CHINA. From the China Mail, July 29.

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 162, 18 December 1847, Page 3

CHINA. From the China Mail, July 29.

Buiincn at Canton had been improving during the month ; but the consequences of the short lighted and vicious system of making advances on goods shipped on Chinese account, are now severely felt. The losses sustained have 'crippled native credit, and destroyed the confidence with which foreigners were wont to enter into large transactions with Chinese merchants, who are now hard pressed for the means of meeting their engagements. Amongst the brokers, too, with whom foreign goods are warehoused, some further instances of embezzlement, unknown in former times, hare recently occured, and one commission house of some standing has discovered that no less than Fire hundred bales of cotton have been pawned. It was to obviate the necessity of entrusting goods to Chinamen, that arrangements were undertaken by Government to havr packhouses rented to the British merchants, in which they could store their own goods ; but thong n suitable premises have been provided, aad their description and price officially notified, there has been no great alacrity shown on the part of our countrymen to avail themselves of the privilege,— the Canton British Chamber of Commerce being; in the sulks because it could not prevail on the Government to stick to the Honan " paddy fields and fish ponds," which individually the Chamber had previously pronounced to be especially unsuitable,' and which could only have been secured at the expense of much ill feeling and outrage' and perhaps of military force. In the mean time, how/ver.rthe Americans are displaying their usual, acuteness, and one of the largest and most commodious of the Hongs advertised by Her Majesty's Consul has been secured by tbem. The Canton British Chamber of Commerce apparently con* ceives it to be one of its most important functions to find fault with the Government,- and accede to nothing they propose ; and accordingly while the Chamber is disputing as to the mode in which 1 the joint shall be dressed and carved, the knowing yankeei step in and help themselves to the best slice. We give elsewhere the Notifications published by Government, and some papers issued by the Chinese, during the month, in relation to granting additional facilities to the British; and here subjoin others more recently received. Our Chinese Correspondent 'gives the following as the substance of what took place at a recent meeting in Ming-ling Hall, on the subject of granting farther accommodation to foreigners :— At present Keying wishes to take ground from the people to give it to the Engluh barbarians, for the purpose of building foreign factories, &c; therefore on the 25th day (7th July) tbe elders held a meeting at the Ming- ling Hall, wherein it was publicly resolved, " that all the tieids, ponds, buildings, shops, ana houses belonging to the people, could not be allowed to be forcibly rented by the English barbarians : but any place like Tung keaou or the landing place of Teen-tsze which is joined to ground belonging to the Mandarin, or any open space not owned by the people, the barbarians may take, and therefore the people need not interfere in the matter." One of the placuds issued by the people on the subject of Shih wei-tang is as follows : Shih-weLtang is a territory not two le distant from the Provincial City, and is tbe principal thoroughfare between the western and Northern branches of the river. .Every day the rich aiid poor meet there in crowds, and vessels pass up and down, and move about the river in endless succession, and if we add to this, that the people in an Easterly direction and in the Western valleys depend, on this thoroughfare for their ] food, it will appetr