What will Canton turn into, and where will bachelors find
rest? Nowhere. Mrs. and Miss Low and other ladies are at this
moment here! The second day after they arrived several old
codgers were seen in immense coats, which had been stowed away
in camphor trunks for ten or fifteen years, and with huge
cravats on, and with what once were gloves, on their way to make
visits!
_13th._--Called on the Tai-Pan's wife and niece, and
entertained them with descriptions of local worthies such as
'Houqua,' 'Mouqua,' and 'Gowqua,' 'Man-Hop,' 'Wa-Hop,' and
'Tung-Hop'--a jumble they had never heard of, and names that
amused them immensely.
_22nd._--Evening Church service at Talbot's, the Consul,
at No. 1 American Hong. The ladies and a good number of
gentlemen present. At half-past nine we accompanied the former
to show our fashionable street, Old China Street, its shops
shut at that hour; but some Chinamen passing began to cry out,
'Foreign devil women!' when instantly every door was opened and
lanterns appeared. In less than ten minutes we were completely
surrounded, and had to beat a hasty retreat. We were not at all
molested; it was simply surprise and curiosity; and on arriving
at the gate of the Hong everyone quietly dispersed.
_24th._--The Chinese are not so far out in calling us
barbarians. Two or three from No. 2 Suy-Hong called on the
ladies. Coats, gloves, and cravats--such cravats! I heard one
say when he returned, 'Thank God that is over!' and then call
for jacket and black neck-ribbon! He next lighted a cheroot, and
looked as if a great burthen were off his mind. In the evening
dined at Charles N. Talbot's; all bachelors, of course! A fine
little party; but I dissipated too much, and the sooner bedtime
comes the better. Bad habit of dining out in this country; I
think I shall swear off, no getting home without being observed!
I hope the ladies in No. 1 did not see me come in!
_30th._--The ladies took their departure this evening. They
went on board the boat that was to convey them, escorted by all
the American gentlemen. While returning from Jackass Point an
inveterate bachelor said, 'I hope we shall never be _bothered_
with ladies in Canton again!' but he was a notoriously crusty
old fellow.
* * * * *
Having lost a fine retriever named Rover, and an English friend a small
pug named Bop, I caused a 'reward-card' to be posted on the walls of
Chungqua's Hong. As these 'cards' have a peculiar phraseology, I give a
translation of the one in question:--
On the 10th day of the 1st moon of the present year two
foreign dogs strayed, one from the Suy-Hong and one from the
Dutch Hong, and have not been seen to return. Long ears and
a long tail adorned the one, which had also a brown star on
its breast, the body being of the colour of 'fragrant ink.'
The other was a small dog, with cropped ears and a tail of no
length. His body was spotted in variegated colours of brown and
white. The larger dog was named 'Lo-Wā,' and the smaller 'Pŏ-Pā.'
This is to give notice that should any 'superior man'
know where they are, or if they have been 'misled,' and will
inform, he shall be rewarded with _flowered red money--two great
rounds_[69] for the big one, and one great round for the little
one. Even should they have been _stolen_ (_an inconceivable
thing!_), if the person who took them will bring them to
Suy-Hong No. 2 he Shall still be rewarded, and clemency used
towards him. This placard is real; its words will not be eaten.
Taou-Kwang: 14th year, 15th day, 1st moon.
The poor dogs were never found, and the Compradore insisted upon it that
'some man hav chow-chow he,'[70] and we supposed so too.
* * * * *
On February 27, 1831, Mr. Russell and Mr. Cushing took their final leave
of Canton in the 'Bashaw' (Captain Pearson), for Boston, the former
with the satisfaction of having founded a house in that distant port
which, under his sagacious management, had secured the confidence and
consideration of the entire foreign and Chinese mercantile community, as
well as of its numerous foreign correspondents in all quarters of the
world. Its present world-wide reputation renders it needless to say that
it still exists, and has become one of the oldest, if not _the_ oldest
firm whose style has undergone no change eastward of the Cape of Good
Hope. Mr. Russell was a native of Middletown, Connecticut, a person of
singularly gentle and benevolent disposition. There was about him a
suavity and charm of manner which under no circumstances ever deserted
him. Throughout a long life he enlisted the esteem and respect of all
who knew him. Of his considerate forbearance under great provocation I
can vouch from personal experience. From my first entrance in the office
he was desirous that I should make myself acquainted with book-keeping.
Its mysteries he first taught me. However incorrectly the tyro
appreciated the relative bearing of successive transactions or bungled
in recording them, he was corrected with a patience and kindliness of
manner that knew no bounds, and the encouragement he thus received at
length led him to a clear idea of the respective value of debit and
credit, as well as to the knowledge that they were 'the two factors
which formed the base of all mercantile transactions.'
The younger members of the office, as a slight testimony to the paternal
kindness which they had received from their worthy 'Tae-pan,' invited
him to dine with them, to consider himself as their guest, at a 'parting
dinner.' He graciously accepted, and seemed pleased at the idea. We
invited Mr. Cushing and his old friend Houqua. The latter could not be
present, but sent us a very choice bird's-nest soup for the occasion.
We sent to Manila for a _fine_ turkey, and on its arrival put it out to
board on Honam, with injunctions that it should be well fed. The turkey
was a very rare bird at Canton and supplies came from Manila. Ours
looked rather haggard on arrival, and the Compradore attributed it to
its being 'very tired,' but added that it would be No. 1 when killed,
fat and presentable. The day came, and with it the dinner. At the proper
moment a great dish was placed upon the table and the cover removed in a
triumphant way, only to exhibit, to our horror, a lot of legs and wings
of the turkey, but as to body next to nothing!
Not the least remarkable feature of Old Canton life was the 'Factory,'
as the common dwelling and common place of business of all the
members, old and young, of a commercial house. The system begat mutual
confidence. All affairs, past, present, and future, were discussed at
the table, and became as familiar to the clerks as they were to the
partners. While the latter imparted their own views and experiences,
the former benefited by them. The knowledge thus acquired was applied,
each in his special department, to a more intelligent co-operation,
which contributed to a general harmony in current affairs or special
enterprises. And so also in regard to other subjects. The younger
members had the advantage through this daily 'family' intercourse of
acquiring much useful information on a diversity of subjects. There were
few if any Principals, who had not had in different parts of the world
experience of men and things, who had not adventures to relate--how
unexpected difficulties were overcome or chance advantages availed of.
In daily exercises or pastimes all associated together; whether for
walking, for boating, or sight-seeing, 'Tae-Pans' and 'pursers' shared
them together. Should one of the former take the helm to-day, and one of
the latter an oar, to-morrow saw the order reversed.
