The Sun.
London, England, 1840-04-25 00:00:00

1 deed ! why the Company's marks arc on their chests—
(Cheers)—it is grown on their soil, and it is sent to us by
them. The fact was the people of China were not
getting bread for their tea, but opium.—( Loud cheers.)
It had been said that the present Governmeut had
cleared itself from all blame; he did not think that
such could be stated to be the case. The trade
had been going on for years. They had had all sorts
of Governments during that time—they had had the Blue,
Whites, and Grey Governments, and all the talents, the
Whigs and the Tories, and all, in his opinion, were to
blame for allowing this infamous traffic to go on. Ever
since 1796 the British Cabinets had neglected preventing
the opium traffic in China, as they might easily have done
by preventing the growth of opium in British India.
( Hear, hear.) The great East India Company had the
monopoly of this growth, and they kept the Hindoos alive,
it would seem, by employing them in raising poison to kill
the Chinese.—( Hear, hear.) That was the way this
" Honourable" Company proceeded—( Hear, hear)—and
their shipments of opium kad increased from
3,000 chests to 30,000 chests. Under these cir-
cumstances, when Commissioner Lin came down
with high powers to suppress the trade, was it to be pre-
tended that the events which had occurred, and were to
occur, had nothing to do with the opium trade ?—( Hear,
hear.) China bad found she could not trust in " barba-
rians," as she called us, and that we had given her too
good reason to consider us,—(Hear, hear.) They had
thus been excited to measures against us. It was said
thet the trade was valuable, worth four millions a-year.
Why a company of thieves would doubtless, if established,
find it a very profitable concern—(Laughter)—but would
it he considered a tolerable excuse, that it was a serious
thing to touch the concern, it was so profitable?—
( Laughter.) We had no right to force a trade on any
country.—( Hear, hear, ) As to security for future trade,
what right had we to demand it? What security could
China owe us?—( hear, hear.) If she desired all our
ships and people to quit her shores for ever, what right
had we to object to it ?—(llear, hear.) If we found,
therefore, anything in our intercourse with China to which
we objected, let us discontinue the intercourse.—( Hoar. )
He was sorry that one gentleman had said that the British
subjects had nothing to do with this trade. He was ob-
liged to take notice of such a subterfuge. Our merchants
left their opium down at Lintin in the receiving ships, just
as thieves did in receiving houses, those goods which it
would be inconvenient for them to have them found upon
their persons.—( Laughter.) From these ships the drug
was brought in fast rowing boats, manned by despera-
docs,who being fully armed, brought it up at all hazards, and
was the cause of gross outrages, and frequently the loss of
life. What would they think of receiving ships being sta-
tioned down at Sheerness filled with smuggled goods, and
the proprietors of those goods were to come up to London
and give orders to desperadoes to arm themselves to go
down, and at all events, and at all hazards, bring
those goods up, in spite of the laws aid of its officers, the
Custom House officers ?—(Cheers.) That was the real
question, and how then could any gentleman, knowing
these things, come forward with such a subterfuge. It
only showed that the trade in the drug contaminated all
who in any way were connected with it. If gentlemen
would sell themselves to Mammon let them do so ; if they
were determined, he (Mr. B.) would not put hands upon
them to prevent them; even had he the power he would not
issue out any reprisals against them—( A laugh)—he
might dissuade them from it, but if they would sell them-
selves, let them do so with all the risks attendant upon the
sale, and with a perfect readiness to meet all the results
that must flow from it.—(Loud cheers.) It was
said that, although the trade might be put
down at Canton, yet it would spread all along
the coasts of China and spread its desolation wider.
They would be benefited in no way by a war. He still
hoped there would be no war—it might, however come,
but they must go further, and say they were protesting
against the reprisals, or the war it was likely to produce.
The causes of the reprisals or the war ought to be taken
essay. Let them go to the Chinese and say, "We have
swept the whole of the drug from your seas, and no more
shall leave any of the ports of England—no more opium
shall be smuggled into China by us." Let them do this,
and he had not the least doubt that Commissioner Lin
would at once say—" The grand object of my mission has
been obtained—l shall report your words at Pekin—the
trade shall be opened at once," and there would be no diffi-
culty in dealing with the Chinese. Let them go on
in this way—take away the great bone of contention and
strife, and even then, if the Chinese will nut deal with us
—even then he held that we had no right to go to war, or
say to them " you must." They might be more a moral
and religious nation, even if they were not so much a com-
mercial nation—it was not necessary that we should be so
much a commercial nation, but it was necessary that " we
should do unto others as we would wish them to do unto
us." It had been said that we might act in Canton as we
had in India, where we had conquered nearly the whole
country, but at the expense of multitudes of lives. They
could not remain in Canton by force—it was impossible ;
for the Chinese would:bring down their teeming mul-
titudes and drive them from the country.—(Cheering.)
If thousands should fall after thousands, let it be remem-
bered that China was not like India, a divided empire,
with a variety of castes, but a united and mighty people,
with a government not likely to be broken up, and which
had stood the teat of thousands of years.—( Cheers.) Let
it not be said that the British nation was invincible, and
that they were a natioa of semi-barbarians. What did
the Romans when carrying on their wars with the barba-
rians of the north: Did they not disperse them and hunt
them down as wild beasts by the aid of the legions of the
empire; but, eventually, these northern tribes burst from
their woody fastnesses, and came down upon the mightiest
