBOURNE bore testimony to the correctness of the noble earl's statement, adding that the Government was deeply impressed with the importance of the subject, and that no time would be lost in considering a remedial mea sure. The Marquis of LONDONDERRY moved for accounts, in continuation of those previously produced, respecting the quantity of stores supplied to the Government of Spain. the amount due for the same, &c., together with an account of the allowances made to various Spanish refugees, who, the noble marquis observed, were walking about the streets of London eating the bread of idleness, while members of the Spanish legion, to whom pay was due, were starving. The accounts were ordered. Lord ELLENBOROUGH said that he had seen the poor-law commissioners on the subject of his vaccination extension bill, and that they had made several valuable suggestions, which he desired to embody in the bill, and he therefore now only proposed to commit the bill pro forma, in order that the amendments might be introduced, and the bill, in its amend ed form, considered on a future day. The Bishop of LONDON stated that the clergy would be ready to promote the objects of this useful bill, and suggest ed that there should be some regulation to prevent unautho rised and incompetent persons from vaccinating or inocu lating. IRISH MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS. The Marquis of NORMANDY said he had a petition to pre sent from Liverpool in favour of the Irish municipal corpo ration bill. The petition was signed by the chairman only, the mayor of Liverpool, who presided at the meeting. At a subsequent period of the evening, immediately before the adjournment, The Earl of CHARLEY ILLS begged to call the attention of the noble Secretary of State for the Home Department to the fact that the petition, instead of being from the borough of Liverpool, was from Joshua Walmesley. The Marquis of NORMANDY said, if the noble earl had done him the honour to attend to what he had stated, he would have heard that the petition was signed by the mayor of Liverpool, the petition having been agreed upon at a pub lic meeting. The Earl of CH ARLEVILLE said that the mayor could not sign for the corporation, nor for the public meeting, conse quently the petition was to be regarded as the mayor's only. Lord .HOLLAN D said that it was quite usual for a chairman to sign a - petition on behalf of a meeting. It was perfectly true, however, that, technically speaking, it could only be received as the petition of one man. The Marquis of NORMANDY repeated what he had pre viously said. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said that he had recently presented a petition agreed to at a public meeting convened by the high sheriff, which was signed by the high sheriff only. The Marquis of WESTMEATH was gratified to find that thfill in question was inte n d e d f or th e benefit (reading from the petition) of " the intelligence, moral worth, and the pro perty of that part of the kingdom," and he hoped that when the bill was read a second time, the noble marquis opposite would be able to show that such was the object of the mea sure. If that were the case then he (Lord Westmeath) would give it his support. The Marquis of NORMAN BY said that it was for the noble marquis to put his own construction upon the words as ap plicable to Ireland. The Marquis of VtrusTmEA-rrt said be could not consider the back streets.and the back towns as being places where " the intelligence, moral worth, and propeny" were most to be found. The conversation then dropped. Some further petitions having been presented, their lord ships adjourned. In the Commons their was " no house." HOUSE OF LORDS.-TUESDAY THE CHURCH OF SCOTLAND. On the presentation of petitions regarding the church of Scotland, The Earl of GALLOWAY said, that lie could not avoid (after the conversation between the Earl of Aberdeen and Lord Melbourne, on Monday) repeating his complaint re specting the delay on the part of the government in bringing forward a measure to conciliate the dissensions now agitating Scotland from one end of it to the other. Be had abstained from proposing, and he was willing to leave - the matter with the government. But he assured their lordships that it was necessary for the legislature to take some steps for the pur pose of reconciling the authority of the courts of law and the rights of the proprietors, with the interests of the church, and the proper exercise of clerical authority. His lordship added that he regretted to see many of the clergy of the Scotch church resorting to the same unworthy means of agitation by which the Roman Catholic clergy had acquired so much notoriety. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE said, that neither the noble earl nor any other person was justified in supposing that, because the government had delayed to bring forward a measure, there was any delay whatever in its consideration. On the contrary, that consideration was given to it at an early period ; and it was only the great importance of the question and the circumstances that had prevented the go vernment from bringing the measure forward. He would much rather incur, on the part of the government, the re proach of delay, than that of launching precipitously upon it before they had made themselves acquainted with the opi nions and circumstances connected with the transactions in Scotland on the subject. The Earl of ABERDEEN expressed a hope that the govern ment would bear in mind that an important event, with re spect to the fate of any measure, would take place in the month of May, when the general assembly met ; and it was of essential importance that the measure, it it were to be introduced, should be considered before their meeting. The Marquis of LANSDOWNE explained that he had not stated that the Government had decided upon bringing for ward a measure, but that they would speedily decide whether or not they would do so. Lord ELLENBOROUGH moved that the registrar-general of deaths, births, and marriages in London, &c., should pre sent a report of the number of persons who had died of the small-pox in the year 1839.—Ordered. RECORDS OF THE EXCHEQUER. Lord NIONTEAGLE begged to remark, that. in answer to a question put to him on a former night, none of the Exchequer records destroyed by order of the late Comptroller of the Exchequer were of the least importance. They were papers of a class which, having been used as temporary re cords, had usually been sold as waste paper. To that prac tice an end was put, and it was considered preferable to destroy the documents when they were no longer useful. Lord REDESDALE repeated his regret that the papers were destroyed, because, although they might be of little value to the Comptroller of the Exchequer, many people would be desirous of possessing them, even at a higher price than waste paper. Their lordships then adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS-TUESDAY , PRINTED PAPERS. FRESHFIELD presented a petition from 757 solicitors, praying the house to agree to no measure respecting printed papers that would injure their rights, or interfere with the administration of justice. Sir R. INGLIS presented a petition from the printers of two morning newspapers, praying that the proposed " summary protection" of the printers to the house might also be ex tended to the journals that might reprint the reports. &c. of Parliament. Mr. CRAWFORD presented a petition for inquiry into the destruction of " opium," in March last, by the Chinese authorities ; and afterwards said he should on the 24th, move that it be referred to a committee. Lord MORPETH presented (among various s others) a peti tion from s ome par i s h i n I re l an d , t h e pecu liarity of which was, that it was written, not in prose, but verse ! The sub ject of this poetry was the distress of Ireland, and a lamen tation on the state of that country. Mr. F. MAULE presented the county constabulary act amendment bill, which was ordered to be printed. On motion of Sir T. FREEMANTLE, a new writ was issued for the county of Inverness, in the room of Mr. Grant, deceased. Mr. THORNELY (in the absence of Mr. Villiers) gave notice that the latter would, on Tuesday, the 31st inst., move a committee of the whole house respecting the im portation of foreign corn. Mr. G. KNIGHT gave notice that, on going into com mittee on the county constabulary act amendment bill, he should propose a clause, to the effect that one-fourth of the expenses of the constabulary be paid out of the consolidated fund. Lord MoneF.Tn announced his intention, on Thursday, to move for leave to bring in a bill for the suppression of mendicancy in Ireland. Lord J. RUSSELL stated that he should, on Monday, pre sent the clergy reserves bill, which had passed the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada ; and that he should then move for leave to bring in a bill for the union of Upper and Lower Canada. He should, at the same time, move the consider ation of the papers laid on the table of the house respecting the affairs of those provinces. In answer to a question from Mr. Leader, Lord J. RUSSELL said that the Chief Justice of Upper Canada had received notice of the necessity of his return to his duties, his leave of absence having expired. That indi vidual had stated that he should be ready to leave England about the middle of April. Meanwhile his duties had been performed by the other judges, and during his absence he had received half salary, according to the usual rule in such cases. Sir H. VIVIAN (in answer to a question from Lord G. Lennox) stated that the report of the naval and military com mission had not been presented, in consequence of the Duke of Wellington's recent lamented illness, but that now it would be soon ready. Lord J. RUSSELL (in answer to Mr. Goring) repeated his announcement, that the poor law commission bill would be introduced and printed before the Easter recess. Lord J. RUSSELL (in answer to Lord Castlereagh) said that he was not prepared to state whether the government would bring forward any measure on the subject of non-in trusion, but he would give the required information in a few days. He then postponed for a fortnight the second reading of the ecclesiastical duties and revenues bill, in order to ob tain the sanction of the Archbishop of Canterbury and other dignitaries of the church, before it was again brought forward. Mr. STEWAIIT having brought up the report on the printed papers bill, Sir E. SUGDEN moved a clause, which was to the effect, that if any process of law should be put an end to under the provisions of that bill, any person or persons who might have been committed by either House of Parliament as guilty of contempt for having brought, or having been concerned in bringing such actions, should, on such actions or processes being put an end to under the provisions of the bill, be im mediately discharged by the house, by which such individual had been committed. After a few observations from Lord J. RUSSELL and Sir R. INGLIS, the clause was negatived without a division. The report was thereupon agreed to, and the bill is to be read a third time on Friday. Sir E. SUGOEN stated that he had received a letter from Mr. Howard, setting forth that he had brought the action against the officers of the House for " excess' in the execu tion of the orders g i ven t h em . The Mutiny and Marine Mutiny Bills severally went through committee. 