The Sun.
London, England, 1846-04-02 00:00:00

CANTON.

For two or three days some apprehension has been felt for
the safety of the foreign factories in Canton, but by late
advices the excitement among the mob had subsided, and
from the large naval force now near the city, and the large
body of Tartar troops said to have been marched into the
city itself, it is not probable that the mob will proceed to
extremities. The hostility to foreigners is, however, un-
abated, and as we presume that Sir John Davis will insist on
the gates being opened—the justice of this demand being
admitted by the Chinese officials—it is not improbable that
Canton will be the scene of serious riots ere long. It would
be prudent to allow the holidays to pass before the city is
declared open, as at this season there is an unusual number
of idle and disorderly people congregated within the walls.
The 11. C. steamer Pluto is moored off the factories, and it is
probable. that she will be kept there until the city has been
opened, and the mob pacified or awed into submission. In•
deed, considering the nature of the Canton populace, a war
steamer should never be farther from the factories than
Whampoa, and kept as much in sight of the consulate itself
as possible. Within the city there was a riot on the 15th,
which a correspondent communicates as follows :
" Yesterday, as the Quang-chow-foo was passing in his
chair through one of the streets in the city, a man bearing a
burden obstructed the way, and was struck by one of the
soldiers, which gave rise to some offensive language. The
Quang-chow-foo ordered that he should immediately receive
300 strokes of the bamboo, and some tradesmen came eut of
their hous( s and remonstrated against the severity of the
punishment, for which interference two of them were arrested
with the original offender. A strong body of respectable
citizens mustered and proceeded to the house of the Quang-
chow-foo, which they broke open, destroyed all the contents,
and released the three prisoners. At night the house was set
on fire, it is said by a rabble of bad people, and not by the
shopkeepers. Engines were brought, but the mob prevented
the firemen using them to save the mandarin's house, though
they kept them in reserve to extinguish the fire should it ex-
tend to other buildings; it, however, ceased with the total
demolition of the Quang-chow-foo's house, and the mob dis-
persed.
" The Quang•chose-foo was very unpopular owing to his
cruel and tyrannical conduct, and is now dismissed from
this office. Those who publicly insulted him boldly avow
their acts with impunity. This is sufficient to show that the
local authorities have no control over the populace, as re-
gards actual force; indeed the soldiers were easily repulsed.
" In this state of things, whilst we are approaching the
new year holidays, when Canton is usually crowded with
strangers in idleness, we look with some anxiety for the
Pluto steamer, before the factories, for immediately fol-
lowing the row of yesterday, though perhaps unconnected
with it, appeared on the walls near the factories placards
ma may threatening
entur
venture
violence e
enter
to
the
the
city persons of any foreigners who
in virtue of the chop which
has recently appeared, signifying the consent of the local
authorities to their admission, and, adding,
is that on any
fanqui proceeding within the walls of the city, the fac-
tories will be burnt. The crowd increasing about the
factories, and a nursery maid belonging to •one of the
foreign families was hooted out of the American garden this
afternoon.
" A residence here is little better than being perched on a
barrel of gunpowder, for the slightest prnvocation, I can
plainly see, would instantly cause a row; indeed., an Eng
lishman, this morning, was pelted tetn to pull
down a placard, and was glad to make his esca_pe.
the entry to the city must be persisted i, matters having
gone so far."
The Pluto arrived most opportunely on the afternoon of
the 16th—the day an attack on the factories was anticipated.
On the 17th some violent and abusive placards were posted,
describing foreigners as a people having faces and heads like
those of the human race, but hearts like those of the worst
brutes, and declaring that any who may dare to enter the
city shall be killed, and the houses of all foreigners burnt to
the ground. It was considered necessary to send some of
the ladies to Whampoa, and the
gentlemen were all armed
to repel any attack that might be made. Two boats with
armed men from her Majesty's steamer Vestal arrived on the
evening of the 17th, and the American ships of war Vin-
cennes and Columbus were ordered up from the Bogue that
they might anchor as near Canton as possible. The man-
darins were to have commenced paying the indemnity money
on the 17th, but deferred it, not daring to expose the sycr
to the mob in their excited state. An inferior mandarin
issued a chop to the Quang.chow-foo (mayor of the city),
declaring that foreigners would not be admitted to the city
The lad who
by authority of the local government, and exhorting people
to return to their peaceful occupations.
was so severely punished on the 15th, for
want of respect to the late Quang-chow-foo, is reported to
have died on the evening of the 16th.
No time was lost by the authorities here in dispatching a
. strong force for the protection of the foreigners in Canton.
Letters arrived on Sunday morning communicating_ the
state of affairs. It was known that the Pluto and Vestal
' would both be near the city before the attack could be
made ; it was also known that the American men-of-war
were ordered up. On Monday morning her Majesty's
ships Daedalus and Hazard were dispatched, and we be-
lieve that the war steamer Vixen had orders to be prepared
to follow, if necessary. There is Slow II strong Race in the