Early Relations betiveen the United States and China. 25 



ran the narrow lanes known as Old China Street, New China 

 Street, and Hog Lane, and behind them, Thirteen Factory Street, 

 where were situated native shops to entice sailors when off duty. 



Originally the foreigner was allowed to use even the limited 

 area on which the factories were situated only during the trading 

 season, and was required to spend the other months in the 

 Portuguese colony at Macao. '^ No women were allowed in the 

 factories, and any attempt to bring them there was the signal for 

 trouble.'- The number of servants was limited. All communica- 

 tions with the officials were required to be in the form of 

 "respectful petitions," and to be made, not directly, but through 

 the hong merchants. Riding on the river for pleasure was for- 

 bidden, and no one could visit the neighboring suburbs except on 

 special days of the month. Linguists and compradors were 

 employed as for the ships, and each foreigner had his good 

 behavior "secured" to the magistrates by some hong merchant. 

 In short, the "barbarians" were there by permission, a permission 

 granted only by the "infinite compassion of the Son of Heaven." 



As strict as these regulations seem, however, most of them 

 were seldom enforced. Official corruption was well known, and 

 tact and judicious bribery could secure immunity from all but 

 the form of most of the rules. In time many others fell into 

 disuse. In later years smuggling became extensive. Vessels 

 anchored at Lintin outside the Bocca Tigris, loaded and unloaded 

 by means of small boats and receiving ships, and avoided not 

 only the port charges, but often some of the duties."^ The 

 foreigners stayed in the factories throughout the year ; they could 

 walk about the suburbs with impunity, and present petitions 

 directly to the magistrates. The missionaries experienced but 

 little serious interference in the study of the language, both 

 written and spoken.'* There were occasional spasms of reform 



" Hunter, Fan Kwae at Canton, p. 80, speaks of the rule as still partly 

 in force after 1830. It was broken as early as 1804 by Snow. Williams, 

 Estab. of Am. Trade at Canton, p. 155. See also Shaw, Journals, pp. 



173-175- 



^^ Gideon Nye, The Morning of My Life in China, Canton, 1873, p. 9 ; 

 Eitel, Eur. in China, p. 19; and Delano, Voyages, p. 540, tell of futile 

 attempts to avoid the rule. 



"William C. Hunter, Bits of Old China, London, 1885, pp. i, 2. 



'* Ibid., pp. I, 2, and Hunter, Fan Kwae at Canton, p. 60. 