31r. - WALLAcE moved for a series of papers regarding the Glasgow University " Peel Club," but he eventually with drew the motion. Lord CHARLES FITZROY moved fora copy of the despatch to the Lord High Commissioner of the lonian islands, from the Colonial-office, conveying an order for the dissolution of the Legislative Assembly of those islands, in October last, on account of a difference between that body and the Senate, relative to the Bth article, 3d section, chap. 6, of the con stitution, under which the Legislative Assembly claimed a right, independent of the Senate. Mr. C. SMITH said there was no objection to produce that document, but not the other papers alluded to by the noble lord in his speech. Motion agreed to. Mr. J. ELLIS had a notice of motion to call the attention of the House to the political and commercial relations of this country, as they ate affected by the present state of the city of Cracow but on being called he did not answer to his name, so that the motion is " dropped" for the present. Mr. WAKLEY moved the appointment of a select Com mittee to inquire into any measures which have been adopted for carrying into effect, in the county of Middlesex, the provisions of 1 Vic. c. 68, and also into any proceedings of the justices of the peace in relation to the " office of coroner". in the said county. It was carried on a division of 31 ayes, 17 noes—majority 14 ; but with the amendment, that the inquiry should be extended to all the counties. The Tithe Commutation Act Amendment Bill went through committee with some amendments, after which the House adjourned early. HOUSE OF LORDS.—WEDNESDAY The House of Lords did not sit. HOUSE OF COMMONS.-WEDNESDAY The Commons met, and sat for about two hours, chiefly for the sake of receiving petitions. Mr. HoDGEs gave notice, that he should, on the 24th of this.month, move for leave to bring in a bill to render effici ent the ancient constabulary system of England and Wales. Captain BOLDER() gave notice, that he should, when the Ordnance estimates came under the consideration of the house, call the attention of the Master-General to the state of discipline in the Military College at Woolwich. Mr. PzGorr gave notice, that he should to-morrow (this day) move for leave to bring in a bill to amend the Irish Tithe Act. Mr. SHAW, in reference to the commissions—one naval, the other composed of civil engineers —which had been ap pointed to inquire into the communication between London and Dublin, wished to know why it was that the naval report, understood to have been already made upon this subject, had not been laid upon the table of the House? Lord MoRPETH said he would make inquiries on the subject. • On the motion of Mr. E. TENNENT, the Administration of Justice (Ireland) Bill was read a second time, and ordered to be committed. Mr. PIISEY moved the second reading of the Settled Estates Drainage Bill. After some remarks and suggestions by Sir E. SuuDEN, Mr. LYNCH, and others, the bill was read a second time, and ordered to be referred to a select committee. The Mutiny Bill was ordered to be read a third time on Thursdn y (yesterday). The Union Workhouses Bill went through a committee. The Prisons Bill was ordered to be recommitted on Monday next. The report of the Tithe Commutation Act Amendment Bill was received, and the House adjourned at the early hour of a quarter past six. COURT CIRCULAR.-TUESDAY. The Queen had a dinner party yesterday at Buckingham Palace. The company consisted of her royal highness the Duchess of Kent, his serene highness the hereditary Prince of Saxe Coburg- and Gotha, Baron Bulow, the Prussian mini ster; Duke and Duchess of Beaufort, Lady Augusta Somer set, Marquis of Normanby, Earl and Countess of Erroll, Lady Ida Hay, Earl of Uxbridge, Earl of Surrey, Viscount and Viscountess Beresford, Viscount Melbourne, Lord Hill, Lord and Lady Seymour, Lord Foley, Lord Robert Gros venor, Lord G. Lennox, Hon. Col. Cavendish, Hon. Miss Cavendish, Mr. G. E. Anson, Lady Barham, Hon. Louisa Noel, Lady Fanny Howard, Hon. Miss Murray, Hon. Miss Lister, Baroness Lehzen, Lord Lilford, Col. Armstrong, Col. Weyinss, Col. Wilde, Baron de Lowenfels. and Baron de Gruben. The Coldstream band attended during dinner. WEDNESDAY. The Queen and Prince Albert honoured the Haymarket Theatre with their presence last evening. The royal suite included the Dowager Lady Lyttleton, Earl of Fingall, Hon. William Cowper, Col. Wemyss, and Col. Wylde. Viscount Melbourne and Lord Hill had audiences, yester day, of her Majesty. The Dowager Lady Lyttleton has succeeded Lady Bar ham, as the Lady in Waiting on the Queen ; and the Earl of Fingall and the Hon. William Cowper have succeeded Lord Lilford and Col. Armstrong as the Lord and Groom in Waiting on her Majesty. The Marquis of Douro, and Lord and Lady Ashley, were among the company at the Queen's evening party on Mon day at Buckingham Palace. The Princess Augusta visited the Duchess of Gloucester, yesterday, at Gloucester House, and the Duchess of Cam- Midge, at Cambridge House. - - • Her Majesty had afterwards an evening party. Among the company were Baron de Nieurnann, the Austrian Minis ter. on a special mission; and Baron de Lebzeltern, Baron Brunow, on a special mission from Russia ; and Count Nesselrode, Duke and Duchess of Sutherland, and the Ladies Gower, the Lord Chancellor, Lady Cottenham. and the Hon. Miss Pepys, Marquis and Marchioness of Ailesbury, Marquis of Anglesy, and Lady M. Paget, Countess Stan hope, and Lady E. Stanhope ; Earl and Countess of Minto and the Ladies Elliot; Countess of Cawder and the Ladies Campbell ; Countess of Uxbridge and the Ladies Eleanora and Constance Paget; Countess of Surrey and Lady How ard ; Earl and Countess of Verulain and Lady M. Grin►ston ; Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston, Lady Francis Cow per, Viscount Morpeth, Viscountess Forbes, Mr. Vaughan, Lord and Lady Worsley, Lord Leveson, Lord George Paget, Lord Alfred ;Paget, Lord Dalmeny, Hon. Mrs. (George) Anson, Hon. William Cowper, Mr. Berkeley Paget, Hon. Miss Paget, Hon. Charles Howard, and Mr. Methen. \Veippart's Royal Quadrille Band and her Majesty's Chamber Band were in attendance during the night. The Princess Augusta visited the Queen yesterday. Her Royal Highness also visited the Duchess of Gloucester, yes terday. Viscount Melbourne had an audience of her Malesty, yes terday. Her Majesty was graciously pleased to sit to Mr. Hayter, yesterday, in the full costume worn at the royal marriage. His Serene Highness the Hereditary Prince of Saxe Cobikrg Gotha also sat fur the same picture. THURSDAY. The Queen held a levee yesterday afternoon at St. James's Palace. Her Majesty and Prince Albert, attended by their suite, arrived from Buckingham Palace, escorted by a party of the Royal Regiment of Horse Guards. In waiting were the Mistress of the Robes, the Dowager Lady Lyttelton, Lady of the Bedchamber in Waiting; the Earl of Fingall, Lord in Waiting, and Lord Robert Grosvenor, Groom of the Stole to Prince Albert; the Hon. William. Cowper, Groom in Waiting; Colonel Wemyss, Equerry in Waiting; Colonel Wylde, Equerry to Prince Albert ; Mr. Seymour, Groom of the Bedchamber to Prince Albert; and Master Chichester and Master Byng, Pages of Honour in waiting on the Queen. His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge was present at the levee. WOODSTOCK ELECTION. (From the Morning Herald.) WOODSTOCK, MONDAY, MARCH 16.—The radical party, not of the borough, for such a thing is now almost unknown here, but of the neighbourhood, have been making an insi dious attempt to get up an opposition to Mr. Thesiger ; but as, in the case of Lewes, after seeing hopelessness of their design, they have entirely abandoned the field, and the learned gentleman is now left to " walk over." During the last week several secret emissaries from well-known quarters have been seen prowling about the borough, sounding the few electors who are now supposed to profess liberal principles ; but their disappearance was as sudden and noiseless as their entrance. One gentleman, a radical attorney from Bicester, appeared to abandon the project with more reluctance than the others, and during his experiments threw out several mysterious hints concerning the dignity, opulence, and great political in fluence of the source from whence he derived his mission ; but finding that the bait would not take, he too left the town, shocked at the manifest want of sensibility which the elec tors evinced for their own interests. The election is ap pointed by the mayor to take place on Friday, when of course Mr. Thesiger will be returned without opposition. Without testifying any unbecoming want of respect for the memory of the late Duke of Marlborough, the townspeople of Wood stock regard the accession of the present possessor of the title as the harbinger of renewed prosperity for the borough, which, during the existence of the late duke, owing to cir cumstances, the recollection of which is now buried with his remains, was allowed to dwindle into a state of almost com parative desertion and decay. Estimates have been already received, it is credibly stated, for making repairs at Blen heim Palace, on a scale worthy that princely mansion, and the dignity of its possessor ; and the festivities of the noble and the great are soon expected to resound once more through its lordly halls. That the return of Mr. The siger for Woodstock is owing to the principles he professes, and not merely that he has the countenance or support of the Duke of Marlborough, is clearly established by the fact that at the last election the conservative candidate was tri umphantly returned, notwithstanding that his opponent was backed and supported by all the influence which the late Duke could bring to the contest. The constituency of Wood stock is at present almost to a man conservative, and the re sult of its elections no longer depends on the possessor of the soil. The interment of the late Duke took place at the family vault on Friday last. The remains were attended to the grave by his grace the present Duke and his sons, the eldest, now the Marquis of Blandford ; Lord A. S. Church hill, and Lord A. Spence, as chief mourners. The mayor and members of the corporation, who were in mourning, joined in the procession. The service was performed in a solemn and impressive manner by the Rev. Mr. Carlisle, curate of Woodstock. Yesterday his grace, accompanied by his family, attended Divine service at Woodstock church, when most of the inhabitants, as a mark of respect, and to evince their sympathy, were in attendance. The Rev. Dr. Bowles, who has Just got possession of the living, officiated on the occasion. m f ‘ F il r c o u ni. ls th - e —T Co h u e ri e e l i e ' OODSTOCK, W . c ) tion for this borough is appointed to take place on . Fri • day next, when Mr. Thes siger (who has just c • ompleted a most successful canvass) will W be elected with ou t oppos i t i on. com pletely extinct here, and beenindeedhas 7inggisin is now but the influence of th e l a t e D u k e of for some time past, Marlborough served to keep alive a mere flickerin g o f opposition against the princi ples of conservatism generally entertained in tl •le borough. The present duke is exceedingly popular with all classes here, and the inhabitants look forward with the most sanguine ex pectations for increased prosperity t o th e i r borougli;* gra ce's accession to the title. A s th e Marquis of 11l his iid ford, he was distinguished in the neighbourhood by the designation of the " Poor Man's Magistrate," and the qua lities which recommended hint to this distinction are not likely to be lessened by the increased power and facilities which he will possess of fostering and protecting the interests of the poorer classes. This morning his grace, accompanied by his sons, the present Marquis of Blandford, Lord A. S. Churchill, and Lord A. Spencer, attended Divine service at Woodstock church, which was hung with black cloth for the occasion. The officiating clergyman was the Rev. Dr. Bowles, the new incumbent (successor to the late Rev. Dr. Mayor), who preached his first sermon on taking possession of the living, which was highly eloquent, solemn, and im pressive. The mayor and corporation went in procession (in mourning) to church in the same order as they attended the funeral of the late duke on Friday last. The funeral might be said to be a private one, although a vast number of spec= tutors were admitted to the park to view the-procession. departure Lindsay, tureforti so ie nof the E continent, INi a te rl re of Bal bisl c o a i r .d r s a h s i , p ha p s u t r a p k o e s n es liis to make a tour of several months. RAISING OF THE TYRIAN. —DISCOVERY OF THE Bo- DIES.