still more important, for it is tbe' very throat of Canton, and indeed commands the whole of Kwangtung province. How then can property wkich has been possessed for a myriad of years, and is of the greatest inportance, be all at once given away like a golden snuff bottle ? This would be just like destroying the whole, at which benevolent and honest men would look up to Heaven and beat their breasts. But there are some rich merchants, who cunningly pretend that they have acquired their property by these barbarians, and therefoie give up this property «s « kind of retribution with the intention of gaining some advantage by it, and thereby cusa much misery and calamity : and thus a fortunate spot will be ruined. Still we trust to the superiority of our government, and hope that the penetration of our Mandarins will resemble the very Heavens, and that they will have sufiicient ability to preserve peace and trunqnility to Chinese a» well as English. Moreover these barbarians have come over a very extensive ocean for the lake of trade and have not the least cause for being discontented, or thus trying to gain an advantage over us. But if we in the country do not adopt measures of defence, even iron fortifications cannot be depended on ; and if we tbe natives do not remove all the obstacles, a brass wall may be beaten down. Therefore the various associations have joined together, and hereby make kno*n their stipulations. If any bricklayers or stonecutters for the sake of gain eßgage in works (for foreigners), their bodies will for a certainty be cut in pieces. This very dayjall the cities and villages to the South have formed themselves into trained hands, joyfully to commmence the struggle ; and as our Government are compassionate to those who come from afar, when they hear of it. will so^on ask, " Who dares on account of these foreigners, to assemble the mass of the people to protect their property, families, &c," which intention is as firmly engraven, as -if it were on brass or stone, and of which we respectfully give previous notice. Our intention is to, provide security for all. The militia of young men now forming is to protect, us from any evils caused by foreign countries. All in this district who are above eighteen years of age must now come forward/ and if they do nut, we shall burn down their houses ; and hereby swear never to allow any one to withdraw. We now give general, notice that it there are any workmen at Canton, Fiuhan, Se-nan, Shih. lung and other places, they must immediately return, and protect their families. If they fail to do so, repentance will be of no avail. , A public notic* from Shin-gan sze. The following apologetic" explanation regarding the session of Schih-wei-tang ha* been issued by the late proprietors, members of the Pwan-nang. king family, " in order that the true bearing*, of the case may be knowa" :— Our Ancestor established the firm of Tung-wan as Hong merchants, and the property he realised (besides what he left to Nang-kung) he bestowed upon several establishments for their management. The territory of Schih-wei-tang was left to support the expenditure of the Aneestorial Temple of^ye branches of the family, and for tht maintenance of the widows and orphans, it was left to Leang king-ta. Now in the 4th moon of the present year, w« received orders from th« Government to deliver up this place, and to hand over our title deeds for examination, and we should be paid the original price. This command we could not disobey. When these orden arrived, the widows and orphans of the five branches were in great distress and perturbation; bnt they considered that this property was originally acquired by a Hong merchant, and therefore it is a gift of Providence. If we do not give it up, we cannot eicapo tho punishment of the nanada-