At length, as the elders retired, leaving, as was always the case, vast
and important affairs in course of execution, they did so with the
conviction that their successors possessed the qualifications to carry
them on to a logical termination, as well as to initiate new ones.
* * * * *
Before leaving us Mr. Russell had placed me in charge of the books and
accounts. We were excessively busy during the year, as, in addition
to orders for teas, those for manufactured silks were unprecedentedly
large. In May I was on the sick list; Doctor Bradford[71] sent me to
Macao in July for change of air, whence I returned in October. A serious
relapse took place in December, and, as a 'last chance,' passage was
taken for me in a small ship called the 'Howard,' of about 400 tons,
for New York. It was supposed the 'sea air' might have a good effect.
I was carried to the ship in such a state as to leave small hope of
reaching New York alive. We sailed from Whampoa early in February 1832.
(To replace me in the office, George R. Sampson was engaged, afterwards
Sampson & Tappan, Boston.) Down the China Sea the weather and progress
were good; we passed out into the Indian Ocean between Pulo Crockatoa
and Prince's Island, which took us ten days. We had a light 'trade' to
the Cape; there we were met by a succession of north-westerly gales,
which detained us twenty-two days. We were becalmed on the Equator a
long time; but at length arrived at New York, on the 162nd day, my
health perfectly restored.
I was delighted to meet again Mr. Samuel Russell, then at the 'Clinton
Hotel,' as genial and kindly as always. He asked me to breakfast, to
meet Mr. Joseph Coolidge, Junior, about to leave for the office at
Canton, and afterwards I was invited to make him a visit at Middletown,
where I had the pleasure to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Russell, a
charming, quiet lady, whose reception of me was of the kindest.
The 'Roman' was now again fitting out for Canton, under my old shipmate,
Captain Lavender. He had made several voyages in the 'America,'
belonging to Mr. Thomas H. Smith. Mr. Olyphant consented to my going in
the ship, and there was no other passenger on board. It was not yet the
usage for China ships to take passengers, nor would they take general
letters. We sailed on October 25, 1832, after a very short stay at home.
This time we took the Gilolo passage into the Pacific. At five A.M. of
March 5, 1833, we made Fo-Ki Point, on the coast of 'teas, silks, and
cassia,' and at 5.30 P.M. anchored under the peak of Lantao, in the
Lantao Channel, in 131 days' passage. Lavender despatched a fast boat to
his agents at Canton, Messrs Olyphant & Co., advising his arrival, while
I took another and arrived at the Factories in the evening of the 9th.
Thus ended a second 'run home' (as those trips were euphemistically
called) of a year each. These 'runs,' however, were in reality nine
months of listening to 'what the wild waves were saying,' 'and wandering
about at home,' unknowing and almost unknown, for three months; to being
subjected, while there, to sleep on mattresses and pillows filled with
feathers in the summer months, with the thermometer at any height you
please, instead of on the clean, cool, hard rattan mat or mattress of
bamboo shavings, as in Canton, where it was rarely over 96° at midnight.
It was not until eleven more years had passed that I took another
'run.' This was from Macao in 1844 in the 'Prince of Wales,' of Bombay
(Captain Jones), to Galle, then in the steamer 'Seaforth,' from Colombo,
_viâ_ Cannanore and Mangalore, to Bombay, with a trip to Mahableshwar
and Poonah for 'sight-seeing;' then to Aden and back to Bombay in
the East India Company's steamer 'Atalanta;' thence to Macao, _viâ_
Singapore, in the splendid new clipper 'Mohr' of about 280 tons,
belonging to Messrs. Jardine, Matheson, & Co., and commanded by 'my old
friend,' Fraser, who was second officer of the 'Good Success' in 1825,
to Singapore.
* * * * *
At the end of 1833 we had the misfortune to lose our estimable chief Mr.
W. H. Low, whose health failed from incessant application to the duties
of his responsible position. He took passage in the Company's ship
'Waterloo,' for England, with his family, and some months after we heard
of his death at the Cape.
* * * * *
The same year was notable for the hitherto unprecedented event of the
marriage at Macao of a young American lady, Miss Shillaber, of Boston,
to Doctor Thomas R. Colledge, of the Company's 'Factory.' It was a
brilliant affair, and celebrated with more than usual éclat from its
novelty.
* * * * *
The quitting of Canton by the Honourable East India Company in 1833
was succeeded by the arrival of Lord Napier on July 25, 1834, as
'Chief Superintendent of the English Trade.' His lordship landed in a
boat belonging to the country ship 'Fort William.' This vessel being
secured by the Hong merchant 'Sun-Shing,' he was held responsible,
conducted into the city and imprisoned. As Her Majesty's representative
declined to correspond with the Viceroy through the Hong merchants,
the latter issued a proclamation on September 5, in which he spoke of
this 'contumacy' as a breach of the existing laws and regulations of
the Empire--of his Lordship having come to Canton officially, without
the permission of His Imperial Majesty, and requested him to return
to Macao pending a reference to Pekin; adding that, if he refused to
leave for Macao, no Chinese should serve him in any capacity. The
proclamation being pasted on a thin board, was suspended at the gate
of his Lordship's (the East India Co.) Factory and guarded by about
twenty soldiers. No sooner was this done, than the Chinese within the
building, half frightened to death, and fearing that the soldiers would
enter, rushed upstairs and reported what had taken place. Lord Napier,
who was at dinner with Sir George Best Robinson and others, instantly
left the table and came down to the gate. The proclamation was at once
removed, and, apprehensive of something serious, Lord Napier despatched
a messenger to Captain Blackwood, of H.M.S. 'Imogene,' then outside the
Bogue, to send him a guard of a dozen marines, and to come with his own
vessel and her consort, the 'Andromache,' to Whampoa with all despatch.
This being done, his lordship retired inside the Factory with his suite,
and the gate was bolted. At midnight Sir George left Canton in a small
cutter to join the two frigates. Very soon the marines arrived at the
Factory, the Square was filled with Chinese soldiers, and war junks and
boats were gathered on the river. All communication with the Whampoa
shipping was cut off, and orders were issued that no English boats
should come to the city. The Viceroy had also requested the American
merchants not to allow boats from their vessels to come up except on
urgent business. It is needless to add that the whole foreign trade of
the port was entirely stopped. At the time the disturbance took place,
one of our captains, Hepburn, of the ship 'Nile,' was in the Factory,
and having been assured by the Linguist that he should be provided with
a Chinese boat to take him to Whampoa, had sent his own back to the
ship. On the 6th, when ready to start, we found that the Linguist could
not procure one. I therefore ordered my own, a small schooner yacht,
the 'Ferret,' to be made ready, and together we left Canton at four
in the afternoon. We passed through a fleet of about fifty war boats,
filled with men and armed to the teeth. Presently, to our surprise, we
met a small English cutter, having on board Captain St. Croix, of the
'Alexander Baring,' just arrived from London, on his way up with our
despatches. I told him it was useless to attempt to get through, and
brought him with us to the 'Nile.'
