The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1870-07-23
The Burlingame Mission.

Mr.. N. b. DENNYs, late editor OF the Hong
Kong (China) Mail, publishes in the Ne"
York Tribune long and pitky letter on the
subject of the BURLINaGME mission. Ht
saws that Mir. BURLiNGAME's appointment
did not emanate from the Chinese, but was
suggested by Mr.. ROBERT HART, the In
spector-General Of Maratime Customs III
China. and that therefore the mission was
robbed of its impromptu character. MI
DEsSys thinks Mr.. BuRLINGAME was dazZlea
by the appointment, and "belicving i'll y
the Chinese, he might grossly mlsrepresch'
facts "without being conscious that he was
.sdoins more than putting them in fayora'
"bIe light" The Chinese at first under
stood that the services were to be gratlllt'
OILS and when 1t was found that they were
to be paid for, it came near breaking up the
mission, and it was only with the help OF Il
squeeze" of the tonnage dues that the
Government agreed to bear the expenses.
MIR. DENNYs goes on to assert that the re-
presentations of Mir. BURLINGAaE touching
the liberalization of the Chinese, their rcadi-
ness to welcome foreigners rs their guides,
philosophers, and friends" and their III
wiling foreigners "to plant the shining cross
" on every lofty hill and in every lovely val
"lcy," were unsustained by the facts. he
saws that these glowing assurances OF the
Commissioner created great astonishmcnt
in China, and were generally repudlatcd.
Even Mr.. HART, the friend of Mr.. BURLIN-
GAME, declared that he chad exceeded his
Instructions" The Chinese authorities de-
clared that they would stop the mission,
and Sir Il. ALcocK, the great friend and sup
porter of Mr.. BURL1NdAhE, wrote TO the
Shanghai Chamber Of Commerce " L see
"here no evidence of the desire for pro-
" gress about which Mr.. BURLINGAME has
" spoken so much"
MIR. DENNYs was in China at the time.
and speaks what he knows, and explains nj
length the existing hatred of foreigners i'll
China and the reason therefor. One OF them
il that the foreigners are too frank and
truthful, and will not lie and enter into the
tricks and submit to the "squeezcs" OF the
mandarins, who get money by cxacting
extra fees for their services. Now, we had
supposed that very many foreigners from
this and other equally cultivated lands
could oblige the Chinese to some liberal ex-
tent in preyarication and conniyance, and
we know nothing so damaging to the Chi
nese character rs the weil-authcnticated
fact that they fall very fur short of its re-
uuirements in these questionable virtues.
, Mr.. DENNYs shows very plainly that Mr..
BURLIKG AME went n bow-shot beyond his
instructions, and gave great dissatisfaction
to the Chinese people and authorities. A
mission conducted under circumstances of
such disfavor in the country from which il
was sent. and conducted, too, OH such a
grand scale and ut such enormous expense,
must have grown daily more and more dis
Hateful to the Chinese; and when we con-
slider how insidious and dcccitful they are,
can we look upon the suggestion Of JOHN
mitchell that Mr.. BuRLINaAaE was poison
( ed by his associates rs improbable9 The
death of the Commissioner was sudden !;
and although the symptoms did resemble,
possibly, pneumonia, we venture to prenct
that no other American will attempt mis-
sion similar 10 that of Mr.. BURLINGAAE
!, attended by long-tails, with all their oppor-
tinities to add tonic to his coffee OF DIS
toddy. esa~-..'.
AS the Republicans have now turned
against the Chinese, we suspect they WIFE
begin to believe that their distinguished
leader. the Chinese Commissioner, was un'
fairly dealt with.