empire the world ever saw, and scattered its might and its
power before the winds.--( Loud cheers.) One word with
respect to the amendments that had been moved. He trusted
that these gentlemen would not persevere in interrupting
the proceedings of the meeting which was not disposed to
hear them. Let them not make the question they had met to
discuss a mere struggle of passion, and endeavour to put
down by clamour the feeling of the meeting.—( Hear,
hear.) He (Mr. Burnett) had no party feelings what-
ever, and he believed the question had nothing whatever
to do with party politics.—( Cheers.) In his opinion,
whatever political party was at the :head of affairs, their
position with regard to China would be just what it at
present was.—(Hear, hear.) He could feel for Captain
Elliot, and apologise for him. He could feel for Com-
missioner Lin, and apologise for him ; but he could not
apologise for the smuggling of opium.—( Hear, hear.)
He could apologise in some respects for the smugglers,
because their conduct was the result of the vicious habits
which had been persevered in from generation to genera-
tion, under the influence and sanction of those who had
been accumulating wealth, which might soon " make to
itself wings to flee away."--( Cheers.) He would urge
upon the meeting the vast importance of carrying the reso-
lution before it, so that the abominable traffic would have
its due prominence. He was anxious to disabuse the minds
of those who imagined that the present was a question of
faction. He (Mr. Burnett) had nothing to do with any
party or any faction. He had never received, he never
hoped or expected to receive, nor would he accept a gift
from any Government, either Whig or Tory. Under
these circumstances lie hoped that the proceedings of
the meeting would not be disturbed by a few individuals
who differed from the vast majority in opinion.—( Cheers.)
If amendment was to follow amendment, and two or
three persons were to become standing speakers for the
purpose of replying-, rejoining, and answering, the result
would be nothing but confusion.--( Hear, hear.) They
might as well open the cannon of reprisals on them at
once, which would only cut short their time, while their
perseverance in addressing the meeting without any spe-
c:tie object, would only waste the time of all present.
—( Cheers.) The Rev. Gentleman concluded, amidst
loud cheers, by strenuously supporting the resolution.
The amendment and the resolution were then put to
the meeting from the chair, but the latter was carried by
a triumphant majority amidst great cheering.
Mr. ALEXANDER with great pleasure moved the second
resolution. Ile was himself a trader, and he felt that
the character of Englishmen, and the character of Eng-
lish commerce, had been degraded by the part which Bri-
tish merchants had taken in the opium traffic, and by the
part which the East India Company had taken in growing
that article.—( Cheers.) He had read with feelings of
shame that cheers followed the demand made by the mer-
chants ir. the House of Commons for war with China ; but
he was persuaded that if the friends of humanity and
religion had been beard, a different feeling would have
been created.—(Hear, hear.) Even looking at the matter
in regard to our manufactures and commerce, he con-
tended that the measures which had been taken by the Go-
vernment, and in which this country was now engaged,
were calculated to produce the most serious injury to our
commerce.—( Hear.) The traffic in opium had prevented
the introduction of British manufactures into China.—
( Hear, hear.) He could scarcely believe that men could
be found who would sympathize in a war waged by a
powerful nation against a people who were ignorant of the
truths of Christianity, and who, by the measures that were
about to be taken, were likely to be estranged more,
if possible, from the truths of our holy religion. The in-
troduction of opium for a long course of years had caused
the present reprisals, and he was astonished to learn that
Lord John Russell had stated in the House of Commons,
that one of the measures sought from China, was the reim-
bursement of the amount of opium seized by the Chinese
Government, and which had been attempted to be
smuggled into China, thus making the British Government
the confederates of smugglers.—(Cheers.) In the cause
in which they had that day assembled, their legitimate
commerce, their reasonable luxuries, the interests
of humanity and of their holy religion, were
involved. He believed there was among the Christian
portion of the people of this country, a degree of energy
which would induce Parliament to abstain from waging
a most unrighteous war.—( Loud cheers.) Ile begged
to conclude by moving, " That, although the Chinese have
not been heard in their defence, the statements adduced by
the advocates of the war clearly establish time fact, that the
East East India Company, the growers of, and traffickers
in, opium, and British subjects who received the protec-
tion of the laws of China, have been :thoughout the
wrong-doers; therefore, this meeting (without reference
to the conviction of many, that all war is opposed to the
spirit and precepts of the Gospel), holds it to be the
bounden duty of the Government immediately to effect an
equitable and pacific settlement of,the existing differences
with China."

Mr. EAGLE seconded the resolution, which was cirried
with but one dissentient voice.

Dr. MARTIN BARRY, F. R. S., said—lle was appointed
tc move the next resolution, and in doing so he felt it was
quite unnecessary for him to do more than to repeat it,
which was accordingly all he would do. It was—
" That all traffic in opium with the Chinese being con-
traband, the opium which was surrendered to their Go-
vernment was justly confiscated ; and that to demand pay-
ment from the Chinese—to make reprisals upon them—or
for this country to give compensation to the British mer-
chants thus engaged in smuggling, would be to sanction,
and even to grant a premium for, crime."
Roar. R. MooRE, Esq., A.M., Barrister-at-law, rose
to second the resolution. He thought every part of it had
been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting. That the
traffic in opium was contraband, contrary to the Chinese
lew, and therefore justly confiscated ; and that it was con-
traband not only by their law, but by ours also. It was