The Sun.
London, England, 1844-04-06 00:00:00

CHINA

We have intelligence from Hong-Kong to the ad
of January. The sickness so long prevalent on the
island had not entirely disappeared ; indeed, it has
broken out afresh on the south side of the island
amongst the garrison there stationed. Nevertheless,
many of the mercantile establishments were arranging
for their removal thither from Macao.
Her Majesty's ship Castor arrived on the 27th
December, having on board Major-General d'Aguilar,
who succceeds Lord Saltoun in command of the
British forces in China. A commencement had been

made of a trade with Formosa ; three junks having
arrived at Victoria from the northern end of the

island with cargoes of camphor amounting to about
1,000 piculs. The crew represent the place whence
they oome as an extensive and flourishing town,
named Hap-matam, containing 20,000 inhabitants,
awl amply supplied with sugar and rice from the
surrounding district.
The Plenipotentiary, in a notification published
Dec. 12, intimates that all the ground formerly occu-
pied by the Companies Dutch and Greek factories in
Canton, has been secured on a lease of 25 years, for
the use of the British authorities, but that so much AS
they would not require would be portioned out into
building lots, under a regular plan hereafter to be
laid down, and would be available to any parties
agreeing to pay the proportionate rent of the same
and to build according to an authorised plan. Pur-
suant to the above-mentioned notification, a meeting
' of British merchants was held at the British Consul's
office, Howqua's Hong, on the 22d December, and
several lots were taken.

The market at Canton is generally dull, except as
regards green tea, which was kept up to a full price,
in the face of large imports, to the extent of two or
three million of pounds.
Some adventurous American travellers having forced
their way into the interior of China as far as the city
of Chang Chow, in the province of Fokien, and pub-
lished an account of their journey at lacao, the
British Plenipotentiary thought it necessary to address
the Viceroy. and Lieutenant-Governor of Canton on
the subject, in order to assure them that the parties
in question were American, and not British subjects,
at the same time suggesting that the local Chinese
authorities should in future arrest and confine any
such parties as might be found transgressing the
bounds laid down by the late treaties. The man-
darins in this case appear to have supposed the tra-
vellers to be British subjects, and feared to oppose
thsm more seriously than with a remonstrance against
their progress as a breach of the treaty; this circum-
stance is at least a proof of the great respect in
which the British name is held even in the interior Of
China, remote from the scene of the late war.
The supplementary treaty bearing the Imperial
signature, was brought to the Plenipotentiary by some
mandarins of rank in the latter end of December, and
together with other dispatches, was forthwith dis-
patched home under charge of Captain Brooke, of the
56th Regiment, who will of course have reached
London before this paper.
The port of Shanghae was opened on the 14th
November by the officiating Consul, Captain Balfour •
Subsequent accounts to the Ist December represent
the market as having been supplied by native dealers
previous to the opening of the port, and consequent
little trade was doing. In the port of Shanghae is
included the town of Woosung, at the mouth of the
river of that name. A custom-house and jetty were
commenced. Some difficulty was found in procuring'
private dwelling-houses, but warehouse-room was
abundantly obtainaide. The English at first Were
not in the least restricted in their excursions in the
vicinity of the port, until unluckily two Chinese boys
were accidentally wounded in the face by small shot,
one so severely as to cause the loss of sight. This
occurrence led the Chinese authorities to apply to the
Council at once to have the limits defined within
which foreigners were in future to confine themselves,
The cold weather had set in at the end of November,
and the thermometer fallen to 40.
An Ameiscan vessel, named the 0. C.•Riymonat
commanded by Captain Denison, in the course of last
May took about 40,000 dollars on freight at Chusant
for Macao, and disappeared from the China seas, lint
was lately heard of at Valparaiso, where it was said
the Captain had disposed of the sycee silver and mane
over his schooner to the first mate, with the intention
of proceeding to the United States. f
• 1
The Hong merchants have applied to the Imperel,
•to h f-nd r .led f th- •men'

