country from Tibet to Canton, and of Mr. Robert Fortune, who had explored the botanical mysteries of much of southeast China, it was not to be supposed that English merchants on the Pearl river would be prevented from taking boating or shooting excursions in the neighbourhood of their place of residence. These excursions were inevitable and only in the natural course of things, but they were opposed by the Chinese authorities, and it necessarily followed that a period of hostility and doubt had to be passed through before they could become the rule. A cause of collision was not long presenting itself.

In March, 1847, a small party of Englishmen proceeded up the river in a boat to the large manufacturing town of Fatshan. On reaching the place symptoms of hostility were promptly manifested, and the Europeans, thinking that they would be safest with the authorities, hastened to the yamen or residence of the prefect, in the heart of the town. The magistrate, unfortunately, was not at home, and the strange appearance of the foreigners, who had never been seen before, and some of whom carried guns, was well calculated to excite the popular mind to a dangerous pitch. The return of the magistrate and his prompt assistance fortunately averted the most serious consequences; and the party of foreigners were escorted in safety back to their boat. Here, however, a new danger presented itself. The people lined the banks, and pelted them with stones as they hurried past in their boat as rapidly as the tide and hard rowing would carry them. That they succeeded in escaping with their lives was little short of marvellous, and was largely due to the chief mandarin, who courageously* escorted them from the

* One of the party wrote: "The chief officer who was with us conducted himself with great dignity and a most noble magnanimity, standing outside in the midst of the flying missiles without fear or trepidation. His subordinate also was not deficient in generosity and energy of character, behaving in a very undaunted manner. Receiving a gash upon his head from a stone, he made light of it, and once he was nearly up to his waist in water helping the boat forward." A French account of this affair stated that the mandarin said to the English, "Follow me closely; my body shall serve you as a shield.”—“ Chinese Repository," vol. xvi. pp. 142-47, and p. 512.

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beginning of the riot until they had reached a place of safety. This occurrence was destined to have important consequences.

Now there can be no question that this expedition to Fatshan was a most reprehensible and inexcusable proceeding. All the attendant circumstances were such as aggravated the original offence; and those who participated in the escapade were deserving of the most severe condemnation on the part of the English representatives. The only person to come out of the affair with any credit was the mandarin, whose conduct proved that some of the Chinese Government's agents were anxious to treat foreigners with consideration and to afford them all possible protection. The hostility of the people of Fatshan was to be attributed to their want of knowledge of foreigners, and to the fact that none of the many precautions taken at the Treaty Ports had been enforced to secure the safety of English visitors. Fatshan was the Birmingham of Southern China. Was it to be supposed that the white faces which dared not venture into the main streets of Canton would be safe among a manufacturing population which had never gazed on them before? Had the matter been decided on its merits the Chinese Government would have been complimented on possessing one courageous and honourable official, and the participators in a foolish freak would have been severely admonished.

But the authorities at Hongkong did not reason on the matter. The Fatshan affair was treated as an outrage instead of as an accident, the cause of which was the stupidity of a few Englishmen and others tired of the confinement of their ships or the settlement. Sir John Davis resolved to bring the Canton authorities to reason. He proclaimed that he would "exact and require from the Chinese Government that British subjects should be as free from molestation and insult in China as they could be in England," a demand which was not only in distinct violation of the Treaty of Nankin, but which was in itself impossible. Neither Sir John Davis nor anybody else had the right to substitute for the treaty ports the whole of China; and the line of argument taken by the Chinese throughout the negotiations had been

that they could not guarantee the safety of foreigners outside a few special and fixed places. In plain language, the English had no business at Fatshan, and might think themselves lucky in escaping with their lives. Yet the principal English official resolved to take the matter up and to resort to force. Never was a more unjust or unreasonable excuse seized for forcing events.