The next day, September 7, Mr. Coolidge, Mr. A. A. Low, and Mr. Cabot
made their appearance; they had pulled down for the 'Baring's' letters,
having heard of her arrival soon after I left. The 'Union' schooner next
hove in sight, coming from Macao, with Mr. George R. Sampson and a Dutch
gentleman, Mr. Vandermulen, on board. I took them out and brought them
to the 'Nile.'
Later in the day, Coolidge, Low, and Cabot started with the 'Baring's'
letters, in the hope of being able to get to the Factories; but on
arriving at 'Houqua's' Fort, about half-way, first one and then another
ball flew over their heads, which brought them to. A war boat came
alongside, with a Linguist on board; he told them it was useless to
attempt going on, as, owing to these troubles with the English, the
Viceroy had issued an additional order, that to prevent 'the innocent
from suffering with the guilty,' no foreign boat could come to Canton.
They pulled back to the 'Nile.' We found ourselves, therefore, all
prisoners at Whampoa, including another American, named Gorham. We
styled ourselves 'the Canton refugees,' and threw ourselves upon the
hospitality of our friends the captains of the six American vessels
then at the anchorage. And this rather eventful day closed with a
dinner on board the 'Coliseum' (Captain Stoddard), with whist in the
evening on board the 'Nile.' The next day we dined on board the 'India'
(Captain Cook, of Salem), and quartered ourselves upon our friends as
follows:--Coolidge, Vandermulen, and myself, on board the 'Nile;' Low on
board the 'York;' Cabot, Sampson, and Gorham, on board the 'Coliseum.'
_September 26._--At last we have safely arrived back at our old quarters
in the Factories, after being 'refugees' at Whampoa for just twenty
days. The commotion is still great, and we are cautioned about going far
from 'home.' The streets are full of rowdies and blackguards, who abuse
us in words far from complimentary, and make signs as if beheading us!
Nevertheless we are comfortable enough as far as 'Jackass Point' or Hog
Lane, and can look up 'Old China Street' without bodily fear.
The return to Canton immediately after 'hostilities' had ceased by the
departure of Lord Napier was worth making, if only to see the enormous
preparations that had been made against an attempt by the boats of the
frigates. We took the Junk river passage, and met with no obstructions
until we had passed Houqua's Fort and got abreast of the 'Lob Creek'
Pagoda. Here we were brought to and ordered to pull alongside of a
large mandarin boat, crowded with a ferocious looking lot of fellows,
and half-starved as well, to judge from the avidity with which they
seized upon some biscuit we threw among them. We were in two boats--one
with Captain Tonks, of the Bombay ship 'Lord Castlereagh,' Mr. Low,
and Sampson, and my own small gig, with myself alone. A petty officer,
wearing an opaque white button, got in Tonks's boat and directed him to
a junk, on board of which was a Linguist, and I followed. We reached the
Factories four and a half hours from Whampoa.
Correspondence between the Hong merchants (as intermediaries of the
Viceroy) and Lord Napier, which his lordship would not comply with, was
the only mode that could be expected under the existing foreign and
Chinese relations. The Viceroy could not set aside that yet unrepealed
system, nor enter into personal communication with any foreign
representative. To do so, special authority from the Imperial Government
was indispensable. The entire difficulty therefore was caused by Her
Majesty's representative persisting in requiring of the Viceroy that
which the latter could not grant. Naturally, the 'Napier War,' or, as
locally called, the 'Napier fizzle,' was the result. It was coupled,
too, with an entire stoppage of all foreign trade from September
2 to September 24, which was a very serious thing, and entirely
unjustifiable in the absence of a declaration of war. The mortifying
result was that Lord Napier had to renounce his expressed determination
to remain at Canton. The British Government should either have obtained
official recognition from Pekin for their representative, or simply have
appointed a Consul whose dignity could not have been infringed upon by
his being placed on the same footing as Consuls of other foreign nations.
On September 21 Lord Napier quitted Canton with his suite for Macao.
As the frigates proceeded towards the Bogue and Lintin, so did the two
chop-boats of Lord Napier, _pari passu_, towards his destination by the
inner passage. He was convoyed by several Chinese men-of-war boats. At
length his Lordship arrived on the 26th. The humiliating end of his
ineffectual attempt to correspond directly with the local government
aggravated an illness brought on by the vexation and excitement he had
undergone from the day of his landing from the 'Fort William's' boat,
and on October 11 his Lordship died at Macao.
* * * * *
The years 1835 and 1836 were unmarked by any event out of the regular
course. The business of the house was taking a great extension
(purely as agency); but in 1837 occurred the failures in London of
three important banking houses having a large American connection.
We had negotiated their 'credits' for some of our constituents to a
considerable amount for the payment of teas and silks. Those houses were
Thomas Wilson & Co., George Wildes & Co., and Timothy Wiggin, commonly
known as the three W's. These failures were within a short time of each
other. On reference to our register of bills drawn, we found the total
amount of which we had not yet received advice of payment or acceptance
to be close upon 200,000_l._ They were all drawn on 'clean credits,'
without 'collaterals' (which were not yet in vogue), and at six months'
sight. We had confidence in our American constituents, but as the
shipments occupied, say, four months in getting to market, and could
only be sold at the usual credit of six months, very little margin of
time existed. Our own credit, however, was the first consideration. One
of our partners, then in Boston, had in his charge a very large amount
belonging to Houqua, who gave us an order on the former to hold at our
disposal any sum required. Enclosing this, we directed remittances to be
made to Messrs. Barings of a sufficiency to cover all such bills on the
W's as could not be relied upon for payment by those for whose accounts
they had been drawn, and simultaneously we informed Messrs. Barings that
remittances would be made to them to provide for such bills, so that our
signature could be promptly honoured.
Communication with the Western world was long in those days; there were
even no 'clipper' ships yet. Accustomed, however, to such delays, we
waited patiently the result. Our first advices were from London. They
informed us that the writers, Messrs. B. B. & Co., would honour all
bills bearing our name on the three bankrupt houses in question. This
was a gratifying thing, as they had not yet received our communication
above referred to. Everything worked with regularity. Some of the firms
for whose accounts the bills had been drawn were ready to meet them,
others furnished securities, and the ultimate loss was inconsiderable
on the whole account. So rapid had been remittances from our Boston
partner that, when the final account current was received at Macao
from London, 1840-41, the balance of interest was in our favour, while
Houqua was recouped in full as payments were made to our home partner by
American constituents.
