Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-09-02
WASHINGTON NE 'Ws AND GOSSIP.


nouncement Thy means of tne a.@nuc .'eie-
graph cable) of the conclus. on Oh the oninese
war which. of course, involv, - the fact OF the
sncsess of England and France in forci ug their
own terms of peace upon the Ce testials, is at
tracing great interest on the part Of the Amer
lean press. Those terms are well KIN ow n, every
where, to involve further concessions s1f privi-
leges Of trade to the ''outside barbarian world,
the United States included. To achieve these
privileges was the cause of the war; all privl-
leges of the sort previously enjoyed by o ther
nations having been concessions forced Fl ON
the Celestials only by and through the pow er
of arms, and they have also been obtained onl.
step by step. Their history is thus briefly SO.
forth by the New York Herald:
s'With our imperfect knowledge Of the actual
terms of the treaty made with China, and Of the
vast internal trade which, as a consequence of
that treaty, will be opened up to us in common
with all the other commercial nations Of the
world, we can have at this day but general con-
ception OF the full importance of the dispatch
which announced the establishment of peace. IL
will be exactly sixteen years tomorrow since
what is usually denominated the opium war was
brought to a close by the signing-on the 10Th of
August, 1Si2-of the treaty on board the Corn
wallis by the representatives of reat Britain and
China BY the terms Of that treaty, five ports
were thrown open to foreign commerce, at which
consular officers Of the various governments were
to reside, and the import and export trade was to
be established on regular and Just principles.
Three years subsequently--on the 3lst Of Deem
Der, 1oi5-the Publications of a treaty between
China and the United States were exchanged, by
which our citizens were entitled to the same com
mercial and other privileges, extended, or to be
extended, to the subjects of the most favored
lions, and by which also leave was granted for
the erection of hospitals, chapcls and cemeteries
at five ports, and for ships Of war to visit any
part of the coast These privileges, however, are
now considerably extended by the new treaty
| tered into with China by the representatives of
France and England, in the benefits of which
we, OF course, participate"
With reference to the probable future com
mercial results of the new treaty, the same
journal pertnently adds
. IL is not 10y the small figures of our present
trade with China that we can estimate the i'm
| portancc Of that clause of the treaty by which
| we learn that the Chinese Empire is open to the
| trade Of all foreign Powers. The whole foreign
commerce of China did not exceed in $50 one
hundred and twenty millions Of dollars. Its
commerce with the United States not more
than onc-tenth of the whole. In other words.
we exported to China in 1856 goods and specie
to the amount of g, SIS, 237, and imported there
ffon tea and silk TO the amount of Sl045i $50.
But when we are told that the tonnage of China
used In the navigation of its rivers and canals is
larger than the aggregate tonnage of all the other
nations Of the earth that there no less than
Ten thousand imperial barGes engaged in COL
iechng and carrying TO Pckin the duties IN kind
Imposed on the single article Of grain that an
equal number OF bdrgts is employed III collect
ing the duties on salt; that the annual revenue
OF her government amounts to some 500 900 600;
that there are over four thousand walled cities
and towns In the empire, many IF them Tivalling
Pekin in size and population that there is not a
creek or haven on which there does not stand d
town OF commercial importance; that its great
Tlver, Yang tie kldng, opens I'D the trade of a
hundred millions of people, and that in industry
| aud enterprise these Celestials are not exceled
even by ourselves, we may then form some idea
of the immensely of the trade that may be estab-
| ilshed with this swarming hive Of humanity"
1t is to be hoped that the extension of the
| Intercourse of the rest of the world with the
Chinese, to flow from this new treaty, will
change the necessity for dealing with her as up
to this time as the closer the intercourse of
the commercial world (of the Vest with China
becomes, the more damages will accrue to the
| former by the interruption of friendly relations
between them. How China and the Chinese
have been viewed and treated up to this time,
is most forciby set forth in the following brief
extract from late London paper:
Generally speaking, the British nation are
sensitively alive to appeals based Justice and
| mercy; They dislike the Palmerstonian line Of
quarrel, and would rather beard and grapple
with the strong than bully the weak. But China
seems to be an exceptional case. We have sym
pathy for the red man--arned avenge.s for the
negro-are revolutionary at Naples and philan-
thropic in Borneo We protect Australian abo-
regimes, and are jealous CT the right of Indian
landowners. But somehow we have no bowels
OF compassion for the Chinese. The fact is we
have laughed at them till we have forgotten that
humanity has its rights and its feelings even in
Chlna-that men are men still, though they wear
pettlc0ats and pigtails, and women women,
| though incapable of polka. From the nairs
| avowal of the delinquent Interpreter in Anscn's
voyages, 'Chinee man yer great rogue, truly, but
have fashion no can help, to Basil Halls divert
ing history Of the decease of the pig Jean the
bulk Of her personals literary notices of this
strange people have tended mainly to excite our
/ rdicule
1.-THE vulgar notion of a Chinaman is made I'D
| OF few Peculiarites of diet and dress What
| can 1t signify how you deal with set of fellows
VINO wear hats Ike an umbrella, fatten puppies
| for pies, and think fat maggot excellent grub !.
| Even our educated classes talk of the necessity
| OF reading these conceited barbarians a lesson
| as II with regard to them and them only the ex-
ercise OF power might be di vOrced from respOn-
slbllity-ds If slaughter and spoliation ceased to
| be erious things when inflicted on the most in-
dustrious and most densely peopled region Of the
| edHh' Strangest OF all, even our seamen seem
i TO lose something of their tenderness of heart
| when poor John Chinaman is to be taught his
| weakness The crew Of the Alceste burst into a
roar Of laughter at seeing, as they fancied. the
| head Of mandarin taken of by round shot Is
not something OF the same spirit traceable I'm orr
| accounts OF recent victores?' We will not pur-
SUE thS toplc further, save TO express an earnest
Il
as we know the Chinese better we shall feel for
| them more, and treat them more wisely, more
| mercifully-must we add, more JUSTLY They
are coveous, doubt; let us not enliyliten them
by an exhibition of rapacity. They are cunning
/ the weak often are; let us show them that the
/ strong can afford to be honest. They are AFRO
gauntlet us forbear to trample on the pride of
Coh-fn-tsee with greater prde. They are idoIa.
/ ters-shame aud wo to rs IL we offer them shells
/ and rife bullets our best evidences of Chris
i tIdnity.'n
| SOMETHING NEw.-We read accounts of the
successful invention Of a plough for digging
potatoes, by Mr.. X. A. Allen, of New York
who is perhaps the largest manufacturer of
agricultural implements in the world, by the
| by. Our exchanges say that it accomplishes
the work of twenty men without leaving more
| than two per ccntum of tie yield not turned
up to the instant vision of the gatherers II
| SO, the invention is a matter of great import
ance to the interests of agriculture, tho gath
ering Of the large crop of potatoes grown in
this country having heretofore been much more
| costly in comparison with its value that of the