Commissioner to have a fund raist . tor pay,
of their debts by the imposition of an additional aiti,
of four mace per picul of tea and one mace per pion.
of cotton at Canton. To this petition the Conuy
ni
sioner replied that the Kwang Chow Foo would
ebea
require :I to report on the proposition. This propos
alteration of the tariff would be a manifest infraction
of the treaty, and has excited a suspicion moue
the British mercantile 'community in China that trl
is but the first of many encroachments that may /)°
~
expected to be attempted unless decisively resisted P.
the outset. The Chinese Superintendent of Custoolo
at Amoy is said to have determined to levy a double,
duty on camphor, but we are not informed whethei
this has arisen from any orders received from h°
superiors, or otherwise.
(From the Canton Press of Jan. 6.)
We heartily wish a happy new year to our reader!'
This year in China is ushersd in under more ausl'''
cious circumstances than the last, when only a fe7l
weeks before its commencement the houses 04
property of British and foreign merchants 13%,
been destroyed by the violence of a ho,tile
and when Canton was, to a certain degree, abandonn
by its foreign residents. At the beginning of UP.'
year the British flag floats quietly before the re Bt,
deuce of H M. Consul, temporarily established
Howqua's Hong, and its former owner would 1,3,e
doubt be somewhat unpleasantly astonished, could be
see the guard of British marines posted before,
14"„
house where for many years he was busied acc-
mulating thousands upon thousands, and in opliosl
as much as his secret influence would do, the Brit e,
interest, or rather in upholding a system which go,
cured to him the advantages of the Cohong U1°11.4
poly, and restricted, as much as laws could do 15e
the general and friendly intercourse, between Chineet
and foreigners. A new era has during the past Yee.
begun ; many of the restrictions isolating the Chine
from the family of nations have been abolished, °lrie,
the new system must gradually subvert ninny
At four ports already British Consuls, fully re
nised by the Chinese Government, reside, and
hope that another will soon be appointed to the
capital of Fuhkeen. The most friendly intercon to
between the Chinese officers and those of the westeeo
nations has frequently taken place during the I to
just closed, and the Mandarins seem insensiblity
have dropped their pretensions to superiority avera,
rest of mankind. Our prospects of trade and in •e,
course with China are of the brightest, and we sld
cerely hope and trust that they may not be ditu°
by any unfortunate and unforseen accident.
We learn that of the ground rented at Cantos)
the British authorities, 13 lots to build on have be°
let out to British merchants.
TROOPS AT RONG-KONG.
Col. C. Campbell, C. 8., her Majesty's 98th Pw
meat, Commandant.
Lieut. Haythorne, her Majesty's 98th Reg'!"
'Station Staff Officer.
Royal Artillery.—:Lieutenant P. S. Pasco,
com pan v. 110#
Royal Sappers and Miners.—Lieut. T. B. '‘i°
son, half company.
Madras Sappers and Miners.--Lieut. T. B.
son, det. F corn. ILO
Her Majesty's 55th Regiment.—Capt. H. WCO3"
4 com.
Her Majesty's 98th Regiment.—Col. C. Cavell'
C. 8., 6 corn.
41st Regiment Madras Native Infantry.---.-
Col. J. Campbell, C. 8., 6 com. aef
Madras Gun Lascars.—Lieut. P. S. Pareoll'
D com.

FIELD FORCE OF CRUSAN.
Major-General Sir J. H. Schoedde, K.C.8.,
-
manding Field Force. epto
Captain A. O'Leary, her Majesty's 55th Regis'
Brigadier Major. • te
Captain D. Bamfield, 56th Bengal Native In"-
Military Magistrate. 7,766le
Lieutenant C. J. Elphinstone, 12th Madras
Infantry, Sub-Assistant Commissary-General. neol'
H. Green, Deputy-Assistant Commissary 0'
Lieutenant J. Hitchens, Madras Sappers so'
ners, Executive Engineer and Barrack-master. ~e/41
Surgeon A. Shanks, her Majesty's 55th IteB.3' A
Staff Surgeon. • if her
Madras Artillery, commanded by. Capt. Back'
quarters, G corn. 1-1,40°'
Her Majesty's 18th Regiment, Major
C. 8., 4 corn. A C'
Her Majesty's 55th Regiment, Lieut.-C(on
"Farren, C. 8., 5 corn. t 01.
2d Regiment Madras Native Infantry, Lieu
J. K. Luard, C. 8., 10 comanie :tchiol'
Madras Sappers and Mipners,s. Lieut. J. Ja"
head-quarters, G. corn. c 0 0'
Gun Lascars, Capt. J. Back, head-quarters,
GARRISON OF KeLAiNGSII‘. d
Lieut.-Colonel J. Cowper, C. 8., Coma
Garrison. Jai fj#
Lieut. J. W. Graves, her Majesty's 18th 110 Y
fantry, Station Staff fficer.
W. T. Power, AcOting Deputy-Assistant COl3l
A
sary-General.g'
Lieut. C. T. Collingwood, Madras
mutant Engineer. pet.
Madras Artillery, Lieut. Collingwood,
comps.
. .1.001
Her Majesty's 18th Royal Infantry Regi
Lieut.-Colonel Cowper, 5 comps. Wk
41at Royal Madras Native Infantry, ..14e
Captain Hall, 4 comps. •ngiov-
Alpdras Sappers,and-Aiucre, -Lieut. Cal
Det. F comp. t 9
Madras Gun Lasoar, Lieut. Collingw€o4/
comp.