The Sun.
London, England, 1857-11-18 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 18, 1857.

CHINA.

(FROM CORRESPONDENT OF THE TIMES.)

SHANGHAI, SEPT. 15.

The Russians have played the first card in the
game which is now to come off here. On the 2d
inst. Count Putiatin, Vice-Admiral Aide-de-Camp,
General. Governor of Amoor, Minister Plenipoten-
tiary and Ambassador Extraordinary from his Im-
perial Majesty the Emperor of Russia to the Court
of Pekin, landed here in plain costume and from a
little boat, accompanied by a suite as unpretending
as their principal. He had left his steamer at Woo-
sung to coal, and took up his residence with the
American house of Russell and Co. The only visits
he paid, except return ♦isits of ceremony, were to
Mr. Beale, an old friend whose guest he had been
when stationed here before the war, and to Mr.
Hurd, the head of another of the principal Ameri-
can houses at this port. From these little facts some
people draw conclusions as to a probable coincidence
of Russian and American councils in the forthcom-
ing negotiations. _ _ _

—Count Putiatin left Petersburg in April, tra-
velled overland in 70 days to the Amoor, where he
found the America, a paddlewheel war steamer,
ouilt ir, America during the war, and sent round
the Horn and across the Pacific by our kind cousins.
The Count steamed down to the mouth of the Peiho,
tud, after delays and much difficulty, succeeded in
despatching an announcement of his mission to
Pekin. Having occupied the necessary interval
very agreeably in Shanghai, he is now gone north
again to seek an answer to his despatch. The
America left Woosung just before the heavy gale,
And was seen standing northward making very
heavy weather. The Admiral has no force with
slim, and his embassy is evidently of an entirely
pacific character. _

It seems to be thought here that the objects of
the Russians extend no further than to convert
their college at Pekin into a diplomatic establish-
ment, and to obtain a participation in the privi-
leges granted to nations " heretofore trading to
Claxton." With an Ambassador at Pekin they can
work out the rest at their leisure. Meanwhile the
odium of all coercive measures is to be thrown upon
the English and the French.

We shall see presently how this will work. The
Count will either go to Pekin, or he will be back
nere before the next mail leaves. If Russia gains
ime by this quick isolated step, she also risks.
From the treatment she receives we may surely
ear❑ something that may be useful to us.
The weather has broken up, and we are suffering
a succession of gales which marks the change from
, he south-west to the north-east monsoon. Steamers
therefore will come slowly and at much expenditure
of coal from Hongkong hither, and sailing ships,
if these incumbrances are to come, must be towed.
After the north-east monsoon has settled into its
steady course, there are, however, usually some
weeks of fine weather, and we may still hope that
something will yet be done. I believe the Pekin
weather to be a bugbear. Lord Macartney did not
leave Tartary for Pekin till the 21st of September, I
nor Pekin till the Bth of October. He traversed
the whole of China to Canton between the Bth of
October and the 18th of September.
We have heard nothing here either of the French
Ambassador nor of Lord Elgin. But this is not
dispiriting, as, according to former computations,
they are not due till the last week in September.
Perhaps this mail, as it passes Hongkong and Sin-
gapore, may gather some tidings of them both.
The French show signs of movement. Asl came
here from Ningpo, we had opportunities of seeing
the coast. My little sailing-boat sped from point
to point during the intervals of light skies and mo-
derate weather; and then, when night or the gale
grew heavy, flew with half-closed wings before the
howling blast, and nestled in some winding inland
creek known only to experienced opium-runners or
the native fishermen or pirates. During these de-
vious fits of progress we saw the Capricieuse French
frigate trying to make way northwards, and a large
steam transport, which we thought to be Russian,
but which turned out to be also French, lying at
anchor under a sheltering headland.
This is al the news Shanghai affords. The Rus-
sian officers have, indeed, been most provokingly
candid and circumstantial as to their means of ue- '
fence at Castres Bay and Petropaulovski, and as to
their escapes. It would be easy to make an amus-
ing letter out of these revelations. But cui bono ?
Let these unpleasant topics cease. Some Horace
Walpole is no doubt telling the next age all about
it.

