Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1858-04-15
STATE OF AFFAIRS AT CANTON.


upon our dealings with the Chinese people.
STATE OF AFFAIRS AT CANTON.
The correspondent ofthe London Times
writes that he had traversed the whole city
of Canton, and found the people going on
with their accustomed occupations. Along
the great east and west throughfare a
closed shop has become q rare exception,
and the only difficulty was to push our
way through the crowd. The people were
cutting up their pigs and their fish (the
abundance of immense carp, tench and
roach in the streets of this city is wonder
fnl.) and cooking their comettibles in full
businesslike security. Idlers were playing
at Chinese hazard, and exhibiting their
piles of coins on the board. The curiosity
shops in Incredible numbers were spread
with curious antiques of the newest fashions.
The crowds are not even afraid to manifest
curiosity at the clothes and features of their
European guests, and the shop-keepers in
vite you into their shops with politeness
that proves they have no misgiving that
you will exercise any right or conquest ex-
cept a conquest Of purchase. Yes the
spirit of insolense has departed out of them.
Neither in word nor gesture is there any
symptom of hostility or even dislike, I
have seen two people frightened very much
by scolding for using the word "Fou quie"
foreign devil,) bnt l believe they used it
in all innocence, having never heard us
called by any other name.
So far from there being any notion of
retaking this city, | believe that no ten
Cinnamon within sight of Canton would
dare to raise stick in the presence of q
British or French soldier or sailor.
The street of the Triumphal Arches is
the only exception to the general reopening
movement. That street lay rather in the
way of the Phlegethon's fire, and the lower
part of it has suffered severely. The Chi
nese are engaged in clearing away the rub
bish, to rebuild their burnt houses, out the
uninjured shops near the Treasury still re-
main sulkily closed. In the large western
suburb, where the streets and shops are
quiet as good as in the city, not shot fell
and business goes on as usual.
"The commercial ports of Canton have
been much overestimated. We have be.
lieved that there must be some grain Of
truth in the bombast and brag of the Chi
naman. Canton is big and populous
that is all. In other respects it is very
ordinary China city. Its temples are num-
erous, and the Confucian temple and the
Temple of Five Hundred Gods are good Of
their kind, but most of the Others are mis-
erable and dilapidated.
| When the General and his party went
to the pagoda it had all the air of not
having been opened for 20 years. have
already spoken Of that grear district of des-
olation, the Tartar Generals yamun.-
Hundreds of Coolies are now papering and
whitewashing, carpentere are snoring up,
and, believe, even painters are painting.
1t is thought that when the jungle is clear
ed away, and the roofs and floors are secur-
ed, and the bats driven out, and the atmos-
phere sweetened, it will become good bar
racks, and that the surrounding grounds
will become 'capital camping ground for
British grenadiers."
"How different are all the realities of
Chinese life from our English notions of
Oriental magnifcence! Their ridiculous
Mandarins live in houses in which an Eng
lish gentleman would be ashamed to lodge
bis steward, and keep their retainers in
places which an English farmer would think
quite unworthy of his cows. 1t is explain
ed that they allow their vast vamuns to
fall to decay because their tenure of Office
seldom exceeds three years; their luxuries,
therefore, are fur dresses, embroidered
tunics, jadestone sceptres, loose silk chair
covers, and such like moveables.
The new Co-rt has established new
Canton police. 1t is composed of 100
English and 80 French soldiers, and the
same number of Tartars associated with
them. Five English and two French sta
tions have been established in convenient
parts of the city and suburbs, and the shop
keeping community are likely to obtain un-
der British and French rule securely they
never before hoped for.
Things were proceeding so happily that
Peh-Kwei the other day wrote note to
Lord Elgin complimenting him very much
upon the state Of affairs, and suggesting
that we were all very good friends that it
was quite unnecessary for US to keep sol
diers in the city. This polite imper-
tinence produced an answer which Peh-
Kwei has not yet shown to his most init
mate advisers.
RAILROAD COMMUNICATION BETWEEN