THE CHINESE INVASION.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1712, 29 January 1874, Page 2

THE CHINESE INVASION.

No. TL .■.'.-.> ia-.fT ..■■•:>■•.-.:« [TO THE EDITOR.] • Sea,— lv my last 1 drew attention to ' the general character of the race who are :■''■■ now flocking in great numbers to this portion of the West Coast, arid cave some " few reasons why I considered them trade-' sirable as settlers, or sojonrneris! I.endeavored to show that; they, possessed but 7 few redeeming points, being bound' * together by a system totally, repugnant...; and foreign to European ideas. ,[ The two races" are totally distinct— the Asiatic possessing few of the virtues, but all the vices of the European. Events have proved that their introduction to Victoria was one of the greatest calamities, that ever happened to that Colony, and is one "' that is taxing; all the energies of Victorian,. • statesmen to deal with. • , I alluded in my last to the commercial ' value of the Chinese, and iv doing so 1 mentioned the case of the Jack Frost, as being an instance of the manner in which the upper class of Chinese transact business, and I will; therefore,- in this letter, proceed to give the history, of; this celebrated vessel. All commercial transactions of a genuine nature are based, upon the well-known law of supply and demand, and should any deficiency, arise Jin' itha-r^ visible supply without a corresponding!, cause being shown; and when 'il is known that the demand i 3 not/lessened, then.it.is r patent there must be a fault somewhißre Jil (t and it becomes imperative to:aacerfcain ( if : o possible the cause. It was while endeavoring to account for something of this nature that caused the Collector of Customs for Melbourne to consider why so little opium "passed -entry/ "at the Custom House some few years since. It certainly was not because -the, "number of Chinamen had. decreased, on the contrary, they had increased, and therefore it was | not to.be supposed that they abandoned favorite vice of " opium smoking," their • or "opium eating," in favor of "spirit intoxication," as was plausibly alleged, by a leading Chinese firm in answer to an , interrogation— " We have little .or no.,', demand for opium, and we expect it, wilt; almost cease shortly, as Chineser have,;; given up opium', and taken to drinking," and then an ejaculation. But the Collector % of Customs, unfortunately for John,' wass a man hard to be convinced, and in, spite" of protestations,; in spite of asservations, it got into his Bead, more' especially after • a visit to the Chinese quarter "of . ]&el-. f bourne, that "opium-eating" and "opiumsmoking" was indulged in more than ever, and being a reader of .English classics, he understood from De Quiricey that an habituary of opium never became a " spiritdrunkard,"if I may use the term, % and this set his wits to work, He was fully convinced that the opium wa3 not introduced ; in a small way, by means of sailors, or stokers, or those mysterious} smugglers who are supposed to run '.'oogt traband " on lonely shores and to trust ia Providence, the chapter, of accidents, and the non-vigilance of revenue officers fpr their safe deliverance.' Mr T— — knew better than this. He knew' that it was smuggled wholesale, and that it came through the handsCof those >Chinese merchants who were, held upas an example to Europeans as r being-like f the Chevalier Bayard sans reproche, the King might err, but the Chevalier never. Atalleven& he determined to abide his time, qnxj apting upon a hint conveyed, say by a rival, he took his measures accordingly. The Jack Frost was asfcfine a tea clipper as ever-sailed into Hobson's Bay, and she was laden with the source of the "cup that cheers and don't; inebriate," Chinese- preserves, and a small consign* ment of opium. So -far so good. The invoices were .duly examined, the marks corresponded, 'and the consignees Vouched for their correctness. ; They knew the consignors, men of ; mar]r and standing, some of them their "owri-.iagents, and they were, prepared to take delivery-^notiiirig could be wrong. Everything was open for inspection, arid nothing had ever been alleged against the firm of .and Co., but Collectors of Customs, when they know their business, are'vprydoulitr ful, mistrusting character, and, ■'• would not be persuaded, in spite of ; invoices, protestations, &c., und therefore' 'before the cargo was warehoused, he was pigheaded, the stupid barbarian, Jo insist upon a thorough overhaul of |he entire cargo of the Jack Frost. He would pay no heed to marks-rr-he did riot r oaVq whether exposure to $ho air would sjwU the tea, or whether the unfastemng'of the lid would damage the jar of preserves. It was his duty and he would do it, And what was the result? Why the remark? able deficiency in the supply of opium was accounted for. In the : middle of cheats, half-chests, and cases of tea, cun- ; ningly concealed in jars of preserves, stowed away among innocent , nick-nacks, came forth the heayy-dutiea drug~the almost prohibited narcotic. Blank was the look of John,- and "the smile that was bland " changed into expressing of horror as packet after packet made its appearance— "Me know nothing about it— no savee ;" but there was the damning fact, the opium was there, and in spite of everything .. the., ship _ and , cargo were confiscated— the duty arid penalties being something 'enoijmous; 'Such is the history of the Jack Frost and Chinese commercial morality as; exhibited in the highest circle,, and all : tffeirjrini«^ions are on. a par. 1 " --"--—-:--=&• . ' In'this letter I will say no inort, but in my next I will deal with the gfektesj objeotion to, the Chinese, thqir immorality, arid after thai their yalqe ! 4s rijin^'ps, l^ I am, &c, Cosmos.