OPIUM

335
lish  Government  did  not  undertake  to  perform  preventive
service  for  China,  since  others  than  English  were  already
engaged  in  the  trade,  and  others  still  could  easily  have  taken
it  up  ;  but  it  forbade  the  establishment  of  an  opium  depot
at  the  outset  in  Hongkong,  and  it  afforded  no  naval  protection ­
  to  smugglers.
Commissioner  Lin  arrived  in  Canton  on  March  io,  1839,
and,  after  remaining  inscrutable  for  some  days,  on  the  18th
issued  a  proclamation  that  the  foreigners  should  deliver  up
all  the  opium  in  store  and  give  a  bond  to  import  no  more,
on  penalty  of  death.  When  they  refused,  they  were  shut
up  in  the  factories,  deprived  of  servants  and  of  outside
supplies  of  food  and  water,  and  informed  that  they  were
hostages  for  the  due  execution  of  the  order.  “  Hostage  ”
is  an  awkward  word  to  use,  and  a  still  more  awkward  thing
to  be  ;  and  in  fear  of  death  the  merchants  surrendered  their
opium,  even  bringing  eight  chests  up  from  Macao.  The  total
quantity  surrendered  was  20,291  chests,  and  the  earnestness ­
  of  conviction  of  the  Emperor  and  his  Commissioner  is
evidenced  by  the  fact  that  this  was  effectually  destroyed
to  the  last  ounce.  Of  the  firms  contributing  the  opium,
the  largest  contributor  was  an  English  firm  with  7,000  chests,
then  another  English  firm,  then  an  American  firm  with
1,500  chests  ;  after  them  came  English,  Farsee,  and  other
merchants,  natives  of  India.  Some  fifty  chests  of  Turkey
opium  in  the  possession  of  an  American  firm  were  not
surrendered  as  not  being  from  India.  The  only  effect  of
the  Imperial  Commissioner’s  action,  directed  against  the
foreigner  and  not  against  his  own  countrymen,  was  to
check  the  local  trade  for  a  time,  but  it  did  not  do  away
with  it  ;  the  demand  remained,  new  supplies  came  forward,
and  the  trade  went  on.
The  loss  of  prestige  by  the  Imperial  Government  not  only
inspired  the  smugglers  with  greater  activity  and  less  fear
of  the  consequences,  but  caused  the  officials  along  the  coast
to  throw  off  such  modest  feelings  of  restraint  as  they  may
have  felt  before.  Then,  in  the  decade  1850-60,  the  spread
of  the  laiping  rebellion  over  whole  provinces,  involving