—On Friday morning another attempt was made to raise this u n f ortunate vessel, and an extra lighter having been granted by the Lords of the Admiralty for that purpose, the attempt was successful. The four lighters were attached to the Tyrian early in the morning, and at flood tide they were towed up the river as far as Grays, where the Tyrian was placed near the north shore, and in a spot where it is expected her cargo will b e got out. On the return of the tide persons were enabled to get on board, but only at low water, and even then the tide nearly made over the deck. It being impossible to effect an entrance into the forecastle, where the bodies of the five unfortunate sufferers lay, owing to the vessel being full of water, a staff was thrust into the cabin, and it succeeded in dragging out the bodies of Mr. Sheen and one of the cabin boys. The bodies were not in the least mutilated or disfigured, but in an excellent state of preservation. The former was dressed, and on his person was found a brace of pistols, with " Sheen" engraved on them. The bodies were conveyed to Gravesend. Yesterday morning two more of the bodies were got out of the vessel, and taken to Gravesend, where the inquest will be held to morrow.—Standard of Monday. THE EXTINCTION OF SLWERY, A. LETTER, addressed to the Imperial Parliament, on the subject of the EXTINCTION OF SLAVERY, and the only practical method of effecting that most desirable object, with a glance at the proposed Niger Expedition of Lord John Russell. London, March 10, 1840. • MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN,—The Abolition of Slavery in the British colonial possessions'at the cost to the Govern ment of X 20,000,000. sterling, a cost which, however great, no Englishman for one moment regrets, and a sacrifice on the part of the Colonists, to several times that amount, was never intended, by, either party.as a bonus to other nations, where Slavery is openly tolerated, and the atrocities of the Slave trade encouraged—and yet such has been the result. The horrors of the middle passage are coqfessedly fivefold greater.than heretofore ! the importation of African Slaves into the Rrazils, Cuba, and even the United States of Ame rica, has increased in a fearful ratio, notwithstanding the ex penditure by England of £25,000,000. since the year 1808, with the view of suppressing it ; and this increase must go on as long as the present commercial system prevails. Lord John Russell admits the incalculable magnitude of the evil—the injuries it inflicts on the lawful commerce of the country—the constant expense incurred in the employ ment of ships of war for the suppression of it—and the an nual sacrifice of many valuable lives in the service. And how does he propose to remedy this crying evil?—by placing the axe at the root of the tree?—by a practical and states manlike view of the evil and its remedies! No ! but by re commending a further primary outlay of 415,000. and an andual charge of £10,546. for the purpose of sending an ex pedition to the Niger !! • Lord John ad►nits, somewhat sotto voce, that the average number of Slaves introduced into Foreign States, or colonies in America and the 'West Indies, from the western coast of Africa, annually exceeds 100,000 ; double that number would be nearer the truth. And with this fact staring him in the face, he calmly proposes to remedy the evil by an expedition to the Niger ! Now I am prepared to maintain that the check offered to this debasing traffic, by three vessels and a complement of one hundred and fifty-five men, would not only be utterly useless, but immeasurably increase the evil. The obstacles thrown in the way of the native chieftains in the disposal of their captives would lead to increaeed vigilance and cruelty; whilst the activity of the owners of slave-ships would be doubled. It is an established fact that every species of ille gal traffic receives a powerful and constant impulse from the hope of large and quick returns, and the greater the restric tions placed upon it, the more active and numerous are the speculators ; and when, to this is added the equally notorious truth, that .the minds of those who engage in the peculiar trade unde►'consideration, are wretchedly demoralised; that the grand and eternal distinctions of right-and wrong are scarcely recognised by them ; that God is o►►ly known as a God of wood or stone, the work of men's hands ;—that a fu ture state is never thought of—can we expect that an " ex pedition to the Niger ° is to work a miracle, and three steamboats civilize a continent? But suppose for a moment that this Utopian scheme were commenced—that the expedition had successfully reached its destination—how, I ask, are the native kings, or heads of tribes, to be convinced that this traffic, when correctly under stood, is opposed to their own interests? I confess, that at the first blush, the perusal of this portion of Lord John Russell's scheme, looked well ; but when, upon reflection, I calculated the ages it would take to impress upon the preju diced minds of opinionated and independent chiefs, commer cial ideas directly at variance with all they had previously entertained ; when I call to mind the natural character of the African, with which I had, after several years' • study, be come somewhat conversant,—the futility of the scheme be came at once apparent, and the necessity of adopting a more speedy and feasible extinction of the horrors of slavery forced itself upon my mind. It is all very well to talk or write of establishing " new .commereial relations with those African chiefs or powers, within whose dominions the internal Slave Trade of Africa is carried on, and the external Slave Trade supplied with its victims." There is little doubt but diplomatists may be found capable of beguiling these barbarous people, and appa rently convincing them that the Slave Trade is injurious to their interests. A present of articles, either useful or attrac tive, would, fur the time, no doubt, conciliate a favourable hearing for our ambassadors. But let the novelty once pass away ; and immediately their acquiescence in our views would vanish. And the probabilities are, that of those whom the climate had spared, the majority would become victims to the vengeance of disappointed hopes. But, it may be said, the majesty of the British nation would never suffer itself to be insulted by negro chieftains ! I believe it. The African navy is not quite so powerful as that of Russia, France, or America. Still, however, the question will force itself upon public attention. What has the expedition to the Niger effected ?—An African war !—a sequel to the Chinese ! ! What then remains to be done ; How is the abomination to be checked ? At all hazards, slavery having been abo lished at an immense sacrifice in the British dominions, this empire cannot permit itself to countenance the evil in other countries. This is the very point to which it is desired to direct attention of the imperial parliament. The object of emancipation was not to injure the planter, but protect the negro ; not to encourage the slave trade amongst other na tions, but to relieve Great Britain from the stigma of traffick ing in human blood; not to increase the horrors of the middle passage, but to foster the seeds of freedom and the better feelings of our nature in 6:ay portion of the British empire; not to increase the revlnue*of Rrazil, Cuba, or the slave States of America, by thotacriti6e of our own colonies, but to elevate our national character. In one and all of these a signal failure is apparent. The planter has severely suffered,—the British possessions, for want of free labourers, are fast going tb decay—the Foreign slave trade is rapidly on the increase,--the middle passage is fraught with aggravated horrors,—the slave states in all parts of the world are reapini , a golden harvest,—and the British government is laughed at for its vapouring ; which laughter will not be diminished, when the declaration of Lord John Russell, in his manifesto, is read, viz.: that " to repress the Foreign slave trade by a marine guard, would scarcely be possible, if the whole British navy could be em ployed for that purpose." Is the case, then, hopeless?—By no means. The remedy is in the hands of government,—a remedy at once simple and efficacious. It is manifest that the demand for Slaves must absolutely depend upon the remunerating profit derived from their labours. Destroy the sources of this profit, and you at once destroy the necessity of supplying the market with additional slave labour. The plan, then, that I would sug gest, is, that no article of commerce raised by Slave-la bour be, under any pretence whatever, admitted into the dominions of Great Britain. Close the ports against sugar, ruin, coffee, cotton, &c. &c. cultivated by slaves, and the death-blow of the slave trade is at once struck ; and the speedy emancipation of the entire negro race secured. It may be argued, that with respect to cotton, we am not at present capable of supplying our manufactories, without having recourse to the slave states of America ; but this is a most powerful argument in favour of free emigration —as no one has ventured to state that the British colonies are in capable of producing cotton, not only sufficient for our own market, but the entire continent of Europe. Free labour, therefore, is alone required. It may here, perhaps, be asked, whether in our commer cial relations with slave countries we should not materially suffer by taking such decided steps? To this I emphatically answer, no. The encouragement of free emigration into our own colonies would restore more than counterbalance any dis advantages that might be anticipated ; first by the increased impetus given to our cultivation in the West Indies and the Mauritius; and secondly, by the additional supplies demanded from this country to meet the daily augmenting wants of a growing population, which will be readily con ceded, when the remark of Mr. Scobell, of the Anti- Slavery Society, is borne in mind, that British Guiana alone is capable of sustaining a population of ,forty millions! although the present population does not ex ceed 100,000, being at the rate of a single indivi dual to each square mile. Besides, it appears to me, that under no circumstances could such a question he entertained. To relieve ourselves from what we considered a foul blot upon the national character,' £20,000,000 were cheerfully expended. Shall we expend ten times that sum to encourage slavery in other states ? Is our philanthropy to be confined within the limits of our empire ? is slavery less abomi nable in Brazil than Barbadoes ? or is the humanity of the Spanish master superior to that of the British. Such shallow reasoning will not bear the light. During the agitation for negro emancipation, many well-meaning people abstained from the consumption of West India produce, from an idea that they we're encouraging slavery. Let the nation at large adopt the philanthropic sentiment. Let an absolute veto be put upon the introduction of slave produce. Let the slave trade be declared piracy ; and the utmost rigour of the law be invariably and irrespectively enforced. Let the ini portation of free labourers be encouraged under proper regu lations, especially from thoseparts of the globe where the cli mate may appear most similar to that of the British colonies, and consequently where the effects of a change of locality would be scarcely, if at all, perceptible—and then, my lords and gentlemen, twenty millions will not have been expended in vain ! Slavery will effectually be eradicated : and the pros perity of the British colonies established upon a basis, which no future events are likely to sh a ke, an d th e r i g ht nind of the British power, at present -almost withered, will be re stored to its original strength and vigour. The subject might here be safely left to the calm and dis passionate judgment of the legislature ; but there are one or two other points suggested by the proposed " expedition to the Niger," which appeared to have been hitherto overlooked —notwithstanding their paramount importance, in a moral as well as a commercial point of view, to which it is desirable to direct public attention. The change in the condition of the coloured population, when