The Sun.
London, England, 1847-06-24 00:00:00

" No. 15.

"No. 8.
" FROM THE GENTRY, &C., OF CANTON.
" Whereas we have heard of opposition to the autho
rities, and not permitting them and the aggressors to
dwell under the same Heavens, it is not possible that
both should subsist together. The English barbarians
take occasion to excite trouble and make a great display
of arms. By public consent they have taken possession
of and occupy the river side of a tract of ground as a
place for trade—in all, thirteen separate hongs. They
wish to build a temple for public worship, and also across
the river in Henan, to take possession of a tract of
ground, and to build a fort. There have lately been
foreign soldiers measuring off the ground for a site.
Our citizens having met to take the matter into conside-
ration, immediately they opened a thundering fire of
artillery upon them, by which many persons were in.
jured. In such as this there is no law nor principle of
justice. The whole body of the people can only gnash
their teeth with rage and indignation. Now the great
body of masons and carpenters in the two cities
(the old and new) of Canton, have held a
public consultation, and have agreed together that
if the English undertake the prosecution of their works
as aforesaid, the men employed in these trades shall
none of them be permitted to engage to complete their
works on their own responsibility. And if at Hong-
• gong, Macao, or Wharapoo, there should be men who

" Rules agreed upon, at a public meeting of the gentry
of Canton, for the defence against the entrance of bar-
barians into the city.
" Rule 1. The inhabitants of all the shops and
houses must hire militia, who will keep a constant pa-
trol, and who, if a barbarian enters a street, will not be
frightened, but sound the alarm, so that it may spread
and be communicated from street to street, and all with
united strength be ready to beat back and destroy the
intruder.
" Rule 2. Throughout the whole city all the people
must remove the boards and planks from the roofs of
their houses, and place instead many jars of water, ready
to act against incendiaries ; and must have ready pre-
pared pots of lime, brickbats, stone, &c. ; and if they see
a barbarian enter the city they must throw these down
with thundering force, and not allow a single one to
escape from their net.
" Rule 3. There must be no fear nor removing to other
places, lest they give rise to plundering, and lest in the
absence of our people the barbarians get possession of the
country. Let all the people attend to their respective
avocations, mutually protect and defend each other, and
for ever guard their own possessions.
" Rule 4. If any spread the report through the
streets that the barbarians are entering the city, they
must be traitors, designing by such reports to ascertain
the actual condition of the city, and perhaps are seek-
ing:opportunities to plunder and rob. Let the inhabi-
tants at once seize upon such and deliver them over for
examination to the chiefs of the gentry, and if they are
truly traitors they must be sent to the proper authorities
for trial ; and if found to be good people they must
obtain from their neighbours and elders bonds for their
good conduct, and then they may be liberated.
.. The above rules must be put in practice by the in-
habitants of all the streets and lanes, however small, and
all must watch and guard with care, in order to protect
themselves and families, and to show a readiness to ful-
fil the gracious designs of our august Sover, ign in his
love to all the people. Although the foreigners may
enter the provincial cities of the other maritime pro-
vinces, yet great is the strength of this province; and it
behoves us to quit ourselves like men, and continue
watchful to the end. Then all will be well."
" No. 12.
"Canton, April 7, 1847.
" Sir,—The undersigned British residents in Canton
beg respectfully to call your Excellency's attention to
the following matters, in connexion with the arrange-
ments you may at present be concluding with the Chi-
nese authorities :
" The shops in Hog-lane, and the thoroughfare there,
are the occasion of great inconvenience, annoyance, and
danger to the foreign community. The shopkeepers
there are always ready to tempt the seamen to drunk-
enness, and it would no doubt be remembered by your
Excellency that most of the disturbances which have
occurred in Canton have originated in that neighbour-
hood, while on all occasions of riot or fire our danger is
greatly increased by the assembling of low characters in
the place alluded to. We, therefore, request that your
Excellency will obtain for us the removal of the houses
in llog-lane, and the stoppage of this offensive
thoroughfare.
" We further suggest to your Excellency that the
space thus cleared will afford the best site which can be
found for the erection of a church, and as the Chinese
authorities have agreed to give space for one, and must
be put to a considerable expense in removing buildings
on a suitable locality, we think it but reasonable, that
as they will be saved this expense, they should be called
upon, instead, to compensate the owners of the miserable
habitations in Hog-lane ; but to obtain such a desirable
object as that in view, we would be willing ourselves to
pay the owners the reasonable value of the buildings, if
the matter can be arranged in no other way. We have
the honour to be, Sir, your Excellency's most obedient
humble servants,
[Signed by 49 British Residents.]
" To his Excellency Sir John F. Davis, Baronet, &c."
"No. 13.
" British Consulate, Canton, April 7, 1847.
" Gentlemen,—l am directed by his Excellency her
Majesty's Plenipotentiary, &c., to acknowledge the
receipt of your letter of this day's date, and to make
the following reply :
" On the 3d inst., on reaching Canton, his Excellenc)
professing
to from Mr. Consul Macgregor a paper
to embody all the principal wishes and views of tie
British residents, and these were therefore shortly in-
cluded in the list of demands made on the Chinese
Government, and since assented to. It is plain that his
Excellency at that time negotiated under circumstances
peculiarly calculated to obtain successful results, and he
therefore much regrets that the subject of your present
letter has been postponed until the negotiations are con-
cluded.
"At the same time he must observe, that the objectsnow sought could never be urged as treaty
insist
on rights, since
none of our conventions with China entitle us to
on the stoppage of thoroughfares and the obliteration of
whole lines of houses. These, in every country, are