If I am not very much mistaken, 1837 was the first of those years ending
with '7' which have become proverbial as attended with great commercial
troubles in the Western world.
* * * * *
In the year 1838 (November) Mr. William Jardine took his departure from
Canton. He founded in 1832 the house of Jardine, Matheson, & Co., on the
closing up of that of Magniac & Co., which until then had been under the
management of Mr. Hollingworth Magniac. Mr. Jardine had been a surgeon
in the marine service of the Honourable East India Company, and had made
several voyages to Bombay and China. He had made the acquaintance of the
celebrated 'Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy,' that prince of Eastern merchants,
that philanthropist--the building of the hospital which now bears his
name, and the construction of the Bund from the island of Bombay to
Basseen, being amongst the numerous works which were carried out at
his own expense for the comfort and welfare of his countrymen. He was,
moreover, the first native inhabitant of the Presidency, and I think
of India, on whom was conferred the dignity of Baronet by the British
Government. The business transactions of Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy with
Jardine, Matheson, & Co. became of a colossal scale.
The vast commercial operations of Mr. Jardine Seemed to be conducted
with sagacity and judgment. He was a gentleman of great strength of
character and of unbounded generosity. To him belongs the shipping of
the first cargo of 'free teas' to London, at the end of the two hundred
years of close monopoly of the East India Company. As a peculiarity of
his character, it may be mentioned that, in his own private office in
the Creek Factory, a _chair_ was never seen--a hint to any who may be
bothered with gossips or idlers during business hours!
A few days before Mr. Jardine's departure from Canton, the entire
foreign community entertained him at a dinner in the dining-room of the
East India Company's Factory. About eighty persons of all nationalities,
including India, were present, and they did not separate until several
hours after midnight. It was an event frequently referred to afterwards
amongst the residents, and to this day there are a few of us who still
speak of it.
Mr. Jardine was succeeded in the management of the house by Mr. (the
late Sir James) Matheson, who finally left China on March 10, 1842,
after a residence of about fifteen years. He was a gentleman of great
suavity of manner and the impersonation of benevolence. As the 'Chinese
Repository,' in noting his departure from Macao, said: 'On his leaving
the foreign community lost one of its most enterprising, able, and
liberal members.'
* * * * *
On February 26, 1839, execution of a Chinese, said to be an
opium-dealer, took place in front of the American Factory. The officers
had chosen the hours of the afternoon when nearly all the foreigners
were away in their daily walks or on the river. The man was tied up and
strangled in a twinkling, and all had rapidly returned up Old China
Street with the body. On landing from our boats we found the few who
had not been away collected in the Square, and heard from them what had
happened. The only public notice that could be taken of this affair
was to discontinue the daily hoisting of the national flags before our
doors; nor were they re-hoisted until March 22, 1842.
The appointment of a 'Kin-Chae', or Imperial Envoy, to Canton, for
the express purpose of putting a stop to the opium trade, had now
become known. This appointment--only made on an occasion calling for
extreme measures--was conferred upon Lin-Tsih-Soo, and involved control
not only over all the Canton authorities, but those of the southern
and south-eastern provinces. His Excellency 'Lin' was the son of an
independent gentleman of Tseuen-Chow in the province of Fuh-Keen who
lived on the revenues of a porcelain manufactory, in which he himself
had worked as a day labourer it was said.
The 'Kin-Chae' at length arrived at Canton on Sunday morning, at
half-past eight o'clock of March 10. Two gentlemen and myself went
on board of a small schooner lying off the Factories to witness his
arrival. He was seated on board of a large official boat, with a few
red- and blue-button Mandarins standing a little to the rear, so that we
had an excellent view of him personally. He had a dignified air, rather
a harsh or firm expression, was a large, corpulent man, with heavy
black moustache and long beard, and appeared to be about sixty years of
age. His own boat was followed by a great many others, on the sides
of which, on a black ground, were painted in gold letters the rank of
the principal occupants, while flags of various colours were displayed
abaft. The crews were neatly dressed in new uniforms of red trimmed
with white, and conical rattan hats of the same colours. These boats
contained the principal officers of the city, civil and military, from
the Viceroy to the Superintendent of the Salt Department. The walls of
the 'Red Fort,' nearly opposite the Factories on the Honam shore, were
lined with soldiers, as were those of the 'Dutch Folly,'[72] arrayed in
bright new uniforms. Both shores of the river, every door and window,
and every spot of standing ground, were thick with people. Everyone was
observing the novel scene quietly and as curiously as ourselves. No
other boat of any description was moving about; all were lying close to
the shores, and a universal silence prevailed. Besides my companions and
myself, not a 'foreign barbarian' was to be seen in the vast gathering.
On the 17th the Hong merchants, the Linguists, and the Compradores
(except our own) were summoned to an audience of the 'Kin-Chae.' They
obeyed it with fear and trembling. The object was to ascertain who,
amongst the foreigners duly registered as occupying the Factories, and
whose names had been forwarded to Pekin eighteen months before, were
still present and in the opium 'business.' Russell & Co. not having
been included, our Compradore was not 'invited,' at which he appeared
particularly delighted.
On the 18th the Kin-Chae sent for the Hong merchants. They were charged
with having connived at the opium trade, and his Excellency threatened
to strangle some of them if it was not _instantly_ put a stop to! They
were also accused of allowing foreign dealers in 'smoke' to reside in
their Factories, and were very much frightened, as one of them said,
'No hav see so fashion before.' Forthwith they met in 'Consoo' to
deliberate, and remained until late in the night.
On the same day the first edict from the 'Kin-Chae' to foreigners was
issued. It ordered all Opium held by them to be surrendered, and that
they should sign bonds to discontinue the trade, 'under penalty of
death.' It became very clear that his Excellency was not to be trifled
with.
On the 19th, Messrs. Matheson, Dent, Green, Wetmore, Dadabhoy Rustomjee,
and Daniell met the Hong merchants at the Consoo House, and were
informed by them verbally of the commands of the 'Kin-Chae,' which were
a repetition of the foregoing, with the addition that the opium was to
be destroyed. Moreover, if his Excellency's orders were not complied
with, the consequences would be serious. There were at this time 15,000
chests on board of the 'receiving ships' at Lintin, and 5,000 chests at
the coast stations, and the cost of all over $12,000,000.