fully developed, will exhibit to the world a vast body of people, who as they become enlightened, will naturally turn their thoughts to the country from which they originally came. It is then of the first importance, that their educa tion should be of a nature calculated to make their renewed connexion with Africa, which must one day take place, mo rally and politically advantageous. The present religious state of the West Indies appears to afford peculiar facilities for carrying out this object. In every parish the minister might be instructed to prepare one or more of the intelligent negroes for the office of a missionary, which plan, if adopted in every colony, would secure the set vices of from two to three hundred individuals, properly educated for this impot tant duty ; whilst Codrington College at Barbados might be rendered available for giving additional authority to the ne gro teachers who displayed any striking ability ; and thus the African continent would in a few years be supplied with a body of missionaries, who, from their physical powers, their congenial habits, and complexions, are calculated to promote the cause of the Gbspel, and consequently of civilisa tion, in that benighted nuarter:of the globe, to an extent that has never hitherto been contemplated. Whilst the better to effect this object, a direct communi cation between Africa and the West Indies, a merely ten days' voyage by steam, might be immediately opened ; free emigra tion encouraged; the West Indies become the residence of an industrious and contented free population, capable of supply inghn biinnosuat et: expeditiond e ea non w ar o Lrvol wasting sertddi withgnjtoot theer promotingr Nt y i ni gitropicalee,r Russell'st s iiaalr p cno r re o s: d fitmcd u iye c ns t raisedolibt.edl desirable steam-boats naidni btbdpeyerrGfeoropeeunee property, tsl benefi ciallyeaye nd g Gentle men, your obedient servant, AN ENEMY TO THE SLAVE TRADE AND SLAVE PRODUCE. The Dowager Countess Cowper, recently united to Vis count Palmerston, does not , i , n_te r n c d ou to retain her rank. Her 1 i e ar i e te ei s la P h a le l sailed, and the d m Palmerston." t l o o n y . g rre t e rit s i t s a i t i ho, ladyship's cards are printed ' before are yet to sail, for l a u n mi on the . coast of EXPEDITION TO CHINA.-1 the e r preuardpeorsSet of t i . s I NV .in e d ek ica a ti c i o l the vessels which have already particulars of China. The Blenheim, 74 guns, sailed direct Portsmouth, l 7th February ; Melville, 4 for China from Cape; Wellesley, 74 guns, from the Inian station;u", from the 46, direct from Plymouth, 26th February ; Druid, Blonde, the Cape vier/ Sydney, sth November ; Plyades, 18 48, from from Plymouth, on the 23d February; Nimrod,' 20,; direct Plymouth, on the 24th February (with duplicate instructions from for Admiral Elliot); Modeste, iB, from the Cape, • I nc ions ..)t i Nov.; Wanderer, 18, sailed for the Cape, 12th Feb., f rom ' ' Ply mouth, with orders to Admiral Elliot to proceed with all lift corvettes and take the command in China. Besides these ships, another 74 has been dispatched. AtPortsmouth there are now waiting orders, the Pique, 38 ; Andromache, 28 ; 10 vessels from the Indian station, from 18 to 28 gulls each, part of the Indian navy ; 2 vessels from the Cape station, 18 guns each ; 2 from the South American station, 18 and 28 guns each ; 2 from the New South Wales station, 15 to 28 guns each ; 2 large steamers, supposed to be the Sesostris and Queen.—Coinnzercial Journal. SKETCH OF THE CHINESE EMPIRE, AND PARTICULARLY OP THE SEAT OF WITH A VIEW OF THE W A It . RISE AND PROGRESS OF THE DISPUTE THAT HAS LED TO THE SUSPENSION OF BRITISH INTERCOURSE WITH CANTON. CONCLUDED FROM OUR LAST PUBLICATION (Accompanied by a Chart of the Canton or Tigris River.) NAN-KING. This city . is situated in lat. 23 deg. 7 min. N., and long. 113 deg.-15 min. E. of Greenwich, in the district of Keung ning-foo, province of Keung-soo. The principal products of this part of the country are grain, cotton, green teas, and silk, besides other's of less value. Here the inhabitants ex cel all their countrymen in the manufacture of silks, cotton cloth, embroidery, &c. They arc, however, represented as effeminate, and devoted to luxury ; and,' rich as are the pro ducts of the soil, an overcrowded population exhausts every resource, so that the visitations of famine in all its horrors are by no means unfrequent. Nan-king was once the capital of the empire, but is now considered as the southern metro polis only. It is situated a league distant from the fine river Yang-tze-keang, in the centre of China, and well adapted for the capital of a large empire. Its walls are said to be 32 miles in circumference. Scarcely two-thirds of the area within this circumvallation are inhabited, a great part being laid out in fields and gardens. The city suffered much dur ing the Tartar invasion, and in the war with the pirates of Foke.i.;n, who laid siege to it in their turn. The streets are narrow, and the public buildings bear traces of decay ; but the gates are still magnificent, and the far-famed porcelain tower is still an object of wonder and admiration. This pa goda, or temple, stands outside the city. "It is (says Gutz luff) raised on a massive basement of brick, and surrounded with a rail of unpolished marble. Ten or twelve steps lead to the nethermost hall, the floor of which stands one foot higher than the basis, and leaves a little walk, two feet wide, all round. The front of this temple is adorned with a gal lery and a few pillars; the roof is double,. and covered with green glazed tiles, which give the whole a very brilliant ap pearance, especially when the rays of the sun are reflected upon it. The hall itself is of an octangular form, 40 feet wide, surrounded with a wall, supporting the tower on one side. The tower is 9 stories high, every story smaller than that below it, and the whole about 200 feet in height, to the summit of which leads a spiral staircase of 190 steps. Each story is made up of thick pieces of timber laid cross-wise, the ceiling being adorned with paintings, the numerous niches with idols, and the outer cornices and pent-houses with bells, which emit, when the wind blows. a very pleasing chime. From the eighth story the cupola (or spiral part) rises from the top of the tower, but no steps lead to it. A piece of iron runs in a spiral form on its top is placed a large gold ball, in the shape of a pine-apple. The material of which the tower is constructed, and the neatness with which the whole is joined, make it appear as if it were made of , a single piece. Its height and commanding situation have greatly increased its tame, as the noblest work of Chinese architecture. The sub stance itself resembles'our earthenware, and the glazing is so well fixed that it has stood the test of four centurieT and still looks beautiful." This pagoda was built by a scion of the imperial clan of Ming, and is called Paon-gan-sze, or pagoda of gratitude; it being customary for rich men who have ob tinned an imaginary favour from their idol, either to build a pagoda, or procure one to be nuilt by joint subscription. • A league distant stands the ancient observatory, in which there are a few instruments, which the Chinese were probably taught to construct by the Arabs, who flourished under the )(mien dynasty, as astronomers. This building is, however, neglected, and is falling into ruins, as are also the splendid sepulchres of the emperors. The satins of Nan-king are celebrated, their beauty never having been surpassed by our home manufacture. Excellent ink is also made here, and the inhabitants excel in the art of printing, the making of rice paper, &c. The number of in habitants does not appear to be ascertained ; but, though the city has lost much of its former splendour, when it was the seat of government, it is still very populous, and maintains the rank of a maritime emporium —its commerce, however, being chiefly confined to the rivers and canals. CANTON, AND THE RIVER TIGRIS. This city is situated in the province of Kwang-Tung, (called by Europeans " Canton,") which is of all others best known to foreigners. The area of the province is 79,456 square miles, and it has a population of 19,174,030. A viceroy is the first officer. The city is by the Chinese commonly called Sang-ching, or " the provincial capital." It is situated on the north bank of the Canton or Tigris river, and is built somewhat in the form of a square, as will be seen by reference to the accompanying plan. The square de scribed by the walls is intersected by a wall running east and west •, and the division on the north, which is the largest, is called the old, or Tartar city •, while the smaller, on the south, is called the new, or Chinese city. Both together are about six miles in circumference, and there are twelve gates in the outer walls, and four in the intersecting one. The suburbs are still more extensive than the city. "On the west," says China Opened, " they spread out in the form of isosceles right-angled triangles, opening to the north west, having the river on the south, and the western wall of the city for its equal sides. On the south they occupy the whole space between the wall and the river. The eastern suburbs are less extensive. The streets and canals are very numerous, and the river, which, near the city, has some large rocks in its centre, visible at low water, is covered with boats of every description. Most of the dwellings are built of brick ; the houses of the poor, and a great many of those belonging to their Tartar lords, consist of mud. Many of the streets are very narrow, the houses low, and, if belonging indi v id ua l s , to rich surrounded by a wall, through which we pass to th e house. Opulent indivi duals live in large buildings, like Chinese palaces. On the roofs are terraces which serve the double purpose of drying clothes and walking." A strict watch is kept in the streets during the night, and there are bamboo towers on the roofs, whence alarm of fire or other accident may be readily given. The police require to be vigilant, so numerous are the robbers and vagrants. There are 30 colleges for pro moting learning, but only a few students The Budhuists, who have also maintained their sway over the city, have here numerous temples, of which the Hae-chwang-sze, on Ho-man Island is the highest. "It has three colossal statues, repre senting the three Budiets of the past, present, and future, and an immense number of smaller idols, all gilt or gorge ously decorated, and a row of apartments for 175 priests. Here, too, is the marsoleum where the ashes of the deceased saints are annually deposited. To a foreigner, a sacred pig stye, with more than ten fat and old grunters, is; perhaps, the greatest curiosity." There are about 124 other temples in and about Canton, and, adds our author, "the number of priests is said to amount to 3,000, and of the nuns to 1,000, and the maintenance of these pernicious establishments is said to exceed annually one million of dollars. There is also a mosque in the city for the accommodation of 30,000 Ma hammedans. In one of the factories there is a British chapel, and . there are three hospitals, which are wretchedly sup ported." The commerce of Canton may be traced to an early date. The province was known, under various names, at a remote period of Chinese history, but the Chinese monarchs did not turn their attention towards it till about 200 years before the Christian era. The founder of the Tsin dynasty, (Tsin-che hwang), and the first universal monarch 'of China, pushed his conquests southward, and subdued Canton and other neighbouring provinces. This was the monarch who, in the vain hope of destroying the records of all reigns but his own, caused all the ancient books to be burned ; but the dynasty he had established was soon destroyed. His brother having. caused his death usurped the throne. Soon after Chaou-to, who assumed the regal title, built the remarkable edifice called the seven storied Pagoda, which is still to be seen on a hill on the north of the city. This building is now de serted, like the pagodas in general, but supposed to have a beneficial influence in keeping away evil spirits from the neighbourhood.