Ir the Government of France, having placed such heavy dues on goods imported into French ports that smuggling was the order of the day, were to establish a blockade of Dover harbour, on the plea that that port was in some measure privy to those smuggling operations, and in sight of the garrison of the castle to overhaul and levy dues on French vessels entering or leaving the harbour, we should have an exact analogue of what is being done in the immediate neighbourhood of Hongkong. With somewhat misplaced caus tiousness, Mr. Pyke took up the time of the meeting of the Chamber of Commerce with doubts as to the authority under which the cruisers wore acting, as if it practically made any difference whether the Hoppo at Canton, or any other Chinese official, was the immediate offending party, or as if the Chamber of Commerce were to constitute itself judge of what taxes could legally be collected by the various officers of the Chinese Government. So far as Hongkong is concerned, the case is simply this, that the Chinese Government, by one or other of. its officers, makes use of a British port and British waters to collect taxes on vessels engaged in trade with the colony. It may be a matter of curio sity to know into what particular channel these taxes go, and to the statistician it may become a matter of interest to learn the precise effects of the levy of particular dues; but so far as Hongkong and British interests are at stake, it is simply sufficient to prove that an organised system of blockade is in force, and that without submitting to be overhauled and to pay duties to some one unknown, Cbinese traders cannot be permitted to enter or leave the harbour of Hongkong. Mr. Pyke, on pressure, does not deny these facts, and anything beyond is irrelevant to the point at issue. During the blockade of the Southern Ports of the United States, it may be remem. bered that ports like Nassau rose into prominence, through the accident that their situation rendered them suitable stations for vessels seeking to break the blockade. It was not attempted to be held that, therefore, United States cruisers had the right to interfere with vessels entering or leaving. Vessels attempting to break the blockade rendered themselves liable to capture, but the capture had to be made in American waters, and this, though it was notorious that the greater part of the trade of Nassau at the time was really concerned with the running of the blockade. Accident of situation again places Hongkong in close proximity to China the fact of the British Government having declared it a free port renders it advantageous to native as well as foreign shipping. We know that the Chinese revenue system is so arranged that there isnot a harbour or stream so petty as not to have its squeeze station, where dues are paid to some individual collecting with the sanction of Government. We know that this is the system which renders the extension of our trade with the Chinese so difficult, because each of these petty toll-gatherers works independently of his neighbour, so that the unfortunate vessel which has to run the gauntlet of a few of them, finds herself and ber cargo fleeced out of all available profit. So far as this system is applied to native craft navigating the coast of China, we have no concern. We may point out the folly of it, we may grumble at its repressive effect on trade, but neither our treaties with China, nor general wrongs, give us at present a standpoint to demand its reform. Of late years, however, the Chinese Government has not been content with this simple though oppressive mode of raising a revenue, Many of the native craft proceeding to these ports made Hongkong harbour a place of call. There they were exempt from taxation, and could anchor in safety. Some officer connected with the Chinese Government saw here an admirable opening for taxation. " These ships are carrying goods into our markets, and evading their port dues," was the ery got up. It seemed to have been forgotten on all sides that the native craft were simply doing what native craft have done in all ages in China—carried their goods to a partand paid as much as the local collector was able to get out of them. The mode of get ting the additional squeeze out of them was worthy of the Chinese Government. Had it taken steps to collect its dues in its own harbours, when the cargoes were being shipped or discharged, Hongkong would have had little to say. But such a system would have needed the reform of the old method of collection, and it was not to be thought of. One or two gunboats were accordingly sent to cruise about the entrances to Hongkong harbour, and to overhaul native craft entering or leaving, but first this was done in a clandestine manner, Many times we heard of craft being stopped by mandarin junks and compelled to pay what was represented as a tax to the Hoppo at Canton. Some complaints were mede in a feeble manner, and the Viceroy of the province, not yet knowing how far he would be allowed to go, stigmatised those craft as pirates, and promised that such athing would not occur again. The trusting colonial authorities seem to have been lulled to sleep by these assurances, but the interference went on as before, and steamboats commanded by Europeans commenced tomake their appearance. Instead of sending a gunboat outside and warning off the intruders, whom they had the authority of the Viceroy to class as pirates, the Government did nothing; andthe Chamber of Commerce, which might have been supposed capable of foreseeingthe result, seemed to have gone asleep. We ourselves years ago pointed out the inevit table result of such a condition of affairs. What was then hesitatingly done, and even denominated as piraey, by the Chinese Government, is now boldly upheld as a right. Even more than this. Not content with establishing a blockade outside, the temerity of the officials has gone so far that it is represented that they have established tax offices in the colony itself. Yet all the while the Colonial Government stands weakly by and takes no steps to remedy the evil. Either it is ignorant of these things, or knowing them to exist, is callous of their presence. In every way the British Government in Hongkong has become reduced to little more than a name,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.