The foreign community thought to propitiate the 'Kin-Chae,' after the
receipt by them of his '_unalterable_' commands, by offering to give up
a _certain_ quantity. This had been suggested by the Hong merchants,
who, no more than ourselves, supposed the 'Kin-Chae' to be serious in
insisting upon _all_ that was held. A meeting was therefore convened in
the Danish Hong, on the night of March 21, at which nearly everyone was
present, as were also the Hong merchants, who assembled in an adjoining
room. They were as anxious as we were to avert the threatened troubles,
should the 'Kin-Chae' not listen to 'reason,' as they expressed it. In
fact, throughout, while we were prisoners in the Factories, as will be
seen, for six weeks, under threat of death and constant, unheard-of
pressure, they did what they could to alleviate our condition through
appeals to the 'authorities of the City.' All this was done with very
great risk to themselves. Their presence at the meeting was from a
desire to know the decision to which it might come, that they could
report it to the 'Kin-Chae' as quickly as possible, and, in fact, we saw
by his reply that it had been made known to him between five and seven
on the morning of the 22nd.
An hour or two before the meeting, Houqua made his appearance at our
office, and requested Mr. Green, the then chief, to add 150 chests of
opium to the quantity he intended to offer on behalf of Russell & Co.
to the general subscription, for which he himself would pay. The cost
of these chests would have been $105,000! The gentlemen present at
the meeting, on behalf of their firms subscribed 1,034 chests in all,
of the value of $725,000. These were offered to the 'Kin-Chae,' but
disdainfully refused. All communication with the shipping at Whampoa was
then cut off; quantities of soldiers collected near the Factories, as
well as on the river, while several days before, all the gates opening
to the rear of the Factories had been bricked up.
Before the promulgation of the 'Kin-Chae's' proclamation to foreigners,
I was invited by the senior Hong merchant to translate from English
into Chinese a communication that had been prepared by his Excellency,
conjointly with the Viceroy[73] and Lieutenant-Governor of Canton,
addressed to Her Majesty the Queen of England. This arose from the
original having been translated into English, and the Imperial Envoy
was desirous to judge for himself if the latter version conveyed the
sense of the Chinese. Having consented, I passed four hours of a very
cold day at the Consoo House in accomplishing the task. There were
present a delegate from the Commissioner, a Mandarin of the fourth rank
(light blue button), an inferior officer, Houqua's grandson, Mouqua
and Kingqua, and two Linguists. The document was a most extraordinary
one. Prominent is the bombastic style, the outcome of ages of dominion,
ignorance of Western official forms through an absence of diplomatic
intercourse. It said: 'In dealing in opium, regardless of the injury it
inflicts upon the Chinese people, an inordinate thirst for gain controls
the actions of these foreign merchants.' With an idea that the use of
it was prohibited in England: 'We have heard that England forbids the
smoking of opium (within its dominions) with the utmost rigour; hence
it is clear that it is deleterious. Since, then, the injury it causes
has been averted from England, is it not wrong to send it to another
nation, and especially to China?' Then there is an appeal to personal
feeling: 'How can these opium-sellers bear to bring to our people
an article which does them so much harm, for an ever-grasping gain?
Suppose those of another nation should go to England and induce its
people to buy and smoke the drug--it would be right that You, Honoured
Sovereign, should hate and abhor them. Hitherto we have heard that You,
Honoured Sovereign, whose heart is full of benevolence, would not do
to others that which you would not others should do to yourself.' The
grandiloquent then appears: 'Our great Emperor maintains Celestial lands
and foreign nations in equal favour; he rewards merit and punishes vice;
and, as is the heart of heaven and earth pure and incorruptible, so is
his own. The Celestial Dynasty rules over ten thousand[74] nations,
and in the highest degree sheds forth its benign influence with equal
majesty.' This is in the sense of grandeur or stateliness. It ended
thus: 'By manifesting sincere and reverential obedience[75] mutually
will be enjoyed the blessings of great peace! Heaven will protect your
Majesty; the Gods bless you, lengthen your years, and grant you a happy
and an honourable posterity.' I never heard if this document reached its
destination.
On March 23, every Chinaman in the Factories, from the Compradore to
the cook, left by order of the 'Kin-Chae,' and were threatened with
decapitation if they dared to return. The day before, Mr. Lancelot Dent,
chief of Messrs. Dent & Co., had been _invited_ to enter the city and
meet his Excellency, which he declined to do. Other but ineffectual
attempts by the authorities to induce him to go were also made, when, on
the 24th, Captain Charles Elliot, Her Majesty's Superintendent of Trade,
arrived from Macao, and immediately assumed charge, on behalf of the
English residents, of the perplexing question of the 'total surrender
of the opium.' The street in rear of the Factories was now filled with
soldiers, a strong guard was also placed in the 'Square,' and a triple
cordon of boats drawn up from the Creek to the Danish Factory. The whole
community were thus prisoners in the hands of the Chinese. Provisions
were not allowed to be brought in, no one was permitted to go beyond the
'Square,' and matters assumed a decidedly serious aspect. We overcame
the difficulty of provisions in this way. The Chinese soldiers being
entirely unaccustomed to foreigners, there was a danger that 'trouble
would arise;' the Hong merchants therefore represented this to the City
authorities, and offered to send their _own coolies_ to keep watch at
the different gates of the Factories.[76] This was agreed to, and the
double object was gained in supplies of firewood and provisions, which
were at night stealthily brought to us by them.
On March 27, on the 'Kin-Chae's' demand to Her Majesty's Superintendent
'that all the opium under the control of the English merchants should be
given up,' 20,283 chests were tendered and accepted, and 'Chunpee' fixed
upon as the place of delivery. To control the delivery, Mr. Alexander
Johnston, Deputy Superintendent, was furnished with a conveyance, and
left Canton on April 3. The 'receiving ships' moved up to the Bogue,
where the entire quantity was handed over to officers (appointed by the
'Kin-Chae'), who caused it to be destroyed in deep trenches on Chunpee
heights. Thus 'reverent obedience' was shown. Captain Elliot remarked,
in his despatch to her Majesty's Government, dated March 30, 1839:
'This is the _first time, in our_ _intercourse with this Empire_, that
its Government has taken the _unprovoked_ (?) initiative in aggressive
measures against British _life_, _liberty_, and _property_, and against
the dignity of the British Crown.' No words could more strongly confirm
everything herein said in relation to the safety of property and life
which we had enjoyed at Canton. But the despatch contained not a word of
the provocation given by foreigners in continuing the condemned traffic
under constantly repeated injunctions against doing so, and persistent
warnings to discontinue it. I, of course, do not blame my brother
merchants at Canton, no matter to what nation they belonged, as we were
all equally implicated. We disregarded local orders, as well as those
from Pekin, and really became confident that we should enjoy perpetual
impunity so far as the 'opium trade' was concerned.
