The Sun. — 1861-05-07 (London, England)

MOM. important. Tho Admiral has been received in the most friendly manner by the Taepings at Nanking, who have declared their willingness to throw open the whole country under their sway to our trade, but opium they will not allow. They have already taken Kew-Kant and Chin-Keang (the two ports where we intended to have left consuls), and Han•Kow they say will be in their possession before our men-of-war arrive. In fact the whole valley of the Yangtse Kiang is theirs. If our merchants are only allowed to trade with them by oar own Government, you may look for such a trade in British manufactures as the most sanguine China merchant has never contemplated. Again, if the opium trade be really stopped, and teas and silk be obtained for about half their present price (in tea this is by no means unlikely, as the present price is high solely on account of the exorbitant duties, or " squeezes" as they are called here, paid in transit to the shipping ports) the importer of manufactured goods would get such a high rate of exchange in his remittances that he might sell his shirtings at present prices and still secure a profit of some 50 per cent. So much for the opium trade, about which the good people in Liverpool and Manchester are so ignorant. At Nanking they are building on all sides, and trade is springing up, while in C hin-Keang (lately occupied by the Imperalists, in fact, I am not sure that by last accounts they did not still hold it) only one house remained standing, and, as it was bitterly remarked to me the other day by a friend of the Taepings, ''it was supposed that that would be taken for .Lord Elgin's Foreign Custom House." The Taepings are organising a large force to take flangchow;and it is also believed that both the Northern rebels who have defeated San-ko-din-sin, and the Southern rebels, in Quangtung, are under the command of Taeping-Wang. We hear that at Nanking orders have been given to build 18 churches. Several Protestant missionaries are there now, and have been most cordially received, some livingin the Palace itself, and presented with yellow gowns (a mark of Imperial favour). The Taepings have expressed their intention of sending to England for competent engineers to construct railways, 8.7 e., and to build steamers. In fact,,,we may consider now that China is fairly " opeued. in Shanghai I am sorry to say things do not look so bright. The French seem determined to keep what they have already got. Romish cathedrals are springing up, .and a large number of native boats are collected in front of the French ground with flags with crosses on them. The tricolour flag floats from the French Wigstaff, and also from the spire of the Cathedral, and French soldiers with fixed bayonets keep guard. How different from the English ground, where not a soldier is to be seen. Our Sikh regiments, I am sorry to say. still garrison the city in conjunction with the French to keep up the Tartar power. A good deal of interest has been excited lately by a trial at the Consular Court of an Englishman for selling arms to the Taepings some distance up country. He was sentenced to three months' imprisonment, and a fine of 5,000 dollars. This soems rather severe, when we consider that arms may be sold to the Tartar Government for nse against the Taepings. It strikes me as strange that it should never have dawned upon people at home, who talk about the "only milk of human kindness in China being found among murderers ina. Tartar dungeon" (this was in allusion to the kindness of the Chinese prisoners to poor Anderson and Norman) that the stud " murders " were nothing more nor less than poor rebels or Taepiugs who were being tortured by the mandarins. A report has reached this from Nagasaki of a disturbance at KaiIfIgEIVVR, It is said. that several Japanese officials, followers of the Prince of M.etur, went on board one of H ships. disguised as merchants. and before they were discovered succeeded in cutting down several of the officers and wounding about 30 of tho It c. rew, but it certainly does not appear likely. is very possible, however, that some attempt at murder may have been made, as a report is rarely circulated at Nagasaki regarding affairs at Kanagawa that is not founded upon fact.  ST.