" Canton, April 8, 1847.
"Sir,—The undersigned British subjects hear with
alarm that it is the intention of your Excellency to re-
mo►e immediately the whole of the military and naval
forces from Canton. _

---
"We respectfully represent to your Excellency that,
in our opinion, the recent proceedings cannot fail to have
created such feelings in the Chinese population as to
reader• the temporary presence of a portion of the troops
absolutely essential to our safety, and we therefore ear-
nestly solicit your Excellency to afford us that protection
which we cannot hope for from the Chinese authorities,
avowedly unable to control the populace.
" We have the honour to be, &c.,
(Signed by 76 persons.)
" To his Excellency Sir John Francis
Davis, Bart, &c."
The following is the answer which was received to the
foregoing address to his Excellency Sir John Francis

" No. 16.
" British Consulate, Canton, .April 8, 1847.
"Gentlemen,--I am directed by his Excellency her
Majesty's Plenipotentiary, in reply to your letter of this
day's date, to inform you that the very nsitural alarm
which you therein express is formed on a mistake, as i 0
has been arranged that the light company of the lathe
Royal Irish, under Captain Graves, shall not quit Can-
ton until relieved by the armed steamer; and that, in ad-
dition to this, her Majesty's sloop Espiagle is also
anchored within reach.

" Captain Bruce, the Assistant Adjutant-General,
states that he informed the meeting of British merchants
of the above arrangement before your letter was sent to
his Excellency. Both that letter and the reply are,
therefore, almost superfluous.—l have the honour to
be, &c., " A. R. JOHNSTON."
_ _ _ . .

About midday all the guards were brought in, ex-
cepting two or three sentries, and their Excellencies the
Governor and the Major-General, with the main body
of the troops, embarked and retired from before the pro-
vincial city, leaving a small detachment, as above inti-
mated, and proceeded on their return to Hong-Kong.
FRIDAY, THE 9TH.-A placard, purporting to be from
Sir John Francis Davis, appeared on the walls of one of
the streets near the factories, and a friend has furnished
us with the following translation:—

