The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-03-25

The Coolie or Bzltish Slave Trade.
From the Charleston Is. G Mercury, March IL
Contemporary with the final triumph, lthat u, the
theorcsical trumph) OF the British slave trade,
sprung into existence new traffic, quite innocent
and even praiseworthy In the eyes OF philanthropy,
(renowned for having its eyes turned outside In,
whereby it satisfy itself by for ever gazing at its
own complete idea, instead OF being compelled 10
take the broken images OF things as they are0 ana
the substitute has proved ingenious that even the
sugar planters OF Cuba have almost come to the con-
cuson that it is cheaper and better than the original
It has accordingly thrived wonderfully under the
Joint countenance Of philanthropy and the dealers
Our attention has been drawn to this subject by
the California papers received by the last arrivals.
From leading ports Of India, and more especially
from China, il would appear that the Coolie trade
has been fully organized on grand SCALE In q
single Calcutta paper there is notice Of ten ships
taken up for the transportation of Coolies to the Br
fish West Indies Many thousands are every year
carried to the Mauritius where they are worked to
death, and thus room made for more.
But the trade in China Is most remarkable, in con-
sequence of itshaving finally come athwart the in
tense nationality Of the Chinese, and thus led, not
only to variety Of petty tragedies and explosions,
but an exposure Of the true character of the traffic
so graciously smiled upon by Exeter Hall, in the
midst of its denunciations of slavery.
The Hindoos are q patient race, used to be con-
guered, trampled on skinned and sold by strangers
1t seems 10 have become part Of their nature to take
all this as matter of course and without complaint
The Cooie trade has therefore fourished with them,
and gone on increasing, without murmur or ques-
ton. But the Chinese are different sort OF animal
vain of their national name, despising and hating
foreigners, and as turbulent and mobbish as the
Mexicans themselves. Greedy Of gain, and sin
gulary INSCRIPTIONS as 70 the means there was not
the smallest difficulty in engaging any amount OF
Chinese brokers in the business of selling their
trymen--the difficulty was to get the cattle into
the market 1t appears that sound Chinaman, de.
lKered at the British agency, was worth hundred
dollars, and the cattle as we said not being pleased
with the process OF transfer to the outside barba-
rans. it was necessary for the agents to resort to
cunning devices, and when these failed to plain
kidnapping.
The result has been anything but pleasant In
the officers Of the ship at sea, and murdered them.
The Aha California intimates that the example has
been abundantly copied since. 1t says" Every
arrival brings us accounts OF vessels putting back
without officers, and in the utmost distress, the
suit of disafecton and mutiny on the part Of the in
ured and deluded passengers, who were perhaps IN.
duced to take passage under false representations,
and promises Of speedy passage to California, or
some other country where they might earn SUBJ
sistence.'
This is not all. The Chinese population at home
have become bitterly exasperated at the frauds prac-
tised on them, and in the cities where the system
has been most extensively set in force, have mobbed
the British traders, and put to death their Chinese
agents. At Annoy the crew Of a manofwar was
called on shore to defend the house OF one of the
dealers in "human cattle' But it is not called the
slave trade and therefore is honest in the eyes Of all
the real character Of it may be determined by the
fact that the Cuba planters have begun to look to
it as profitable substitute for the African slave
trade.
From the Mercury March q
We publish from the Alta California the article
we referred to yesterday relative to the species
of slave trade commenced by British subjects in
China and sustained by the British authorities even
10 tha chaddipu 0f hlOOd n what attitude Of
Hypocrisy and cruelty does it place that unprinci.
pied and remorseless government. In Europe and
America she is Wanting her pretended philanthropy
in her efforts to extrpate slavery and impertinenty
intermeddlng in the affairs of other governments
with that pretence. The coasts Of Cuba, Brazil, and
Africa are kept under the strictest surveillance by
her cruisers for the suppression Of the slave trade
and the barracoons or slave pens on the coast are
destroyed, and the negroes liberated. While OF
Hong Kong British subjects establish their slave
pens, kidnap the unofending Chinese, and when
their countrymen attempt to liberate them, they
slaughtered by the marines from British manor
war
But this may be only the beginning Of the enor-
mites, and the Chinese government may be called
to make restitution for this loss Of British pro-
perty," as they were formerly, when the opium, il
legally introduced into their ports, was destroyed
They may have to submit to invasion and outrage.
the sack of cities and the massacre Of thousands,
because they will not consent to be kidnapped into
slavery by British merchants, as they were when
they attempted TO prevent them from poisoning them
with opium. Divided and paralyzed as she now is
by internecine war, China would fall easy prey,
and British rapacfty might readily eXtor another
large subsidy Of Sycee silver and the cesson of other
eligible and commanding ports SO as to place her at
the mercy Of her usurping neighbors. Such policy
would not be more surprising, or more Ubiquitous,
than what we have already witnessed in that quar-
ter, and it would be in admirable keeping with
British threats and abuse of the Cuban authorities
for countenancing the introduction of negro slaves,
for which these Chinese slaves are intended to be
tho suhsttufas