* Chaou-to, afterwards retired to Cochin- China, and Canton became the place of banishment for dis graced statesmen. But even at that early peeriod it began to rise into importance. About the middle of the seventh century the Chinese annals relate, that vessels brought rare commodities to Canton from foreign countries. The first Europeans who visited China by sea were the Portuguese.f In 1516 a vessel from that country reached the islands at the mouth of the Canton river, and her voyage being successful, eight vessels were despatched in the following year. The Chinese, however, discovered that most of these foreigners were unprincipled adventurers, and even in 1520 a Portuguese ambassador at Pekin was sent back and eventually imprisoned and slain. The Spanish, Dutch, English, and other nations followed the Portuguese successively, and by their mutual strifes and jealousies increase the contempt with which the Chinese had been taught to hold all foreigners. The English, says the last quoted authority, first turned their attention.to China in the year 1576, hut the vessels equipped were lost on their passage out. The next attempt to establish a trade here was in 1634, but the opposition of the Portuguese defeated for some years the object of this and other expeditions. In 1676 the East India Company succeeded in establishing a factory at Amoy, from whence they were driven away in 1680, by the contests. of the Mantcheons, who had possessed them selves of the imperial throne, and those Chinese who resisted their government. In 1684 they were permitted to return to their factory ; and there they remained until foreign com merce became restricted to Canton and Macao. They then established themselves at Canton, where their trade continued to increase, but with occasional interruptions until the termi nation of their charter in 1833. In Canton the manufactories are numerous, but no ma chinery is employed. " About 17,000 individuals (says Gutzlaff), women and children included, are engaged in silk, and 50,000 in cloth manufacture. About 7,300 duly licensed barbers are daily employed in shaving the head, and there are no less than 2000 physicians and quacks." There are 16,000 carpenters, and 7000 lapidaries. There are 18,000 boats. of various sizes, trading along the river, between the city and Whampoa, an island where the foreign vessels find the nearest allowed anchoring ground. There are 1700 shops in Canton in which nothing is sold but firewood and charcoal. There are daily slaughtered 24,000 pigs. The population, including those who live in the suburbs, and on board of 84,000 boats on the river, is estimated at 1,236,000. The whole population is busily engaged in trade. The city has commercial connections with all parts of the Chi nese empire, and with most countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. The foreign factories where the merchants reside are situated in the suburbs, and are pethaps the finest buildings in the empire. They are of brick and granite, two stories high in one row, and each containing four or five separate houses, joining each other. The names of these, as translated from the Chinese appellatives, are curious. They are " The factory of justice and harmony;" "the (English) factory that ensures tranquillity "(0 " the great and affluent factory ;"" " the precious and prosperous factory," &c. &c. Ships which proceed up the river must first obtain a per mit and pilot at Macao. After their arrival at Whampoa, a security merchant, who must be a member of the Hong mer chants, is engaged : he has to pay the duties and warrant the good behaviour of foreigners. They act as agents or con signees. The privileged company of Hong merchants, con stitute a body, and has a common fund levied upon foreign shipping. They are, however, subject to heavy exactions by the government, and frequently become bankrupts, when they are disgraced and exiled. They transact business ex peditiously ; but their system of mediation between the government and foreigners is decidedly bad. The whole trade is under the management of a Hoppo (or superin tendent of the customs), an officer purposely sent from the imperial household at Peking. Besides measurement duty, import and export duties, foreigners have other charges, exactions, and bribes to submit to, to an almost equal amount. MACAO. Having in our paper of the 6th instant supplied an account of Macao from the Colonial Magazine, in our present notice of it, we shall but recapitulate the most important facts, and add some information derived from other sources. Macao is situated on Heang-shem island, at the entrance to the Canton river, in latitude 22 deg. 11 N. and 113 deg. 321 west of Greenwich. It is remarkable as beiwg the only settlement possessed by Europeans within the Chinese do minions ; and that possession does not amount to sove reighey, as the authorities of the Celestial Empire not un frequently cantroul the judicial power of these foreigners, and forcibly interfere in their internal affairs. The town is built upon a rocky and hilly neck of land or peninsula, eight miles in circumference, and with an excellent harbour.. The Portuguese, after repeated attempts to fix upon a colony on the coast of China, took possession of this rocky peninsula in 15 88. They were permitted to build houses, not by imperial sanction, but by connivance of the local officers, and in virtue of this vassalage they have to pay a considerable sum an rTally. It has been generally supposed that the place was given to them for their activity on various occasions in sup pressing th e p i rates that infest the coasts ; but there is no * Colonial Magazine for February. Ibid. real ground for such a snppositlens the Chinese policy being adverse to such a gift. The Portuguese have their own ma gistrates and officers, but the Chinese have also theirs for the government of the Chinese population, which is nume rous. Military mandarins periodically inspect the forts, and a civil mandarin represents the Emperor. " A tenure," it is well said in China Opened, " so little defined on either side, and privileges supported by both parties with plausible arguments, have given rise to many a quarrel between the Chinese and Portuguese." In cases of dispute the Chinese soon overcome the obstinacy of the " barbarians," by cutting off their supply of food, which they cat s eas ily d o , th e y having built (in 1573) a wall across the narrow neck of land that joins the peninsula to the main, with a gateway, which is guarded by a number of soldiers. This wall circumscribes the space to which the Portuguese are confined to a spot three miles long and one wide. The Portuguese population of the town does not exceed 5000, while the Chinese are estimated at 30,000. To -support so large a number of hu man beings upon such a barren spot, requires the aid of the whole island of Heang-shan. There are several respectable mercantile houses in Macao, but the majority of the inhabi tants are without industry or enterprise; and rely upon the indtistry of their slaves, who are brought up at Timor, and here sold. The town is defended by several strong forts, mounted with heavy cannon, and garrisoned by a small number of Portuguese soldiers. .There is a custom-house, and seve ral factories belonging to the English and other European nations. The largest building is the Senate-house, a very neat erection. "As an outport (says a recent writer) of the most singular empire in the world, Macao is at present of wore value than a commercial emporium." We have before us a view of Macao, published on the 7th instant, in the Penny Magazine, from which it appears to be an interesting looking town, backed by and partly built upon hills. It is thus noticed by Gutzlaff: " Large ships are obliged to anchor in Macao Roads, in anchorage much ex posed. On landing, a spacious circular bay, with a row of neat houses encompassed by rising hills, crowned with forts, convents, and churches, present themselves to view. The streets are very rugged on account of the unevenness of the ground upon which it is built, yet this unpromising spot is inhabited by a few genuine Portuguese, a host of mongrel offspring of all nations, slaves imported from Timor, some Europeans and Americans, and thousands of Chinese. A nunnery and several convents exist there, which were lately secularized by government, a large host of priests, churches, chapels, and also one college for the instruction of Chinese youth. The procurators of the Italian, Spanish, and French missions reside in this place, and a bishop used formerly to be at the head of spiritual affairs." Macao will be found distinctly marked on the accompany ing chart. It is the spot at which the British are permitted to reside during the periodical cessation of trade in Canton. There are two passages for vessels hence up the river to Canton. The following is the distance by each : • INNER PASSAGE. From Macao to Balast Island Thence to Matow Fort.. to Hong-Shan .. to the flats at Bogue to Canton 2l/ MILES. 51 101 Total OUTER PASSAGE. MILES. From Macao to outer of Nine jslands 5l Thence to Re.ow Point to Lan-Kost l4l to Anung-hoy Fort 6l to Second Bar Creek ll to Tunk River to Canton Bl Total Macao has of late years declined from its former wealth and prosperity from various causes, including the competi tion of other European nations in the China trade. An island will be observed in the snap, near the centre of the river, about 30 miles above Macao, called Lintin. Here ships of war anchor, the Chinese not permitting them to proceed nearer to Canton. The Bocca Tigris, or " Mouth of the Tiger," is the entrance of the river, above the estuary. Whampoa, where the merchant ships anchor, is 15 miles north of Linda, and ten miles from Canton, with which place the intercourse is carried on by lighters and other boats. The mouth of the estuary of. the Canto❑ River is, it will be observed, entirely studded with islands, most of which are small, with the exception of Lantao and Hong-Kong. The British outer anchorage was recently at the island of Hong-Chang, but, 1)y the last accounts, they had removed to Tung-hoo, higher up the river. THE OPIUM TRADE-THE POPPY, OR OPIUM PLANT-PROBABLE CAUSE OF THE STOP PAGE OF THE TRADE, AND PROGRESS OF THE DISPUTE BETWEEN THE ENGLISH AND THE CHINESE. The opium trade is one of the most extraordinary and in teresting in the annals of commerce, whether we take into consideration the rise and increase of late years in the con sumption of that poisonous drug in China—the means taken by the Chinese to put a stop to the traffic—the destructio'n of a quantity of it by them, of the value of £3,000,000 ster ling—the subsequent disputes that have arisen—or the pro bable result, which it is scarcely possible to divine with any degree of accuracy. • Preliminary to some account of the circumstances that have recently transpired, it may gratify curiosity to supply a short description of the plant from which the drug is extracted, and the effects of the poison on the human system, when taken to excess for the purpose of administering to a depraved and sensual appetite. THE POPPY. The following is derived from Porter's Tropical Agricul ture :—" The characteristics of the poppy are a flower with an oval indented empalement, composed of two oval, concave leaves, which fall off. The corolla is composed of four large roundish petals, which spread open with a great number of hair-like stamina, terminated by oblong, compressed, erect summits. In the centre is placed a large, roundish germen, having no style, but crowned by a plain, radiated, target shaped stigma ; the germen afterwards becomes a large cap sule, crowned by the plain stigma, having one cell opening in many places at the top under the crown, and which is filled with small seeds. There are nine species of this plant, besides numerous varieties. " The papaver somnifetwn is the species from which opium is 'obtained. Its roots and stem attain to rather a large size, and abound with a bitter juice • the stalk is three or four feet high, having oblong indented leaves resembling those of the lettuce. The flower has somewhat the appearance of a tulip. "The best soil, well manured, is required for the successful growth of this plant, and the crop demands much labour and attention during its whole progress." Irrigation is then ex tensively used—seven times at intervals of ten or twelve days. Some of the plants are thinned out. " While the plants are very young those which are thus removed are used as pot-herbs, but when they have attained to the height of about a foot and a half they have an intoxi cating property, which renders them unfit for this purpose. " The flowers begin to bloom in February, and the capsules become in a fit state for extracting the opium in March or April. ." This fitness is shown about seven days after the petals fall off, by the capsule assuming a whitish colour, and by exhibiting a degree or hardness. Incisions are then made into it with an iron instrument, having three teeth at the distance of half a line from each tether. This is drawn from bottom to top of the capsule so as to penetrate the skin. The wounds are made in the afternoon and evening, gene rally, near to the hour of sunset; in sound places, the inci sions are repeated for three successive days ; in others, the operation is repeated every second day for a fortnight or three weeks. From these wounds a white juice exudes, which concretes upon the capsule. It is scraped off with a small iron scoop, in the morning at day break, the work being discontinued after the dew is dispersed. From every fresh incision the produce becomes less abundant, and of an inferior quality. The capsules of the whole of a field are wounded, and the opium collected. in about a fortnight.