" No. 17.
" I, the Envoy and Minister Plenipotentiary of Great
Britain, make known for your full information, ye resi-
dents and shopkeepers, that in consequence of a breach
of faith on the part of your Chinese officers, I have, with
a naval and military force in large and small vessels,
quickly entered the river and come up to the provincial
city to inquire into the wretched principles and perverse
reasonings of your Chinese officers, who knocking head
have acknowledged their crime ; it is (therefore) 1 awful
and right to remit their offences.
" We regard you, ye people, as little children, and
have a heart constantly to guard and protect you, and
certainly have no reason to involve and injure you. If,
however, there be any lawless vagabonds who, following
the multitude, combine to throw stones, we nglishmen
will be in the highest degree indignant. And it was for
this cause that we demolished the two shops in Lwan-
hing-street, as a caution to others. Henceforth let each.
one mind his own business, and you must not again
create disturbance if ye would avoid inconvenience. I
especially issue this general edict to inform you. Let
each, as is becoming, tremblingly obey.
(Articles of convention appended to the above.)
" 1. It is settled that we enter the city after two
years.
" 2. On entering the city there shall be no disturb-
ance.
" 3. There shall be a place for the anchoring of
foreign boats.
" 4. Four shops in Hog-lane shall be taken down.
" 5. The custom-house, &c., in front of the factories
shall be removed.
" 6. The people of Fuhshan shall be arrested and
punished.
" 7. The cross streets on the east and west of the
factories shall be removed.
" 8. Forty mow (or Chinese acres) of land on Honan
shall be ceded.
" 9. A long bridge shall be thrown across the flower
gardens."
About three o'clock this afternoon the prefect, or
some of his subalterns, came with a native guard to re-
occupy the Consoo-house. A row ensued ; stones were
hurled at the magistrate, and the presence of Captain
Graves and some of his men was required before order
was restored.
SATURDAY,THE lOTlL—Several new placards appeared
this morning, one of them on the walls of Minqua's
Hong, opposite the western gate of the garden, of which
we have made the following version:—
" No. 18.
" FROM THE SCHOLARS AND MERCHANTS Or THE EN-
TIRE PROVINCE OF KWINGTUNG.
"It is universally known that danger awaits those
who are in high stations, and ruins those who are proud
in spirit, as surely as the meridian sun must decline and
the full moon wane.
" Now, English barbarians, hitherto always. accus-
tomed to acts of violence and outrage, you have insulted
the province of Canton. When formerly (a few years
ago) your ships of war came to the provincial city,
their !Excellencies, our high officers, extended to you
their condescending regard; and as you had traversed
the wide ocean from the regions of uncivilised barbarians
which royal laws had never reached, they bestowed on
you extraordinary favour, and though you were rebel-
lious they did not lay judgment to the line. Still you
would not repent and reform; but, continuing to cherish
the disposition of the wolf and the tiger, you have taken
it upon yourselves to raise puny troops, and in wild dis-
order have carried to the utmost extreme your acts of
cruelty and violence. In bold daring you wish forcibly,
to occupy the whole of the river side, measuring off
streets, disturbing and plundering the inhabitants, not
knowing that our city is such a mart for all nations
that marketable goods of every kind and to any amount
can readily be disposed of, and that in like manner there
can be obtained any cargo which may be wished. Thus
the French, the Americans, the Dutch, and the people
of Bombay and Bengal, have all peaceably and orderly
carried on their business—just in their dealings, and po-
lite in their intercourse—the guest mild and the host
agreeable.
" At the present time imports were beginning to be in
rood demand, when suddenly came this troublesome and
injurious outbreak, putting an entire stop to all commer-
cial business, and depressing the whole market, causing
damage to all nations. This is truly worthy of detesta-
tion. Last year Mr. Parker, an American, who had
established an hospital, dispensed medicines, practised
the healing art, and universally relieved the poor people,
and whose virtue has been praised by all the scholars
and people of Canada, wished to erect a hospital at the
entrance of Old China-street; tut the people, consider-
ing that it was an important site, and fearing it might
lead to some unforeseen difficulty, were unwilling to
grant the request; now then (now grant it) to you Eng-
lish barbarians, who, while hitherto you have conferred
no favours, have been solely bent on acts of violence and
wrong, and by a hundred fiendish tricks have robbed the
people of their possessions and wasted their valuable
effects.
" Do you suppose there are no men among the thou-
sands of officers and the hundreds of thousands of militia
who have been collected and disciplined in connexion
with all the colleges of our province? If our militia are
once put in requisition, you will find yourselves mistaken
if you imagine they are like those vagrants who stand
gazing with their hands in their sleeves and flee at the
first display of arms.
" You English barbarians
of your artillery ; and
though you may - maytalk of the strength of
efficiency
your ships and of the
have the means for making an attack,
we too have the means of making destruction; more-
not eonsider that your provisions are in a
over, you do
precarious being
state, the rations supplied by contribu-
tions, and that
300 or 400 mercenary sepoys, living at
the rate of seven dollars each per month, together with
the English barbarian troops, do not exceed 1,000 in
number ; with soldiers so few and provisions so small,
how can you long hold out ?
" If, English barbarians, you will not awake from your
delusions, but will still persist in your former evil
courses, we, the entire province of Canton, will first cut
off your trade and provisions, and at the same time
withdraw all who are employed in your service, and
leave you like an infant on the breast which, deprived of
its milk, dies in the hands of its nurse. It bemuse You,