The Sun.
London, England, 1828-12-04 00:00:00

verely disastrous one of Manhop, and ineapautnted
in its surviving members to perform its function);
upon fair principles, was to he secured in a eterieter
its
defalcations wtth the intention of enabling it to pay
defalcations to foreign creditors, and for contieuing
a system for the benefit of those foreigners whose
gains in China chiefly resulted from loans at the high
Interest which such as system nut tured. And tne
English Committee were to be secured in their choice
of teas, no matter how dearly their employers paid
for the privilege, by receiving them at the hands of
a Hong so constituted. At first it was not believed
by the Americans that their silk trade was to be
attested by this arrangement. They supposed the
jealousy of the Company's agents would confine it-
self to the-teas. But when the new order of things
was announced, as it formerly was to the American
Consul on the 25th of March-by the cohong, it was
found that the parties interested were determined
to go for the whole. The cohong's disastrous Pima-.
don required the utmost that exaction could give
them, and the agents of the company had perceived
that the facility with which the Americans bartered
off British manufactures for the silk manufactures of
China, operated unfavourably upon their barter sys-
tem with the cohong. They had not wisdom enough
to see that the reduced prices at which the Americans
• were enabled by their silk trade to introduce British
manufactures into China, were most conducive to
advance British industry, or if they hind, they were
wanting in patriotism to act upon it. As soon ns
it was ascertained that it was determined to apply
the new system, in all its extension, to the American
trade, an attempt was made to awaken a proper
feeling in reference to it, and if possible to avert it
by an appeal to a regard of the consequences which
public opinion, too enlightened not to view mono-
poly with aversion, would visit upon the authors of
such mischief. But the only press in Canton which
afforded the means of this, was under the company's
control, and it was couceded, by the act of supprese
sing the communication, that their deeds would not
bear the light.
" The new system would of course bear least par-
ticularly hard upon the vessels in port which had
adopted their arrangements, and made their con-
tracts, under the old one. An application w,is
therefore immediately made to Hetiqual to know,
whether the permits would be granted for the cargo
in preparation. lie declared they should ; thet
was not consistent with either reason or propriety
more
elflola.Areterptsierlitdeliy.4titsdihioedontgallotlii)hoebderesermsrohepl footiovislre,d)id,nd.gbeecdTlasa)ehr,
declaration
stttihondils,•oamls,d,a„oed.cnei nsion th
gh that os
remonstrances were made in vain by those concerned
to Honqua, against his injustice and ineonsietency.
A meeting of the Americana merchants was Oleo
called, who decided upon a petition to the Cantor
Government. The next (lay they called a meeting
of the cohong, in order to present it. A petition
from foreigners to Government, however ineffectual,
is at no time a pleasant thing to the cohong. They
asked time for consideration,-24 hours was granted
them, at the expiration of which they again met the.
Americans, and announced to them that the com-
pact with the company was broken, and the trade
was again placed upon a footing without reference
to it, i.e. that no individual Hong merchant should
be bound by it, and might ship off if he pleased.
But the dishonesty of this conduct was evinced
upon endeavours to obtain permits for the goods in
readiness. No Hong merchant could give one !
The object of this deception was to give time to en-
able them to obtain from the company permission to
concede to the Americans the outside silk business;
for though they wished to cancel their agreement
with the company, their release depended upon the
company's assent. The company thought they had
made too good a bargain to be off so easily, and it
is believed, to the confusion of the cohong, demanded
a full compliance with it. The Americans perceive
ing that their difficulties could not be removed but
by the interference of the Canton Government, had
in the mean time drawn up a petition stating their
ievances, and the causes of them, and had presented
it to Government; getting no answer or unsatis-
factory ones, a second and a third have been sent in,
but the business is yet in negotiation. One featute
in the business evincing the recklessness of the com-
mittee to the claims of justice must not be omitted.
In the progress of it a new difficulty arose which
was not anticipated. Some of the Hong merchanta
have junior partners or assistants, who are not con-
sidered outside men, but act in the name of and with
a division of profits with a Hong to which they are
attached. Contracts made with them for the ships
in port, it was supposed, would be introduced, by the
Company's agreement, it was nut supposed they
would become parties to a breach of eoetract. But
the Hong merchants so understood it, and would not
ship off. A direct appeal was therefore made by
the party interested to the British chief supercargo,
who refused to answer the inquiry, and, endeavour-
ing to add insult to injury, politely intimated, that
the agent of an American commercial house had no
representative character entitling him to explana-
tiotrispny. Comment
froma the servants
is iee
tsofittstglish East India,
Company.
"It is time to bring this recital to a close. The
question, unhappily and needlessly put in agitation
between the cohong, the Company, and the Ameri-
cans, is yet at issue. It is probable that the latter
will obtain from the justice of the government, per-
mission to ship off the goods contracted for the
ships loading, and it may be, that their trade may be
again placed upon its former footing. But this is
scarcely to be hoped for. The foreign influences in
Canton, which as one, might effect much, are divid-
ed one against another, and too weighty a portion is
now interested in supporting a eystem of exaction
upon the foreign trade. To other influences, there-
fore, than those which now rule there, must wo
look, to establish that order of things, which it is so
desirable to do, to give stimulus to British and
Americanhuin i
tl,.
e industry, and
people toof furthern
itthe
edbestStates
e wishes
s
of
cannot
be indifferent to the indications of any foreign rule in
China. Rapidly stretching themselves to the shores
of the Pacific, she will ere long become to them a
sigarstdeerdniiintiothneii the
,i.ieta of
fyteis o
the distant
dir if she is ti s
tantE East, the
to be e-
hl
einfiueirwe
that would check free access to her tea must be felt
as prejudicial to the advance of their industry, and
they may not relinquish this excitement to it. But
tea they cannot receive by a grant foreign to that of
China. As their fathers bequeathed them a right to
it, independent of such control, so must it remain
free to them. _ _

Or if, as citizens of the world, we cast our eyes
to Britain, may we not hope that the guardians of
her interests are too enlightened not to peicei•.-.e
that the servants of her commercial company have
been: unfaithful to the trusts committed to them ?
At the moment the most favourable, perhaps, to se-
cure the desired advance upon the Chinese system,
they have in petty jealousy of the efforts of the free,
done what they could to bar closer the door of access
to her; and in extending their fostering care to an
ineffectual hong, and so adding to the bounties Of
foreign bankers, would sacrifice the hope and stay of
their country, the industry of her people. Let this
attitude of monopoly, so forbidding to the hopes of
tile economist and philanthropist, be the signal (.f its
retirement. The services, far the performance of
which a wise Providence in a dark age designed it,
aro no longer needed, and the spirit of an age other
than of its establishment, demands that malt coinnitt-
iiimte with man with a freedom attendant upon the
promised freedom of the course of light.
AN AMERICAN MERCHANT.
" Canton, May JO."

SHIPPING INTELLIGENCE.