— This is kneaded with water till it assumes the consistence of pitch. " The raw juice being thus procured, the preparation of it is carried on in India under the immediate superintendence of the Company's agents. The process consists of evaporat ing the aqueous particles by the heat of the sun. A small proportion of oil, extracted from poppy seeds, is mixed with the opium, to prevent the drying of the resin : it is then formed into cakes, and covered with leaves of the poppy: when sufficiently dry. it is packed in chests with the chaff of poppy seeds. A considerable reduction of weight takes place in opium after it has been kept for any time. It is reckoned that fresh opium loses 15 per cent. in weight by being kept ; and therefore it is usual, in packing the chests, to include this quantity, over and above the weight which each chest should contain. Extensive buildings are attached to the opium department, iii the particular districts where it is rais ed. Those at Patna are considered the largest in India." EFFECTS OF OPIUM. We have before us several authentic works, the writers of all of which describe the dreadful physical effects of this drug when immoderately used, in terms of nearly equal im port,—of reprobation of those who supply it, and of pity for the wretched and unfortunate millions who become its vic tims. We extract the following description from the Colo nial Magazine, as the most vivid and comprehensive we have yet met with _ _ _ "There can be no doubt that opium (the inspissated juice of the poppy) is a drug of the most pernicious quality when used to excess, or continued for any length of time. It af fects principally the nervous system, and is not, like beer, wine, or spirits, received into the digestive system previous to its action on the nerves. As a medicine, it, like all other poisons, is of great value. It diminishes pain, sooths irrita tion, and procures repose for the sufferer, when all other means have failed. In large doses it almost instantly de stroys life by destruction of the nesOrsus system, which is in dispensable to the circulation of rite blood. Unless when taken for the relief of disease, and then even administered with the greatest caution, the continued action of opium, as a sensual stimulant, tends rapidly to the wasting of youth, health, strength, and beauty. Those who begin its use at twenty may expect to die at thirty years of age : the coun tenance becomes pallid, the eyes assume a wild brightness, the memory fails, the gait totters, mental anti moral courage sink, and a frightful marasmus or atrophy reduces the victim to a ghastly spectacle, who has ceased to live before he had ceased to exist. There is no slavery so complete as that of the opium -taker; once habituated to its dose as a factitious stimulant, every thing - witt - be endured rather than the priva tion; and the' nhappy being endures all the mortification of a consciousness of his own degraded state, while ready to sell wife and children, body and soul, for the continuance of his wretched and transient delight ; transient indeed—for at length the utmost effect produced is a temporary suspension of agony, and, finally, no dose of the drug will remove or re lieve a state of sufferings, which it is utterly impossible to de scribe. The pleasureable sensations and imaginative ideas arising at first soon pass away; they become fainter and fainter, and, at last, entirely give place to horrid dreams, ap palling pictures of death : spectres of fearful visage haunt the mind—the light which once seemed to emanate from heaven is converted into the gloom of hell—sleep, balmy sleep, has tied for ever—night succeeds day only to be clothed with never-endinghorrors—incessant sickness, vomiting, diarrhea, and total cessation of the digestive functions ensue ; and death at length brings, with its annihilation of the corporeal structure, the sole relief to the victim of sensual and criminal indulgence." Sucl is a picture of the horrurs and premature decay that overtake the infatuated opium eaters and smokers ; and surely no civilised government can be justly blamed for en deavouring to diminish the importation of a drug, the effects of which are so morally and physically debasing and destruc tive. THE STOPPAGE OF THE TRADE, &c. At what period the use of opium commenced in China is not known, but its growth was known to themselves for ages, and it is still largely cultivated by them in some of the provinces. Up to 1786 the Portuguese supplied the Chinese with foreign opiuth, after which the trade was taken up by the English, who formed a depot at Lintin in 1802. It was formerly admitted on payment of a duty, but towards the end of the last century its importation was entirely prohibited, and in 1796 those found guilty of smoking it were punished with the pillory, and a certain number of blows with the bamboo. Within the last fifty years the annual consump tion in China has increased from 1,000 to about 30,000 chests of 1561 b. weight each. "In spite," says the writer we last quoted, " of strong denunciations on paper of 'the Chinese authorities, the clandestine trade went on ; the East India Company were compelled to take the preparation • of the opium, in the rich districts of Bengal, Bohar, and Benares, into their own hands, •and sold it annually at Calcutta by auction to the highest bidder." This was only one portion of the opium trade. Of late years the poppy was found to grow in Malwa and Central India. In 1837 no less than 20,882 chests were sent to China from the former place through Bombay alone, and when the trade was stopped the importation for the year would, it is said, have amounted., to 40,00 Q chests ! . • • • The quantity imported iu 1837-38 into China, according n the return of the Canton General Chamber of Commerce, Chests. Dollars. Patna.... ...... . 14,116 value 7,777,916 Benares 3,638 1,731,688 Malwa • 7,891 3,995,026 25,645 13,504,630 Worth, at 4s. 6d. per dollar, £2,700,926 sterling. This is exclusive of what was clandestinely introduced. At Lintin (previous to the stoppage) the opium was kept by the English in armed ships, and was delivered to the Chinese by written orders from Canton. The nature of the transaction is thus described by a Chinese waiter :—" At Canton," he says, " there are brokers of the drug, who are called melters. These pay the price of the drug into the hands of the resident foreigners, who gave them orders for the delivery of the opium from the receiving ships. There are carrying boats plying up and down the river, and these are vulgarly called ' fast crabs' and ' scrambling dragons.' They are well armed, and are manned with some scores of desperadoes, who ply their oars as if they were wings to fly witb. All the custom-houses and military forts which they pass are largely bribed. If they happen to encounter one of the armed cruising -boats, they are so adacious as to resist, and slaughter and carnage ensue." The general mode of consuming opium in China is by in haling the fumes through a peculiarly constructed wooden pipe. Prohibitory regulations are• found ineffectual, so cor rupt are the authorities, who are all accessible to bribery by the traders, and themselves indulge in the use of the drug. A few years ago one of the Chinese censors addressed a me morial to the Emperor, stating that "the magistrates of dis tricts issue proclamations, interdicting the clandestine sale of opium, at the same time that their kindred, and clerks, and servants smoke it as berme. The police, influenced by the people in the public offices, become the secret purchasers of opium, instead of labouring for its suppression ; and thus all interdicts and regulations become vain." Such are the profits on the drug, and such the impunity generally with which it can be imported; that a contraband trade of the annual value of above £3,000,000 sterling has. grown up in this article alone. The baneful practice of smoking opium has descended from the higher to the poorer classes, so that the vice has become general throughout the whole empire. PROGRESS OF THE DISPUTE. The following passage is from an able periodical, relating to the disputes, so far, between the English superintendent of trade and the authorities at Canton :—" In March, 1839, the Chinese government appear to have taken more decided steps than any which had yet been adopted to prevent the intro duction of opium, and under the direction of an imperial commissioner from Pekin, the British residents were shut up in their factory, and only obtained their release on condi tion of giving up the stock of opium on board .the ships, amounting to 20,283 chests, worth nearly £3,000,000 ster na'', the superintendent of British trade g i v i n g th e owners indemnity scrips. The contents of every chest were subse quently emptied into sluices communicating with the river, in the presence of the Chinese authorities, and many of the residents of the British and other factories, who were invited to attend. Men were employed from day to day in hastening the process of maceration, until the opium had be come muddy and foetid, when the whole of it was washed into the river. After this the merchants withdrew to Macao, whence they were expelled by the Chinese on the 27th August, in consequence of refusing to give up a seaman who had kill ed a Chinese in a brawl. They then retired to their ships at Hong-Kong; but the fleet being in want of provisions, the superintendent of British trade, on the 4th Sept., endeavour ed to obtain a supply from the natives, but was opposed by the Chinese war junks. and in the conflict which ensued, several Chinese were killed and some Europeans wounded. A fresh attack upon the Chinese, which was to have been made the following day, was countermanded. On the 11th of September the Superintendent notified a blockade of Can ton river and port ; but on the 16th the blockade was aban doned, in consequence, it is said, of negotiations having been commenced with the Chinese. Proceedings of a still more serious nature have taken place subsequently ; and these events have greatly complicated the state of our relations with China. In the speech from the throne, on the opening of parliament, on the 16th of January last, the interruption of our commercial intercourse with that country was formally announced : and a naval force has just been despatched for the purpose of aiding, by a warlike demonstration, the nego tiations which may be required to settle these serious diffi culties. In the meantime the sales of opium are advertised at Calcutta as usual : and the general opinion is that it will be found impossible to prevent the introduction of the article into China by any plan however rigorous ; for the individuals who should put the prohibitory law iu execution, conspire to evade it ; and, generally speaking, are so low in moral cha racter, as to prefer their interest to their duty." The further proceedings of a serious nature alluded to in the above passage may be briefly related .