In a former letter T told you that I had esta-
blished a little channel of communication with Mr.
Commissioner Yeli's back parlour in Canton. Un-
fortunately the difficulties of transmission, transla-
tion, and testing make the underground way very
tortuous. I send you some reports, however, which
I think you will find interesting. übsequent events
have shown that I might have relied upon my in-
formant's first despatch more than I felt justified at
the time in doing. The proceedings respecting the
overtures made by the Americans are, we now know,
at least founded on fact. The blockade which was,
of course, at once instituted by the Admiral when
the scheme reached his ears put a stop to its execu-
tion. In a printed publication, having something
of the character of a newspaper, which is in circula-
tion at Canton, it was stated three weeks ago that
negotiations for peace, together with resumption of
trade, have been delayed in consequence of the
Eluglish "headman" having been compelled to leave
for Calcutta to take part in the fighting that is going
on there, and the settlement of these questions is
accordingly for the time postponed, until the Ame-
rican Commissioner "Forbes" (!) can come down
from Shanghai.

If it be true, as my informant states, that Yeh
has removed all prohibitions on trade, you will pro-
bably hear of a brisk traffic being done at Macao
in the teas, &T., that we know were shut up in
Canton or its vicinity, as much of this and other
produce can reach Macao from the West without
risk, to long as the port and river of Canton are
the only points blockaded.
The most important, however, is what is said of
the advance of the rebels towards Canton. Shaou-
hing is scarcely 00 miles west of Canton, the river
leads direct from one place to the other, and there
is no point between the two at which the passage of
a force could be disputed. Our best hope that the
rebels will not traverse those 90 miles must be that
they know they will find only famine at theirjour-
ney's end.

(Translation.)
"REPORT No. 1.
"On the 28th July Howqua visited the yamun ?f
the Geveruor-General (Yeb), and was received by his
Exce.leocy in the western reception-room. The inter-
view lasted for a couple of hours (Chinese or English
not specified—one of the former is equal to two of ours),
and the attendants and every one else were excluded
from it. It is impossible, therefore, to say what
formed the subject of it.
"At about 8 a.m. on the 29th the Governor-General
summoned two of the linguists before him,
and put
various questions to them, the subject of these questions
being the state of affairs in Hongkong and its vicinity.
He also required the linguists to bring him an official
letter that had been broeght to Whampoa by an
American ship. As soon as the Governor-General
had perused this letter he ordered the officer in
charge of the gate of yamun to inform How-
qua that his Excellency wished to see him,
and the expectant Taoutee (or Intendant of Circuit)
Chin was also desired to wait upon his Excellency.
The subject of the conference held by his Excellency
with these officers was an application on the part of the
Americans to be allowed to trade.
" We hear that the Americans have expressed their
readiness to present the Governor-General with $200,000
in the event of his permitting them to carry on trade (at
Canton) as heretofore.

" On the 30th of July Elowqnn proceeded, by dire°•
tion of the Governor-General, to Whanapoa to see there
the American Consul and other officers, and to settle
with them relative to Ia() permission given to the Ame-
rican merchants to trade at Fushan, Chint.qm, and
other places.
. _

" The Americans had another request to make—
namely, the grant of an island at which they might carry
on their trade with China, but the Governor-General
said he could decide on nothing in reference to this im-
portant matter without previously bringing the subject
to the notice of the Emperor.
" Letters have been received from Foochow, stating
that the committee (tor supplies of war) at Nautai. the
suburb by the bridge, resolved on levying a tax on Patna
opium of 40 dole. per chest, and 4 doll, per 10 catties
on Mal ova and Turkey opium.
"The Governor-General took occasion only recently
to ini,irtn all the high principal officers, comprising the
Principal Committee for War Supplies, that as the bar-
barians now desired to treat for peace some relaxation
might be allowed in the strict guard hitherto maintained
and that with this view the (or certain of the) city gates
might be opened, and traffic again permitted. Sulo).e-
Tient to the issue of these orders, reports were repeatedly
received of Shaouhing being greatly distressed by rebels
who, it would appear, have invested that city. Direc-
tions were thereupon given for the despatch of some of
the officers, soldiers and braves who had been employed
against the barbarians, to relieve the said city by extir-
pating the rebels, and accordingly a force embarked in
70 boats, under the orders of Soohai, bound to Kaouming
a district city near to Shaonhing. This force took its
departure on the 25th and 26th of July, and on the 2d

inst. word came that it had sustained a severe defeat,
many of the boats having been burnt, and the whole force
scattered. Soobai himself was among the missing.
" The 29th of July being the Emperor's birthday, all
the provincial authorities were in attendance at gunfire
in the temple dedicated to hie Majesty, where they did
reverence before the sacred tablet. For seven days, viz.,
from the 26th of July to the let of August, they all ap
peared in public in full uniform."