The night of March 24 was one of unusual brilliancy in its cloudless
sky and full moon. The Factories, forcibly abandoned by several hundred
Chinese (estimated at eight hundred) at a moment's notice, resembled
somewhat places of the dead! Their foreign occupants were thus left
literally in a complete state of destitution as regards service of any
kind, not even a scullion being allowed to remain. The consequence was
that they were compelled, in order to _live_, to try their own skill in
cooking, to make up their own rooms, sweep the floors, lay the table,
wash plates and dishes! It may be supposed that it produced discontent,
complaints, and impatience. Not at all; we in the Suy-Hong--and it was
the same with our fellow-prisoners in the other Factories, with few
exceptions--made light of it, and laughed rather than groaned over the
efforts to roast a capon, to boil an egg or a potato. We could all
clean knives, sweep the floors, and even manage to fill the lamps. But
there were mysteries which we could not divine; our chief, Mr. Green,
after a vain attempt to boil rice--which, when prepared, resembled a
tough mass of glue--proved a most wretched cook, and took to polishing
the silver, but abandoned that and finally swept the floor! Mr. Low
conscientiously did all he could, but after toasting the bread to death,
and boiling the eggs till they acquired the consistency of grape-shot,
he abandoned that department, and took to one not exacting so much
exercise of mind, and 'laid the cloth' dexterously and well. The rest
of us, from modesty or a feeling of sheer incapacity, did no more than
was absolutely necessary. It would have been unfair to rob the others
of their laurels! Some one had to fill the pitchers; anyone could draw
a cork, or even boil water. Thus, by hook or by crook, we managed
to sustain life--of which the 'bread' was nightly supplied to us by
Houqua's coolies. They also brought (made up in bags, as if 'personal
effects' or 'blankets to keep off the dew,' thus passing the guards)
edibles of all sorts.
During the day we met in the Square, which became 'High 'Change' of
experiences in desperate efforts to roast, boil, or stew. Some went the
length of considering it great fun; others heaped unheard-of blessings
upon the heads of His Celestial Majesty, Taou-Kwang, and his envoy 'Lin.'
No two men were so unctuously abused; _as if_ the vilifiers themselves
had always followed strictly the 'Eight Regulations' under which they
lived! What amusement all this created.
By May 2, 15,501 chests had been given up, when the servants were
allowed gradually to return, and the whole quantity, 20,283 chests,[77]
completed on the 21st. On the 27th Captain Elliot returned to Macao,
and on the 30th the opium clipper 'Ariel' left for Suez direct with
despatches for the British Government. She returned on April 2, 1840.
Between May 6 and 21 many foreigners were permitted to leave the city,
and went to Macao or Whampoa. Captain Elliot, before going himself, on
the 22nd issued a notice to British subjects that they also were to
leave, and by the end of the month they had left; and there remained
no foreigners but Americans, about twenty-five in number. On the 29th
I left with all books, papers, &c., not actually required at Canton,
in company with six other boats for Macao, containing Parsees and
several English, including Doctors Cox and Dickson. On the way down
we were joined by four large chop-boats with Messrs. Lindsay & Co.'s
establishment, and John Shillaber and others from Messrs. Jardine,
Matheson, & Co.'s. The trip was most enjoyable; we dined or passed the
day with one another, and arrived nearly at the same time at Macao on
the night of June 1. The Mandarins who came on board at Che-Nae and at
Heang-Shan were civil as usual, and seemed perfectly indifferent to what
had passed at Canton.
* * * * *
The surrender of the 'British-owned opium' was followed by events to
which the foreign trade had from its foundation at Canton been a
stranger. Now were initiated political relations between the vast
and unknown Empire of China and European nations--the first that had
existed. No treaty had yet been entered into, except with Russia for
regulating its trade and arranging boundaries. Russian and Chinese
commercial relations had existed between two frontier towns (separated
but by the boundary line) well known as Kiachta and 'Mae-Mae-Ching.'[78]
No Western officer was yet officially recognised, even of the rank of
Consul or Vice-Consul, and all communications between one or the other
and the Canton Government were through the intermediary of the Co-Hong.
The consequences, therefore, that might grow out of the delivery of the
opium filled the foreign community with anxiety. The Americans had not
delivered any American-owned opium, of which we held at the time of
surrender about fifty cases of Turkey, but they determined to remain
in the Factories and continue their business. The English on leaving
placed theirs in charge of the American houses. A large share of it fell
under the control of Russell & Co., and, to facilitate negotiations with
its new constituents outside, one of the partners opened an office on
board the English ship 'Heroine,' at 'Kow-Lung,' and subsequently, when
all foreign vessels were driven away from that anchorage, at Toon-Koo.
Several ships of the firm, including the 'Lintin,' were kept running
between these places and Whampoa with British goods at thirty to forty
dollars per ton, and Indian cotton at seven dollars per bale, and
receiving on board no freight unless consigned to the house. A very
active business was carried on under the American flag, greatly to the
convenience of English friends, as well as to their profit. Teas were
the returns for these inward cargoes, which were brought down to the
anchorage and shipped from Toon-Koo for England.
While the shipments were going on an English vessel of about 900 tons
arrived from Singapore, named the 'Cambridge' under the command of
Captain Douglas. Being offered for sale, she was purchased by Russell
& Co., and her name changed to 'Chesapeake' of eventful memory. Loaded
with British goods, valued at 150,000_l._, with her deck full to the
top of the rail, she was despatched for Whampoa, in charge of Captain
Gilman. She had of course been put under the American flag. There was
very little time to spare, as a blockade was to commence in a few days.
On June 22, 1840, H.M.S. 'Volage,' and subsequently the 'Hyacinth,'
took up their positions off Chunpee[79] at the moment the 'Chesapeake'
sailed by. She was the last vessel that entered the port. She arrived at
her destination and delivered her cargo, which was landed at Canton in
regular course.
The Chinese had thrown a great raft across the river just above the
second bar, in anticipation of hostilities with the English. They then
thought the best thing to do was to purchase a large foreign ship, arm
and man her, and anchor her above the raft, as an additional protection
against the barbarian war ships. Application being made to Mr. Delano,
the then chief of Russell & Co., who had never left Canton, a bargain
was concluded for the 'Chesapeake.' The American flag and papers
were removed, and she was made over to the Mandarins. Her 'Cumsha and
Measurement' charges, amounting to about _$_8,000, were abandoned. The
Mandarins took charge and began to fit her out as an 'auxiliary defence'
to the raft, and thus stop 'English men-of-war' which 'from vainglory
or conceit might dare to attempt the inner waters.' Two great eyes were
painted on her bows. Great streamers hung from every mast to the deck, a
multitude of flags of all colours and shapes--bearing such words painted
thereon as 'Courage,' the 'Yang-Yin,' and the 'Pā-Kwa,'[80] together
with the rank of the officer in command--were arranged around the
taffrail. In short, she became the Chinese emblem of everything 'mighty
and victorious!' She would strike would-be assailants with consternation
and despair!