—The opium trade was stopped at Canton, but only to dispose and divide it amongst the various ports throughout the kingdom. Small vessels of 40 tons burden were being built .to convey it from the outside anchorage to the various ports on the east coast, or on board junks lying in the harbour for that purpose. Subsequently to the notice of Capt. Elliot, of the with diawal of the blockade of the Canton river, on the 16th Sept., the Chinese fire-boats burnt a Spanish brig, the Bilbaino, mistaking her for an English . vessel, while she was lying close to Macao. The cargo taken off before she was fired was valued at 20,000 dollars. The crew jumped overboard, and were all saved but two. On the 26th the launch of H. M. S. Volage was fired into, while going into Coalloon bay, from a hill, by a party of Chinese. The shot wag round shot, some of which fell near the boat, and Capt. Smith deemed it atihrisable to return to the fleet. advices from Bombay, to the 24th December, state that neffociations had been commenced by Capt. Elliot, with the Chinese authorities. Four propositions, or conditions of amicable arrangement, had been forwarded in the name of the Chinese Commissioner and the Viceroy. The first re qUired Capt. Elliot to deliver up all opium that might be on board the ships, otherwise " it would only remain to set fire to the, whole." The second again demands the murderer of the Chinese killed in the affray at Hong-Chong. The third requires the immediate departure of the store-ships, on pain of their being burnt. The fourth attributes the con traband trade, &c., to the assemblage of the English ships at Hong-kong ; and, as Capt. Elliot had declared that he must wait his sovereign's commands, requires him to state when his dispatch left, so that some " modified arrangement may be made in the mean time." Capt. Elliot in reply stated, that there was no opium in the fleet, and offered to assist the Chinese officers in searching the ships. He then offers a proposition to separate the law ful from the unlawful trader. He states that the most severe search shall be made for the murderer.of the Chinaman, and adds, that if• found he shall be givon up. He then states that he expects the commands of his sovereign in four months. He concludes by asking six days residence at Macao for the prescribed, and appeals to his former intercourse with the Canton authorities, as affording ground for. their reposing confidence in him. An uncompromising reply was sent to this by the Chinese Commissioner and Viceroy. They state first that proof had been given that there is opium in the fleet, and again demand its delivery, adding, that should any be stealthily removed and hereafter seized, the parties should sutler death. On delivering it up, a modified arrangement for carrying on the trade was to be made, but not through Macao ; second, the murderer of Lin-Wei-he to be delivered up in 10 days, as " delays might bring down measures of extermination ;" thirdly, all the opium ships to leave immediately ; the pre scribed to be allowed to go to Macao for six days ; and, 'fourthly, all the Chinese in the fleet to be given up. In consequence of the high tone assumed by the Chinese, and the pertinacity of the high commissioner, Lin, in de manding a man to be delivered up in lieu of the dinaman killed in the scuffle at Hong-Kong, Captain Elliot was, it appears, compelled to abandon further negociations. Kevan, admiral of the Canton station, and leader of the mari time forces of the province, then issued a proclamation, which may be considered so curious a specimen of the egotistical assumption, and bombastic style of the officials of the Celes tial Empire, that we give it entire, particularly as it is virtu ally the last document, or declaration of war, issued by the Chinese against us previous to their late hostile attempt to surround our ships : PROCLAMATION. " Whereas, I have just received a communication from their Excellencies the High Commissioner, Lin, and the Viceroy of Canton, Tang, to the following effect : " The English superintendent Elliot, after having deli vered the ?plum, petitioned us, begging for permission to load his ships off Macao, to which petition we at the time gave our flat denial. The conduct of the said superintendent from that time has been outrageous and unreasonable in the extreme; he has not caused th e em pt y op i um s hi ps to get under weigh—he has not caused the depraved foreigners,•ex pelled by imperial authority, to return to their country (some of his people), having beat to death one of our native peo ple, he obstinately refuses to give up the foreign murderer ; the merchant vessels lately arrived, he has so arranged that he will not permit them to enter the port, hut allows them to sell the new drug in our seas as before ; and our edicts, which have been from time to time transmitted him, he has stub bornly refused to receive. He has even gone such lengths as in his own person to lead on foreign ships against our cruisers, specially pl ac ed for the defence of Kowlung, rais ing thereby disturbances, and taking advantage of our ab sence to fire off his guns, thus wounding our mandarins and soldiers ! Our valiant troops, however, returned their tire with a noise like a thunderbolt, upon which the foreigners, routed and dispersed, returned again to Tseemshatsuy, where they cast anchor. And although on the 7th day on the Bth moon, (Sept. 14th, 1839,) he (Elliot) went himself to:Macao, and begged of the Portuguese governor to present a note from him to the Tung-cee, Keun min foo (or mandarin of Caza branca), in which he said that, " all he desired was peace and quietness ;" yet we find that he merely commis sioned him to deliver so many unmeaning words, and that there is not the slightest proof of his sincerity or submission! On the 9th day of the said month he departed from Macao, and returned a'raip to Hong-Kong, and on the 10th day came a foreign vessel stealthily standing in for Kowlung, prying and spying about her, by which we can sufficiently see that he still cherishes foolish and presumptuous thoughts, and has no sense of fear or repentance at his heart ! Now our man darins and troops for sea and land service, being all assem bled ready for action at the Bocca Tigris, I therefore address this communication to you, the admiral, that yon draw up your fleet &HAI army, and uppaiut a_tlay when you will attack anti subdue them ; you must not permit them to loiter about at Tseem-shatsuy, forcing off their opium, and deluging the central flowery land with their poison !'—and other words to that effect. He then continues : " This having been duly received, I find that I, the admi ral, rule over the whole of these seas, and my especial duty is to sweep them clean of the depraved and reprobate. Since then I have received the button of a leader of the army, I ought forthwith to appoint a day for the great gathering of my troops ; but I, the said admiral, am descended from a family that dates as far back as the Han dynasty, (2,000 years ago); the line of my forefathers sprang from Hotung. My ancestor was the deified Emperor Kwan-foo-tze, commonly called the Mars of China,) splendid and luminous was his fame ! bright and dazzling the place of his imperial abode ! The god-like warrior's ardent wish was to practise benevo lence and virtue! his mind was grand and powerful as the winds and clouds ! his heart genial and refulgent as the sun by day or the moon by night ! Now I, the said admiral, fly like an arrow to recompense the goodness of my country, and tremblingly receive the adinonitions of my great ancestor. I deal not in deceits and frauds, nor do I covet the bloody lau rels of the butcher ! Remember that Elliot alone is the head and front of offence, (or ringleader in crime,) and that pro bably the bulk of the foreigners have been intimidated or urged by him : were I suddenly to bring my forces and com mence the slaughter, I really fear that gem and the common stone would be burnt up together. Therefore it is that I again issue this proclamation, which proceeds from my very heart and bowels, that it be promulgated everywhere. Oh, ye foreigners, if you belong to those opium ships which have already delivered up their opium ' • or if you are among the number of those w h o h ave b een banished the country by hit perial command, ye must instantly proceed to the wide ocean, and, spreading your sails, get ye far hence ! As re gards the newly-arrived merchantmen, which are lying an chored here in clusters like bees, in swarms like'ants, do ye try and reflect fo r a little. At a ti me lik e t hi s , a nd under circumstances such as these, how can you continue to carry on your clandestine trade—aiming after unlawful gains, by forcing into•consumption your forbidden drug? As for you who are honourable merchants, and follow after a lawful calling, still more ought ye not to go near to or herd with the others, lest that ye along with them encounter the same blazing torch, but ye ought instantly to shun such company and behold:—This may yet preserve your lives. I, the admiral, en tertain for you a mother's heart ! the words I speak are true, as if spoken by the lips of Bhud himself. If, indeed, Elliot can yet repent, and awake to a sense of the error of his ways, let him not object to come before me, confess his sins, and beg for mercy, in which case I myself will intercede for him ! But if he still persist in remaining obstinately doltish as before, indulging In foolish expectations arid perverse oppo. gition, then, considering the good fortune and grandeur of our Celestial Empire, united with, or depending upon, all the gods of heaven ! just as in the case of the robber Listing, when the lightning struck him at dead of night—or in the case of the rebel Chang kith urh, (tree, the Prince of Jelian gir,) when the banners waved and (the earth) was covered with iron (weapons); so, still supported by the special pro— tection (of my holy ancestor), will, (in your case) a terrible display of our majesty be made! We have often enjoyed his divine patronage !—thus, then, the very gods and spirits cannot interfere in your behalf! 