ring, and on the other hand, if we receive the value of it, we shall trouie the indignation of the vi 1 lagers. Hiving well pondered over the matter, we resolved to give it up to the mandarins for their use, without remuneration, so that they (the villagers) could not lay we had clandestinely sold the property. The document! are clear and explicit on this subject, and no deceit has been prac tiled; and we invite you all to come and investigate it. We have heard that this has given rise to resolutions being pasted to seize upon the whole of the rent of our relations, and to prevent the same being paid.. We shall then be without support, and nothing to depend upon to gain a livelihood ; and thus misery will be entailed upon the wbolo of our family through Shih . wei tang. How could benevolent and considerate people be prevailed • upon to do this ? We have aUo heard a rumour that in a few days' these people would assemble all the males and females of the villages, and lead them on to destroy our Anceitorial Temple. — There arc also a great many claimants against our family, but as yet we do not know whether these things are true. If this is the case we fear that some vagabonds will take advantage of this opportunity, to inflict great mischief, for which we may not be able to get redress ; and therefore make this announcement as an explanation of the matter, and most humbly beseech that the case may be looked into, and shall be very happy if our fault be forgiven." We select two placards frbm the, patriot people, regarding Honan and Shih- wei- tang, *hich are curious, taken in connection wi'h the communications on the subject, lately published by the Government : — We, the inhabitants pf the territory of Honan, hereby notify, that we are indebted to oarAiigh Authorities for having ascertained public opinion and for having' sent a letter to the English barbarians, distinctly in. forming them, that they must, on no account forcibly rent or take possession of ground, in order to ensure mutual tranquility ; so that now we can live quietly on our separate domains, and receive protection without the slighte.t trouble ; therefore we ought now to perfect these arrangements, and adopt measures for ensuring ourselves against the desires of the insatiable. Jf I we do not, even a gold hillock would become an ant's nest. If we cannot guard against and dispel calamities in ihe interior of our own country, then a stone wall may be corroded by the teeth of an insect. The associations have therefore established regulations' by which the peasantry, shopkeepers, and owners of warehouses in Honan bind themselves, being apprehensive that some unprincipled Chinese, led away by the sums of money which will be unsparingly dealt out to them, will prove traiterous to their 'country, befool others, deceive men, and even spirits of Heaven ; and thus some foolish persons will rent their property for the sake of filling their purses, without considering that when calamity is brought on by money the happiness of the country departs. We regret that there are some very cunning and artful merchants, who levy a tax by illicit connection, and when it comes to the pont, rush into all kinds of iniquity, rent land, let, sell, buy, and build by monopoly, merely for the sake of lucre, with out caring in the least for.the stigma attached to it. The calamities caused this year by the barbarians were brought on by persons like these, and when speaking of, them, we consider them as fit objects for public detestation. Waving however their past schemes, if subsequently they dare to trade in their old way, clandestinely let or rent (land) or supply them (the barbarian') with tiles, wood, branite, and other building materials, and provide workmen, for the sake of gain, we shall look upon them as> beasts. If they are* determined to become traiterous natives, and thereby increase their crimes a hundred 'fo'd, we bwear to declare their names, and denounce their transgressions ; and when the drum sounds we will attack them, so that they; will not be able to stand— they will- be broken like a tile. But first we make known these excellent admonitions in order to inspire them with dread. A public notification by the people of Honan :— The rebellious English some time ago wished to take possession of Honan, in order to bu Id barbarian factories and forts, and avail themselves of (his position to attack the ci'y, and levy the duties (on trade) paid by the various nations. We now rely on , the unanimity and assistance of the Forty-eight Villigea to put a stop to their operations, and alto their insatiable encroach, ments. They now want to take possession of Sht-wei-tanjr, which is situate in a most important passage, leading to the Eighteen Provinces, and being the principal means of communication between the^Northern and Wcs^rn branches of the river.with Fuh shan, &c, also the high road for the exportation or importation of rice, its position is that of the throat to the human body. If any foreign factories or forts are built there, they (the barbarians) will' pluck up courage and advance to the Bogue, while w s e shall also have trouble inside, and it will be as easy to attack and conquer Kwang.tung as to turn the hand. In tuture their ambition will have the voracity of the silkworm, and they will seek to realise what they covet. ' Men of knowledge consider this question as involving the Eighteen Provinces ; ignorant men think it only concerns the small piece of ground. The saying' that " when the lips.are lo»t the teeth grow cold," may truly apply to the transfer of, this land. These things cool our hearts, and are too small matters. Only look : Hong-kong is not sufficient for tham,— i they have already swallowed the Five Ports , bat still are not satisfied, but must forcibly take possession of Hog-lane, of which they have stopped up nearly the whole with a n all. All along the sea shore they behave cruelly and outrageously, presuming to kill persons and take territory by force. How, are the laws to be maintained, and how- ire they to be taught to act with propriety and justice ? They say they have no hongs to stoxe their gpods, ! and therefore point to several places, which is the cause of much wretchedness and misery io the people. Then they spike the guns, sail up the 1 river in their roen-o -war, and obtain their desire by coercion ; but is this "behaving with true politeness ? Are not the. Five Ports (which are open to them) and Hong-lcong, besiles the spacious hongs of the old factories, adequate for storing their merchandiie ? We have ceded to them territory in order to preserve psace, and to no purpose paid millions of dollars.; for they itih continue "to harbour some sinister intention aga nst us. It is very evident that they have some designs upon pur country, andi will not deny this nefarious purpose to any intelligent person. We ought, therefore to be of one mind, and animated with one spirit of animosity against them ; and those who have power should joyfu'ly prove themselves faithful and patriotic mbjects. You must not therefore be ashamed and remain inactive ; bu, shew them you are a nation who can' exercise filial piety, brotherly love, loyalty, and good faith. Let not a sin gle sail of theirs return, but thoroughly exterminate this detested brood.