ton as bearer of 65,000 taels, which had been contri-
buted by the mercantile -classes of Chaou-chow. The
Viceroy directed that the money should be paid over
to the committee, and that the officer should be ad-
mitted to an audience to-morrow.
" The district magistrate of Shuntik, near the Bogue,
reported his arrival with 137,000 taels, being the
amount realised upon the lands and property of rebels,
or people in their interest, that had lately been seques-
tered. The Viceroy directed the delivery of the money
to the committee and the admission of the magistrate
to an audience to-morrow.
"The district magistrate of Nanhai reported the
detection of certain frauds in the collection of the sums
which the pork-butchers of Canton had been called upon
to contribute. The fraud had been committed by the
butchers themselves, and the magistrate was authorised
to procesd againstthem for the sums that had been short
paid, amounting to 18,000 taels."
In my last letter I ventured to point out that
when England assumes the character of champion
of all civilised nations she incurs some rather
onerous responsibilities. If all are to share in the
advantages she claims for herself, she is bound to
guarantee to the Chinese that by none shall those
advantages be abused. I must rocur to this subject,
even at the risk of being tedious, for it is a most im-
portant topic for consideration in anyfuture treaty.
Every one who looks at China from the English
point of view must now be satisfied that no treaty
can be worth the powder that salutes its signature
if it do not stipulate that China shall become one of
the great family of civilised nations. Foolish people
treat children withalternate coaxings and floggings,
and John Bull, with a certain conceited pity, has so
treated John Chinaman. Treat him as a man, and
exact from him the duties of a civilised man, and
you will have no further trouble with him.
The port of Ningpo is an example of what a
hundred other large cities will be when you have
obtained your object of an unrestricted trade up all
the great rivers on all the coasts of China. It is
what Hangchau, Chin-Kiang, and Nankin will be.
Your direct trade is only to the immediate district ;
the carrying trade will attract ships from all Euro-
pean countries. Hamburg sends mere ships up the
Ningpo river than even England. Every petty
nation that has a flag to lend or sell is represented
either by its square-rigged ships or by its nonde-
script lorchas. Sweden and Denmark, and Ham-
burg and Holland, and Spain and Portugal, are
all Christian nations, all have traded, or say they
have traded, to Canton, and all have flags under
which honest men and scoundrels may equally claim
treaty rights. But these nations have no consuls
and no men of war to keep the peace. If an English,
an American, or a French ship comes to Ningpo,
she must pay her tonnage dues and get her grand
chop before she can clear out. If an armed Ham-
burg ship comes up the river she does as she pleases,
—that is to say, she pays no tonnage dues, to the
obvious disadvantage of the ships of the great
Powers. Toe other day five Europeans boarded a
Chinese junk iu that river, and, under pretence of
being officers entitled to see her papers, plundered
her of all the silver sue had on hoard. Complaint
was made. One of the pirates was found to be an
English subject—one Murphy—ho was tried before
the Consul and sentenced to two years' imprison-I
meat. Several of the others were Europeans, 1
subjects of nations represented by no authorities
here ; there was no power to tJueli them. .
This is a difficulty which must be met if we would
not "open up China" to all the outlaws of Europe ;
but it is not insurmountab'e. Let it be part of
the treaty stipulation that no nation shall claim
the advantages of a treaty power except under con-
ditions. Let one of those conditions be, that when
that nation is unrepresented at any port the two
senior Consuls, or the English, French, and Ame-
can Consuls, or the Consuls chosen by the other
resident Consuls for that purpose, shall have the
consular power over the subjects of the nation. I
believe that to render the remedy perfect you must
go still further, neil provide that the resident con-
suls shall assist each other with any force at their
command in order to preserve order and enforce
the provisions of the treaty. The time is not far
distant when commerce will teach China how to
defend herself. I noted these facts at Ningpo in
sight of au armed commercial steamer and four
large ship-rigged vessels, all owned by merchants of
Ningpo who wear tails and carry fans. At present,
however, Chinese Mandarins in this peaceful North
dread all hostile contact with Europeans who are
not Portuguese, and it is rather our policy to
cherish this feeling.
Tue case of Tobin, the man who went up the
country to collect " convoy money," or, in plain
English, to rob with violence, is another embarrass-
ment. The man is dead, and the circumstances
are, itappears, worse than they were at first reported.
When he had, either in anger or by mischance,
shot one of his Chinese comrades, the villagers
seized him and lashed his arms and legs
to a bamboo pole, passed up his back-. The poor
wretch's torments must have been fearful. He
could not lie, he could not sit ; the thongs were
eating through his flesh, and his wounds were fes-
tering in the sun. A little boiled rico was daily
put into his mouth, and that was all. Six days he
endured this. On the 7th be was taken to D:.
Parker's hospital, his wrists, and legs, and back, all
covered with sloughing sores. He had been tor-
tured to death, and he died.