01►, ye foreigners! do ye all of you lend an attentive car to these my words ! A spe cial proclamation ! " Taonkwang, " 19th year, Bth moon, and 16th day. Bocca Tigris, 23rd Sept. 1839.". _ _ _ The Bombay Courier, of 2ith December, gives the follow ing account of the subsequent proceedings :—" Shortly after the issuing of this proclamation, an engagement took place between her Majesty's ships Volage and Hyacinth, with thirty Chinese war-junks, off Chumpee, in which the latter are said to have lost 900 men : the particulars given are as follows : " Captain Elliot had proceeded on board of the Volage, with the Hyacinth in company to Chumpee, to deliver a chop to the commissioner, when a fleet of twenty-nine war junks sailed out, with the manifest intention of surrounding the two ships of wa!, and continued to close round them, regardless of repeated and urgent warning as to consequences. until it became necessary to open fire upon them ; this was promptly returned by the junks, when a regular engagement ensued, and in less than half an hour five of the junks were sunk, another was blown up, and the remainder, many of them in a disabled state, crowded all sail to escape. This they were permitted to do ; the example that had been made of them having been deemed sufficient—or rather, as it is said, Captain Smith, of the Volage, having yielded to the entreaties of Captain Elliot to discontinue the destructive fire from the ships, and to permit the escape of the fugitives. It is allowed that the Chinese fought pretty well ; but the only damage sustained on our side is stated to be a 121 b. shot in the mizen-mast of the Hyacinth. It remains to be seen what will be the result of this affair. " Letters state that new fortifications were in course of construction at Hong-kong, and the few English who had gone back to Macao were again warned away by Captain Elliot, after the engagement. How that event will operate with respect to those on board of the Thomas Coutts, which is entirely in the hands of the commissioner, is a serious con sideration, and seems destined to put to the test the sincerity of his professions of moderation and favour towards vessels entering the port, or the justice of the charges made against him of acting ' with undistinguishing violence.' He has been guilty of what certainly appears bad faith in setting at nought his engagement with Captain Elliot, passed under his own signet, for carrying on the trade outside the Rocca Ti gris ; he has also been guilty of a shameful outrage in burn ing the Spanish brig Bilbaino in the Typa, perpetuated in his conduct to her officers ; and if, as it is charged against him, he authorised the attack On the Black Joke, and re warded the murderers of her defenceless crew, there would seem but too good cause, with the additional ground of ex asperation he has lately received, to apprehend some serious consequences to the officers and crew of the Thos. Coutts. " The Canton Press' of the 2nd inst. reports, that ac counts have been received from the west coast of an affair between opium smugglers and the mandarin boats, in which one of the latter was sunk, several men killed, and seven of the survivors sent back with their tails cut off! This fact, it appears, had come to the commissioner's knowledge, and, sworn,' as he still proclaims himself to be, on behalf of the celestial empire, to remove utterly this root of misery, and not to let the foreign vessels have an off-shout left for the evil to bud forth again,' the intelligence is not likely to incline him to gentler measures than he has heretofore resorted to. A reward has been offered by the Chinese for the bodies of Capt. Elliot, and Capt. Smith, of the Volage, dead or alive. Since the engagement, Capt. Elliot had returned un expectedly to Macao, and in the night all the English were warned to leave immediately, and only a few now remain. The Chinese are making warlike preparations. With re spect to trade, it appears that a serious decline had taken place in the price of all imports, but that tea and silk had advanced. CAUSE OF THE STOPPAGE OF TRADE. In an able article in the last number of the Colonial Ma gazine, the writer advances some very cogent reasons for his belief that the stoppage of the opium trade has not arisen from the disinterested desire of the Chinese authorities to arrest the consumption of th e d rug , w ith a v i ew t o th e pre servation of the health and morals of the people. He shows that none of the regulations they have promulgated on the sub ject, containing denunciations of severe punishment, have ever been enforced ; that the higher classep and officers of state are themselves smokers of opium ; that their edicts are only so much waste paper, and that (as we have before no-• ticed) the drug is even grown in China itself. He appears to have discerned the true cause of the recent energetic conduct of the government to prevent its introduction from abroad. In 1836 the vice-president of the sacriticial court at Pekin, proposed to the Emperor to legalise the importation of opium, by imposing a duty upon it, and thus diminish the ex port of silver for its clandestine purchase. In his memorial on the subject, he states that the laws against the importa tion are quite inoperative, and that to prevent the country from being drained of its circulating medium, it is requisite "to permit the barbarian merchants to import opium, paying duty thereon as a merchandise, and to require, that after having • passed the custom-house, it should be delivered to the Hong merchants, only in exchange for merchandise, and no money be paid for it." The reply of the Emperor was in accord ance with the spirit of the memorial, and not a word is said about the moral effects of the poison. Several of the mi nisters of the crown opposed the proposition to introduce opium, and nothing effectual has yet been done, though all appear to agree that the efflux of silver is alarming ; and, doubtless, to prevent it, the recent vigorous measures have • been pursued. The same writer, towards the close of his remarks, says We do not wish to prejudge the important question, as to whether those British merchants, who surrendered their opium at Mr. Elliot's requisition, for "her Majesty's service," are to be paid .• or not paid ; and if the former, by whom ? whether from the English treasury, or from that of India, or by forcible resti tution from the Chinese treasury. How far each and all of these parties are implicated in the opium trade, as well as the merchants who bought the opium at Calcutta and Bombay, • it is not for us now to say : we shall have another opportu nity of discussing this point of national morals. All that we desire is, that the merchants, whose property has been seiz ed (especially the native merchants of British India), may not have a " hue and cry" raised against them, and be condemn ed unheard. Whatever be the issue, we cannot but rejoice that a question of such vast moment to millions of the human , race has been thus summarily mooted ; we rejoice that our lot has been cast in an age when national morals and national consciences are deemed of vital importance, and that aggre gate bodies of men feel that as deep (if not a deeper) responsi bility rests on them, as if they were acting in their several in dividual capacities. It is thus only that great objects for the welfare of mankind can be obtained ; and the " opium ques tion" may be the means, evil as it is, of a vast good being educed for the welfare of myriads of our fellow creatures in China." The next intelligence relative to the state of affairs ap peared in the second edition of the Times London news paper of the 12th inst., which contained a copy of despatches from Bombay, d a t e d January 31st. By this it appears that, at the instance of the Governor-General of India, extensive preparations were making in the Indian harbours ; that 40,000 tons of shipping had been advertised for, and that the, whole expedition to China was to consist of 16,000 men. Its destination was not known, but was supposed to be Canton, or some other point on the coast, " of which forci ble possession would be kept until the Chinese government. should. be brought to reason." The Americans continued to pursue their trade unmolested, and their ships were arri ving and departing as usual, The shave was by the ordinary overland mail. The government also received despatches at the same time, but their contents have not yet transpired. Chumpee, where the engagement with the junks took place, is close to a bay, near Bocca Tigris, called in the chart Anson's Bay," and about half-way from Lintiu to Wham po2:. There is a river, west of the Tigris, defined in the chart. called " Boundary," or " Junk River." The junks pass up it, and reach Canton by a canal out of it. CHINESE WAR JUNKS. We have, in the margin of the accompanying chart of the seat of war in China, given a representation, taken from a beautiful print in the possession of our townsman, Mr. Drury, of Castle-street, of a Chinese war junk, in juxta-position to a British frigate. We need scarcely say that a dozen such clumsy and Unwieldy vessels would be un equal to cope with even one of our smallest gun brigs. The junks, in construction and equipment, have undergone very little or no alteration or improvement since they were first known to Europeans. This is somewhat remarkable, inas much as the Chinese are ingenious in some branches of me chanics, in cabinet work, in the construction of canals and bridges, &c. An unconquerable prejudice has arrested all improvements in the construction of their war and larger trading vessels. The hull of the junk is, in shape and ap pearance, not unlike a Chinese shoe. Ibn Batuta, who travelled at the beginning of the 14th cen tury, has handed down a description which is considered ac- •• curate. The sails of these vessels are made of cane reeds, • woven together like a mat ; which, when they put into , port, they often leave standing in the wind. in some of these yea sets there will be a thousand men, six hundred of them sailors and the remainder soldiers. Each of the larger vessels is fol lowed by three others of inferior sizes. These vessels are nowhere built except in the farthest ports of China. They are rowed with large oars, which may be compared to great masts, over some of which five and twenty men were sta tioned, who work standing. The commander of each vessel is a great emir. In the large ships, too, they sow garden herbs and ginger, which they cultivste in cisterns ranged along the side. In these also are houses constructed of wood, in which the higher officers reside with their wives : eves"' vessel is, therefore, like an independent city. Of such ships as these Chinese individuals will sometimes have large num bers and, generally sp ea ki ng , th e Chi nese are th e r i c hest people in the world. " These junks are almost innumerable on all the rivers and canals of the Chinese empire. The cane, referred to by Ibn Batuta, is the bamboo. These vessels do not sink more than a foot or half a yard into the water. They are, how' ever, so ill contrived for sea, that it is wonderful bow they can complete a voyage. The head is square, the bottom flat, having uo keel nor bowsprit. The sails are lowered by th e men treading them down with thei r f ee t. Thi s cra ft ishsgb l) ornamented with dragons' heads, ugly mouths, and staring eyes, and does not usually venture upon a voyage farther than the Molucca or Spice Islands, and Port Jackson." It may be added that the clumsy anchors of the junks Or , made of hard wood, called teih-,no, " iron wood," and they have only a single arm in some cases. The junks have gene' rally three masts, with a square sail on each. Those of the larger class carry also a maintopsail of canvas or cotton , which, however, they do not sufficiently hoist that it may • sit upon a wi n d, th e topmast not b e i ng a b ove h a lf the h e ight of the sail. "As long as their junks"—we quote from gi g/ Library of Useffil Knowledge—" confine themselves to the neighbourhood of the coast, their course is pretty certain' They generally stand boldly across between the most prow", nent headlands, and are g uid e d a l ong th e w h o l e li ne o f cos. , ' by a tolerably accura t e di rec t ory , i n w hi c h are note d th e harbours, currents, s ho a l s , an d o th er p ar ti cu l ars . Th e courses are pointed out by means of figures in the circus' ference of their compass. They, of course, can take n o observation of the sun themsel ves ; but it some ti mes happen ] a junk sailing as far as B a t av ia will e ngage a Portuguese,'", Macao, who is just abl e , w ith an o ld rus ty sex t an t, to tall b ` au altitude of the sun, and work out the latitude in a r o l l °,, way. This, however, is never done in short voyages, vo',f they steer by their compass without any chart, and judge the distances by the last promontary or island in sight; a p long experience makes them very expert in this." .0_ DIMENSIONS OF A CHINESE JUNK, MEASUI I P.• IN 1796. Extreme length .. 156 0 P I • Ditto breadth .. •• 38 0 Ditto at bow .. • • .. 24 0...1:100 0 ' Ditto at stern .. . v 2 0 Aft° , so' Height off water forward and aft 38 0' Aft Depth of hold from upper deck 28 Draught of . wa*r i 0 „1 !Mie ss( Height of mainmast " .61 Circumference atlhe , gpper deck e aliiio4 6oll Length of mainaaf f h- t i • ( . AT tioqx9 111 ' 6 Size of cable .5 ,„ ra 3 11 S ' Number of Mitt The mainmast one stick, and taperingqmpOSMlAlisicor upper extremity. ig or ~,,,j„Liii, 6 , l 4llliitioil Rear Admiral Sir James Gordon, we'uiidtrstiintl,listj_ dined accepting the Brazilian command.—liampshirc ~if 411 fol we