The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-01-21

polph,u mn. we'd al Cumsingmoon and seize,
Akeu's two We. sels: they, with the Chinese crews
were carried q, hacSe, where lone of the met
was discharged. as he proved 20 be the brother q
the comprador atiei ding the ship" The two cap
tured junks, crews, AID cargc~s. were then handet
10 the aurhoriues of Honrkong. sy order o
Commodore Geisinger, y beins alleged that th'
properly belonged to British sutsscts; ihry wer,
brought here BY the captors, 10 couyeny ~ N. NJ
sloop Columbne and the Steamer Phlegethon
Lieut.. Page and acting Lieut. Fox, Of the Anne n
can navy. appeared before the police magistrate,
on the 2sth ultimo. and stated iae circumstances
connected with the seizure.
Thnt the Am~rican commodore should cBd over
bis prizes To the Brush. or that the A.Wrcaa
Minister 20 China (who resides az Mscao) .sbould
sanction such an act, requires an explsn ssioa
which we csunot give. "The affair" was sk0-
geiher American, aud u was tor the Amsr.c va
Commissioner TO adIudicate himself. or hand over
the t~e prizes 90 the Chinese government. Akcu
Is connected with an American shtpsnasler--the
owners OF his vessel are Americans-and his
schooner, which carried pau of cargo sup
potcd 10 have been purchased from pirates,
(Which the American naval officers believe o.
have been practically taken m the first place wss
under the American ilag. The police magistrate
OF llongkong could not 60 into the case fslly he
could not summons Captain EndicOu before h,m
he could the Echo's cargo rs fin al dee
tnation; neither could he Issue warrant search
the Ruparell. For Captain Endicctts complete
exoneralon all this was required and though Mr..
Hitler dismissed the case, disagrerable Inarrz-
the American Commodore aud Comm ssi iuneT dsns
their duty. IL Is not usual tor an American com
modore To hand over HE prizes 20 the officers of
a foreign power part OF the cargo was East India
cotton, II is irue; but this proves nothing Ameri-
Can houses cell such produce es well Bunsh;
but whether imported by British or American
merchants, II was no doubt taken from some un-
fortunate Chinese Junk. IL has been advertised IN
local paper; proper form has thus been complied
with; but that the owner should be found was 30
improbable that ne expense might have been saved.
We would not be understood az casting such re-
Elections affect th,r integrity upon any sne; the
is most serious one. and had the Ame-
rican officials acted in more independent and
straight forward manner, and not shirked their
duty on any consideration, nor shuiled IL on the
shoulders of others, either TO save their friends,
or TO save trouble, il would have been more satls-
factory TO Captain Endicot's friends, and the OF
6clals would have only fulfilled the eng gement- of
their country with China. There are peculiar diff
culles II is true, CARDS Anne citizens engag
ed in the opium trade; in the prese Mt instance the
American Consul al Canton Is senior partner the
firm which owns Captain EndcoiIs ship, these
difficulties enhanced; but the Chinese know
all the circumstances connected with the Cumsing-
moon opium fleet, Just as we'll "a weknow them;
and ii We overlook the notorious fact that the gem
tlemsn who once had the honor Of repre- senting
the United States, and still holds consular al-
pontment from that government, Is deeply en-
gagged in a trade which he is bound TO suppress,
they have their reasons for silence. Under any
circumstance. the responsibility Of settling "the
Cumsngnoo affair" did not fall upon Johl Bull
legtimately,-and in future we beg that Unce
Sam look after his own erring babes.