The Chinese Junk now qn her way to England.— -As it ii very likely that in the course of a week or 10 we may hare to announce the arrival of this vei«el which will" certainly be one of the Lioni of London the following anticipatory notice, taken from the St. Helena Gazette will not be unacceptable to our readers :— " Captain C. A. Kellet hat kindly, favoured us>ith the following account of the Chinese junk Keying :— The junk Keying left China, December 6, 1816 5 arrived at St. Helena April 17> 1847 ; ha* had

very light winds nearly the whole voyage, having been at anchor lix weeks in the Java Sea and Sunda Strain, with light southerly and south-west windi. Off the Mauritius experienced some very henry weather on the 22nd and 23rd March but found her to be a moic beautiful sek-bomt, and easy, never haying shipped a drop of water since leaving China, or leaking. Her masts and rudder are of immense size and weight*, being made of iron- wood, Her rudder it hung to three large ropes, and drawn into her stern by two others, going underneath her bottom and coming over the bows, and when the rudder is down draws 23 feet, but when hoisted only 13 feet. It sometimes takes twenty men to steer her; but in fine weather, running before the wind, she goes so steadily that the tiller rarely requires to be touched, and then two men can steer her. She is built of compartmen's, having fifteen, several of which are watertight ; she has a main deck, raised quarter-deck, two poops and a raised forecastle, with a high verandah above that again. Her main deck is arched. Her anchors are made of wood, and the shrinks are about thirty feet long ; ths cables are made from bamboo, the rope* from bamboo rattan and Indian ' grass ; she has three water- tanks built on her deck 9 ; her salts reef themselves by lowering the halyards, so that one-, man to' each mast at the halyards can either reef the sail or take it in in a minute . her, stern and her bows are open, but she is so very buoyant, that she never takes in any water, at etther end. Her main cabin or. saloon is 30 feet long, 25 feet wide, and 12 feet high, painted with various beasts, birds, &c. She has aho six small cabins on the first poop, with the joss house in ~th««centre, in Which a light' is constantly kept burning. Her stern it' 23 feet high out of the water.— Bell's Messeti* ger, July 12.

Comet.— The great comet of 1264 and 1556 is expected by astronomers to reapp ear at the latter end of this or the commencement of the following year. March 10, 1848, it considered th« most propable period. The nodes of the comet'i orbit lie very closa to the earth'i pith. It it a singular coincidence that this time ii within a month of the period fixed by LO' Vanbreyl for the consummation ( April 13 or 14th 1849, Hebrew style ). Surely between the Astronomer! and the Prophet we may look for some important change. LO' Vanberyl is of opinion that the great diagonal meteor sign of 1843* which was visible la the Southern Hemisphere will reappear in 1848 at the harbinger of the ending of the timei. A correspondent of the Leeds Times says, that Dr. Jos. Wolff, lately decessed, in all his conversations, preachings, and publishings, in 1832, Insisted- that the world would beat an end in 15 years.— Adelaide Observer, November 6.

Schoolboys at a Ball.— When Dr. Parr, the eminent Greek scholar, wai head Matter of the grammar ichoolat Norwich f he received many cWilities from the reiident gentry of the neighbourhood, to part requital of which he bethought himself of giving a ball to bis country acquaintance. , The scene' of the festivity was a large ichool-room, which wai separated by. great folding-doors from a dormitory in. which about sixty boys took their nightly repose. On the evening of the- ball ttey had been all sent to bed earlier than usual, but tbe|doctor had not duly estimated the mercurial temperament of boyhood, in flattering himself that sleep would ktep tbem quiet on such a night. No sooner had the dancing commenced, then the whole school slunk out of bed, and in a com. pact mats crowded against the folding doors, to obtain through a keyhole," alternate glimpses, of the outer rerelry. Now the doors were not strong enough to withstand such unusunl pressure, and at length with a crash gave way, pouring into the ball-room head over heels, a perfect cataract of half-naked urchens ! The disturbance of the moment, the rage of the doctor, the conslernatioH of the ladies, and the gambols of the detected boys, are all beyond description.—D olman* Magazine.

An Officer and a Gentleman.— A cornet of Hussars who was noi 10 polished in hit manners ai could be wished, having recently joined his regiment, was asked by his Colonel what his father 'was.' "A farmer," he replied. " Pity your father did make you follow his trade." Upen which the Cornet asked, " Pray, Sir, what is your father i " " A gentleman." 11 Pity he did not make you one, " replied the Cornet. An angel incapable of feeling anger, muitenry the man who can feel and conquer it.