On the 1st of April all available troops at Hongkong were warned for immediate service. On the following morning they left in three steamers and one ship-of-war. They landed at the Bogue forts, seized the batteries without opposition, and spiked the guns. The Chinese troops, whether surprised or acting under orders from Keying, made no attempt at resistance. Not a shot was fired; not a man injured on the part of the assailants. The forts near Canton, the very batteries on the islands opposite the great city, were served in the same way; although at the Whampoa forts the Chinese gunners, having partially recovered from their surprise, discharged their guns. Here the good fortune of the assailants stood them in excellent stead, for the fire of the Chinese batteries was well directed, and it was considered to be little short of miraculous how the boats conveying the landing parties to the shore escaped complete destruction. On the 3rd of April Canton was again at the mercy of the guns of an English squadron. The Superintendent issued a proclamation in which he said that he felt "that the moderation and justice. of all his former dealings with the Government of China lend a perfect sanction to measures which he has been reluctantly compelled to adopt after a long course of misinterpreted forbearance." Moderation and justice seemed strange terms in the mouth of a man who, without warning, like a thief in the night, seized the defences of a friendly Government, and sought to acquire at the cannon's mouth concessions which had not been demanded after a protracted war by the accredited representative of the English sovereign. Sir John Davis was, no doubt, actuated by the best intentions. He saw the advantage of free and unrestricted intercourse, and he knew that the time must come when it would be a fact. He thought only to accomplish the object

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himself at one stroke, and to anticipate events by a whole generation.*

The appearance of the English forces, far from cowing them, roused the populace of Canton to a height of animosity never exhibited before. Keying was denounced as the friend of the English and as being worthy of death; and placards were placed in the most prominent spots calling on the people to attack the barbarians. But the authorities distrusted their strength, and, although the English force was small, the counsels of Keying and his more pacific colleagues prevailed. It was resolved that the demands † of the English should be granted. A special proclamation was issued by the local magistrates enjoining the people not to interfere with or rudely gaze at those of the foreigners who happened to roam about the open country. The cause of doubt continued to be whether the people would obey the undoubtedly sincere orders of Keying, and those who had little or nothing to lose were, of course, loudest in their advocacy of violent measures, and of driving the handful of foreigners into the

sea.

The officials presented a united front to the demands of the fanatical and lawless. Proclamations from Keying the Viceroy, Chow Changling the General, and Yeh the Financial Commissioner, all impressed upon the people the necessity of remaining in their houses and of attending to their personal duties.

If some advantage was gained by these summary proceedings, it is none the less impossible to discover their justification. As Keying truly said, “if a mutual tranquillity is to subsist between the Chinese and foreigners, the common

Commissioner Yeh, at this time Territorial Commissioner of the Provinces, makes his first appearance at this date as the author of an official proclamation to calm the public mind.

†These demands may be summarized as follows: The city of Canton to be opened at two years' date from the 6th of April, 1847. Englishmen to be at liberty "to roam for exercise or amusement" in the neighbourhood of the city, the one condition being that they should return the same day. The other stipulations, for the erection of a church, the granting of a site at Honan for buildings, the clearing of the river in front of the factories from boats, were not only reasonable, but calculated to promote good feeling and to remove causes of collision.

feelings of mankind, as well as the just principles of Heaven, must be considered and conformed with." It would be hard to show that Sir John Davis was swayed by any similar considerations. The success of the operations concealed their illegality and injustice; but we do not impugn his proceedings because they were accompanied by successful violence. Having decided to use his small force for the purpose of a military demonstration in front of Canton, he was bound to supply the place of numbers by unusual celerity and daring. Indeed, the military officer, Major-General D'Aguilar, made this the condition of his moving at all. And it is, of course, perfectly obvious that the necessity of ensuring a safe retreat left no choice except to occupy the river-forts and to disable their guns. The execution of the plan was creditable to English pluck and enterprise; but the plan itself was not merely without valid excuse, it was also singularly imprudent and deserved to fail. It was disapproved of at the time, and, as soon as the facts became known, was strongly condemned by the Home Government. Lord Grey wrote in November, 1847, in reference to an application made by the MajorGeneral for a reinforcement, peremptorily forbidding him to undertake any further offensive measures against the Chinese,* and the general opinion was and remains that the adventure of April, 1847, was both unnecessary and imprudent. There is generally some defence, and very often a valid one, for the past proceedings of English officials and negotiators in China. against the charge of being high-handed and unjust; but Sir John Davis's Canton expedition is the exception to the rule.

The distinction between necessary force and unnecessary

* Lord Grey went on to say that "Her Majesty's Government are satisfied that, although the late operations in the Canton river were attended with immediate success, the risk of a second attempt of the same kind would far overbalance any advantages to be derived from such a step. If the conduct of the Chinese authorities should unfortunately render another appeal to arms inevitable, it will be necessary that it should be made after due preparation, and with the employment of such an amount of force as may afford just grounds for expecting that the objects which may be proposed by such a measure will be effectually accomplished without unnecessary loss."-Correspondence (presented to Parliament in 1857).