Tue illegal exaction of transit dues on foreign owned cargo is such a stale subject of complaint that it is seldom referred to, A vague hope exists that. fa remedy will be applied by the new treaty, and in the mean time ench now squeeze is fought as it best can be, by the victim, Cases have been of tro quent occurrence lately at Ningpo, in Which manufactured goods the lend fide property of foreigners, and produce either purchased or heavily advanced upon, have been stopped on their way to and from the interior. But. the most glaring instance we have heard of, has lately happened near Chine Keang. A_guautity of exrgo worth about Tis, 700, purchased by n foreiga merchant in the country and coming down to him under protection transit pass, hus been stopped at the Wei-quan barrier near Chin-cheang-pa <a city on the Grand Canal about 95 W North of the Yang-tzo—and the three shrafs in charge of it have been seized and cruelly fogged by the olticials. A. shroff in the employment of another merchant, who was of the party, has been also seized and treated similarly; and the four men are now Imprisoned nnd fogged one a dey, for their persistent refusal to pay the tax domnuded. Their clothes, watches, and money have been takow from the and their lives, even, were threate when they were last heard of, Th sole en uso for the men refuse squicez0s, pleading the protection of the wen. Those were perfectly in order, and the cargo was really that re-forred to in them, There is no possible excuse for the conduct of the barrier ofllcials, who are simply porpetentin oan illegal squeeze, and trying to force it by cruelty." A case go> fons would be best met by the despateh an armed boat's crew to forcibly release the goods and the shrofl%, and Dung their persecutors to Chinkeang for punishment, Some such str measure is noelled to bring the off in that part of the country to th senses. The ense in question is tone of many that have lately zed but in empecilly from the outrageous behaviour the unhappy Chinnmen in. charge of, the produce. The official in charge of the bavrior is " Hoppo who farms taxes of the station from the Poking Government, and holds his appoint ment direct from the Emperor. The ense is therefore a good one for H. MIN. ALinister to take up, us ho can be no excuse of provincial respon-culprit in thoft own hands, and he Peking oils have the moval may be fairly i we remarked before, th th ual has boon concerned, Ho has of Into been giving trouble about all goods going up country under transit Sestiigntey always impeding, some-timos impounding thomas in the present fnnstanee. About two mouths ngo, for example, he stopped is. 2,000 worth of shirtings belonging to the same merchant, and kept them for twenty days before our Consular auth ould get them released. His con-Anet wax of conse reported to the Fatal and to the Viceroy; but, equally of course, nothing has been done to punish him, and there the mate for Tests, These high authorities Iuwvo tacitly encouraged hig infraction the treaty, and he of corse ames the ani Probably the Joss of prosti have sniffer ed the revent ditlienlty, has emboldto ud personal outrage to other offences, His having done howl put a point upon his career.
things are allowed to pass wie punished, there will be an and to all business with the interior; and foreigners may as well make up. their minds ¢o retail piece goods to the habitants of the treaty ports, The only one consolation under all these indignities is that they must, by and by, bring matters to a.climas, when sweoping redress will be exacted once for The ce-operative policy is fast bringing our relations with China to adead-lock, which force will be required to undo. From every part of the country comes 1 similar tale, missionaries outraged, converts perscented, goods squeezed, servants bullicd—and the action our representatives is confined to despatches, which the Chinese officials value at the worth of the paper they are written on, We invite Sir Rather ford Alcock': attention to a passngo from his own work, "The city the Tycoon."
an," he writes, "seems fast learning a lesson she would undoubtedly be t—that the Wester Pow-inding the eagerness and ination they shew to make trea ties with a now country—are litle disposed to take the necessary steps to cause them to be Aad if they should come to the conclusion, based upon a certain experienco—that every obligation contracted may be systematically evaded with impunity only such evasion be carried on under cover of professions of amity and good faitl-—it will be hard to got nny substantial advantage out of treaties."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.