Meanwhile her armament was sent on board. Cannon of every available size
were ranged on her two decks; round shot, stones, and other missiles
were accumulated in quantities; nor were bows and arrows forgotten,
nor quantities of muskets, flint-lock and percussion, and the more
familiar matchlock. Her crew consisted of Whampoa Chinese (amongst many
others)--these were accustomed to foreign vessels, and no better sailors
than they--Manila men, Seedies,[81] and Lascars, runaways from country
ships. There were probably four or five hundred men on board.
Thus equipped she was towed down to her appointed station amidst an
inconceivable beating of gongs, the explosion of fire crackers, flying
serpents, and fiery dragons--thanks to which and her two bow 'eyes' she
arrived in safety and anchored.
This was a few days before February 26, 1841, when the Bogue Forts
were captured by Sir Gordon Bremer. The 'Unconquerable' was then
taking powder on board in large quantities, packed in jars, which were
promiscuously stowed on deck and between decks, as usual. She was so
engaged also on the 27th, having a great number of chop-boats and
other small craft alongside. Suddenly appeared the smoke of a steamer
approaching from the Bogue! It turned out to be H.M.'s ship 'Nemesis,'
Captain Hall. She had the 'singular audacity to approach the barrier,'
and when within an easy distance, the 'unheard-of temerity' to try
the effect of a Congreve rocket on the emblem of 'victory and might.'
The aim was true, and like a flash--or in a 'flash'--ship, crew, and
contents, boats, all disappeared from the face of the waters! The
explosion was terrific, and was distinctly heard at Canton, a distance
of thirty miles. Not a human creature was reported to have survived!
For years after there was to be seen on the left bank of the river the
bottom of the ship. It had been separated from the hull as if sawn off
in all its length; and it gradually disappeared through the combined
efforts of Chinese boatmen, who broke up and carried it piecemeal away.
The English forces having moved up to Canton, a suspension of
hostilities was agreed upon on March 20, 1841, and the port was again
free. Local disturbances, however, broke out, and, on May 22 following,
a mob of Chinese plundered and burnt down the East India Company's new
Factory, the Dutch, and the Creek. On the 25th, Sir Hugh Gough landed
near Pwantingqua's country house and took possession of the heights
overlooking the city. The authorities then ransomed it for six millions
of dollars, of which five millions were paid on the 31st, when the
forces left Canton and foreign vessels again entered the port.
The carrying trade on the river now ceased. Lying in the outer waters we
had the 'Lintin,' the 'Lantao' the 'Lema,' and the 'Ladrone.' The former
commenced her career in China as Russell & Co.'s 'receiving ship' in
1830. She was well constructed to carry a large cargo, and her sailing
qualities were fair. Her career and ultimate fate were singular. With
the exception of shifting stations during the taiphoon seasons, her
anchors were never raised for nine years, when in 1839, as related, she
resumed her original vocation of a sailing ship up and down the 'Pearl'
River.
During this state of idleness for our ships, I received information from
Mr. Delano that Houqua was disposed to send orders to India for cotton.
Prices had naturally fallen there during the blockade and troubles at
Canton, while the non-importation for several months had caused a great
rise. Three of the ships were despatched and 100,000_l._ remitted to
Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras. The funds were in East India Company's
bills on Calcutta. The 'Lintin' sailed for Madras, the 'Lantao' for
Calcutta, and the 'Lema' for Bombay, thus securing so much tonnage for
the cotton, while other vessels were to be chartered at those ports. The
first vessel, however, that arrived with a portion of the purchases was
the Swedish ship 'Calcutta,' and she had anchored in the Taypa only a
few days when she was driven on shore in a taiphoon. In due time our
own ships arrived. The 'Lintin' was then despatched a second time, but
got no further than Singapore, when her captain, Townsend, in direct
breach of orders, and under various pretexts, took in a cargo of rattans
and returned to Macao! His 'accounts' being refused, he brought an
action against us in the Macao court.
It was still going on when I left Macao in 1844. The legal papers had so
accumulated that they seemed sufficient to 'dunnage' the ship. Asking
the clerk of the court one day if he thought it would _ever_ be settled,
he made the same reply that he had repeated for years: 'Se senhor, mā,
hum poco tiempŏ!' ('Certainly, sir, but it requires a little time').
The 'Lintin,' however, was sent to Whampoa. The first English treaty
with the Chinese having been broken, further preparations were made
for defence, and the authorities, not discouraged, sought for another
foreign ship--this time for service nearer the city. They took a fancy
to the 'Lintin;' she was sold to them, and towed up the river by a
great fleet of small boats. An eye[82] was painted on each bow; she was
completely unrigged to her lower masts, and, amidst a confused noise
of gongs and fireworks, she was anchored just below the Dutch Folly,
opposite the city.
On the day appointed for 'making her over' various high Mandarins with
many followers came on board. Captain Endicott, who was in charge, had
caused certain refreshments to be laid out on the cabin table with which
to regale these officers. They consisted of several junk bottles of gin
and brandy, a jug or two of water, hard biscuits and cheroots! Before
accompanying them over the ship, he invited them to the cabin.
As he said when relating the circumstance to us, 'after drinks all
round and a weed' we returned on deck to look about the vessel; next
we visited the between-decks, and the Mandarins pronounced everything
highly satisfactory. Seeing a Scuttle-Butt[83] pump, it attracted the
attention of one of them, who took it to be an 'engine of war,' and
asked to be informed as to the manner of its use! They soon after took
leave and returned to the city. 'Thank heaven,' said Captain Endicott
to a gentleman whom he had asked on board to see the Chinese officials,
'that's over; now that they are off, let us go down and take a drink
and a smoke.' On getting to the cabin they found that _everything_--the
gin and brandy, cigars, biscuits, even the water-jug, pitcher, and
tumblers--had all been walked off with by the followers of the high
dignitaries! A Chinese crew and naval Mandarin took possession, as
Captain Endicott pulled away from his 'old home' for so many years. She
was then duly turned into a Chinese man-of-war. There were the usual
insignia of invincibility, triangular flags, on which were figures of
dragons swallowing the moon, the 'Yin and Yang,' circles and zigzag
lines, emblematical of thunder and lightning.
The commanding officer of all this destructive paraphernalia, with the
peacock's feather in his cap, a large silk umbrella held over his head,
seated himself comfortably in a bamboo chair, smoking his pipe.