Now, this is the melt important fact that has
occurred since the late war. The affair of the
Arrow is as nothing compared with it. It is the
murder of a British subject. There is no reason to
regret that this wretched ruffian has ceased to live ;
but wo must recollect that he was tortured to death
not because be was a robber, but because one of
his own fellow-ruffians was slain. Ti3o conduct of
the villagers was in direct contravention of the
treaty, and the precedent, if allowed, will apply to
any Englishman whomayacciclentally violateOhinese
law while in pursuit of peaceful avocations.
I have no doubt that Mr. Meadows will deal with
this matter with the temper and firmness it requires.
The elder of the village must be made accountable
for this English (or rather Irish) life as be would
have been accountable for a Chinese life, and the
reparation should be very public. Otherwise any
treaty will be a dead letter. To-day the victim is
a worthless outlaw ; next year the victim's name
may be Jardine, or Dent, or Beale, or Gibb, or
Fletcher.

As I thought the English public may like to know
what preparations the Chinese are making in the
neighbourhood of Ningpo, and what probability
there is of a repetition of the occurrences of the last
war, I determined to spend a few days in a survey
of the scenes of our most important conflicts.
I believe that John Bull will be utterly disap-
pointed of anything like a fight. Ningpo itself
is defended along the whole extent of its walls by
two guns, whose explosion would be terrific and
cause immediate destruction to all who should ap-
.proach—to fife them. It is said there are a thou-
sand soldiers in the city, and the assertion is very
probable. But the Chinese, -who invented every-
thing, invented that system of purchase which is
the ornament and safeguard of our military system.
They carry out the principle further than we have
yet done. In China a soldier receives a certain
modicum of cash and rice, amounting perhaps to
6d. a-day, he attends parade now and then when
called upon, and he works at his trade at all other
times. This is an advantageous position, and the
Mandarins take care he shall not get it for nothing.
From 15 to 30 dollars, according to the demand, is
the price paid for his commission by a private in the
Chinese army. Some time sines) some tall strong
Shantung fellows who were out of employ wished to
enlist. Their offer was laughed at, and some old
men and cripples whose friends wished to provide for
them in the army of the Empire were duly regis-
tered. I believe that if at any moment Commander
Dew were to land his 17 marines and proceed to the
Toutsi's Yemen, and were to tell him that his
Sovereign had resolved to annex Ningpo and the
surrounding plain, and that Mr. Consul Meadows
now reigned as Toutai, the old gentleman would
simply protest that such conduct was " most un-
reasonable" and would be led away liken lamb.
As to the people, they are so worn out with con-
tinual " squeezes" that a judicious proclamation
would quite reconcile them to the change.
CHUSAN HARBOUR, SEPT. 9.

On the 6th of Sept., in a boat with two ears and
two eyes, a foresail and mainsail kept taut by bam-
boo sticks worked into them, and a comfortable
cabin, built as a hurricane-house, and occupying
nearly all her length, I started with a strong, ad-
verse wind for Chusan., The Rosina is partly used
as a passage boat, partly to carry information, but
chiefly to carry " drug"—the commercial name for
opium. She belongs to an eminent commercial
house, is navigated by one European and a Chinese
crew, has a good store of Minie rifles, always fit for
service, is a good sea boat, a fast sailer, and the
type of a numerous class. Everybody of any
im-
portance has one of these Ningpo boats.
It would take more space than I dare occupy to
describe the 10 miles of the river Yung. The simple,
yet effective ice-houses, and the no less simply con.
strutted salt stores which occupy the right hank ;
the wood junks, each in its separate mud dock (so
closely packed that there is not room for another);
which line the left bank ; the " frowning" batteries
which are built at the end of every reach--alideserve