Other formidable preparations for war were duly made in a provision of
worm-eaten guns, matchlocks, spears, and shields. She would soon have
been ready for an encounter with any of the English sloops, whether the
'Modeste' or the 'Algerine,' perhaps even the 'Herald;' but one night
a great freshet took place. The violence of the tide was such that she
swerved at her anchor from right to left, struck on the rocks close to
the 'Folly,' slid off, and went down in deep water! The Chinese then set
to work and unshipped her masts, leaving a stump of the foremast about
seven feet above the deck, and placed upon it a diminutive lantern. This
served thenceforth as a 'lighthouse' to guide boats up and down the
river! It was the _first_ lighthouse in Canton waters 'on record.' When
I last saw the stump of the mast, twenty-eight years after, a great bank
of mud had formed around the hull, and a faint glimmer from a penny dip
in a small paper lantern marked the last resting-place of the 'Lintin.'
* * * * *
The seizure of the opium in its consequences was _the_ feature in the
breaking up of the exclusive conditions of foreign trade at Canton, as
it had existed since 1720. The peculiar conditions also of social life
were doomed, as was that perfect and wonderful organisation, the Co-Hong.
On August 10, 1841, Sir Henry Pottinger arrived at Macao as Her
Majesty's sole plenipotentiary and Minister Extraordinary. Negotiations
with the Mandarins were carried on simultaneously with the capture of
cities on the coast. The material losses and destruction of life to
the Chinese were incalculable, particularly through suicide by those
helpless people. An English officer who was present at the taking
of Chā-Po in May 1842 wrote to a friend at Macao that on landing,
about 3,500 strong, under cover of the men-of-war, the most terrible
enormities were committed. He then goes on to say: 'After the city had
been captured, I entered more than a hundred houses, and in each there
were not less than two, and in many eight, persons found dead. They were
the bodies of mothers and daughters who had committed suicide from a
dread of becoming prisoners; 1,600 dead were buried after the battle,
of which more than one-half were Tartar soldiers, who in despair of
repelling the enemy, and preferring death to defeat, had _nearly all_
destroyed themselves. Is not this a splendid exhibition of patriotism?'
The losses of the English on this occasion by the official accounts were
one colonel, one sergeant, and seven men killed, seven officers and
forty-seven men wounded; and so on to the end, the pigmy against the
giant!
At length the treaty of Nanking, in which the Chinese consented to
pay an indemnity of _$_21,000,000, was signed off that city, on board
of H.M.S. 'Cornwallis,' on August 29, 1842, by his Excellency Sir
Henry Pottinger, the Imperial Commissioners Ke-Ying and E-Leepoo, and
New-Keen, the Viceroy of Keang-Nan and Keang-Se. And thus concluded the
first European war with China, one of the most unjust ever waged by one
nation against another.
The next treaty was that of the United States, which was signed at the
village of Mong-Hā (Macao) on July 3, 1844, by Mr. Caleb Cushing and
Ke-Ying. Together they were the 'knell, the shroud, the mattock, and the
grave' of Old Canton.
* * * * *
The Chinese had not looked with satisfaction upon the concessions
they had been obliged to make to an overwhelming military and naval
force, which had caused them the loss of myriads of lives, often under
circumstances of great atrocity, of unheard-of suffering, as well
as of many millions of dollars independently of the war indemnity.
The ordeal was a terrible one; but they gained by it the, to them,
unenvied _privilege_ of falling in with Western ideas. Encouraged by the
confidence inspired by so _great_ a _privilege_, they now contract for
loans of money, they build vessels of war on European models, and drill
their soldiers in foreign tactics; they provide themselves with Western
arms of precision--in short, they are putting on their armour. They are
in full career of a diplomacy in which Ambassadors or Ministers--that
is to say, 'spies upon one another'--watch over the interests of their
respective countries. With the sword at their throat they have become
members of what is facetiously called the 'Brotherhood' of Nations!
MESSRS. RUSSELL & CO., CANTON.
1823 TO 1844.
The house of Russell & Co. was constituted on January 1, 1824, in
succession to that of Samuel Russell & Co., which had existed from
December 26, 1818, to December 26, 1823. It is known amongst the Chinese
as 'Kee-Chang-Hong.' It confined itself strictly to agency business.
From January 1, 1824, until the middle of 1830 the sole partners were
Mr. Russell and Philip Ammidon. In September 1829 Mr. Wm. H. Low arrived
from Salem in the ship 'Sumatra' (Captain Roundy); and in November 1830
Mr. Augustine Heard, Senior, arrived from Boston in the bark 'Lintin'
(Captain R. B. Forbes). These two gentlemen (Mr. Low and Mr. Heard)
became partners in the house, the first until the end of the year 1833,
when, having been obliged to leave Canton from ill health, he was landed
and died at the Cape of Good Hope.
During the term of 1834-5-6, consequent upon the death of Mr. Low, were
admitted Mr. John C. Green (special agent at Canton of Messrs. N. L.
and G. Griswold, of New York), Mr. John M. Forbes, who had arrived in
the 'Lintin' to join the office in 1830, and Mr. Joseph Coolidge, who
arrived in 1832; and Mr. Heard retired.
The term of 1837-8-9 saw the withdrawal of Messrs. Forbes and Coolidge,
the first on December 31, 1838, and the latter on December 31, 1839.
Were admitted on January 1, 1837, Mr. A. A. Low (nephew of Mr. W. H.
Low), who had come out to join the office in 1833), and Mr. W. C.
Hunter. Mr. Edward King (who came out in the 'Silas Richards,' Captain
Rosseter, 1834), was taken in the office on arrival, and became a
partner on July 1, 1837; Mr. Robert B. Forbes (who arrived in the
'Bashaw' in October 1838) was admitted January 1, 1839, and became the
chief of the house.
The term of 1840-41-42, Mr. A. A. Low having retired, began with the
admission of Mr. Warren Delano (formerly of the house of Russell,
Sturgis, & Co., of Canton and Manila). He succeeded Mr. Forbes as chief
of the house when the latter left for New York in the 'Niantic' on July
7, 1840. Mr. Russell Sturgis, also a former partner of Russell, Sturgis,
& Co., became a partner on January 1, 1842. Mr. King and Mr. Hunter
retired on December 31, 1842, left Macao in February 1844 for New York,
_viâ_ the Cape (in the ship 'Akbar,' Captain Hallet), and the retirement
of Mr. Sturgis took place on December 31, 1843.
This is but a rapid _résumé_ of an interval of twenty years. A history
of the house from its foundation to the present time--a period of sixty
years--has been compiled by a former partner. The work, which would
prove of interest to its many friends, its old associates, and their
successors, may be published.