China: Her History and Development 269 



action against the Saracens. In 1688, 

 four centuries later, Louis XIV ad- 

 dressed a letter to Emperor Kanghi, 

 whom he saluted as " Most High, Most 

 Excellent, Most Puissant, and Most 

 Magnanimous, Dearly Beloved Good 

 Friend." In 1844 the first treaty was 

 negotiated. France later engaged in 

 war with China over the acquisition of 

 Tonkin and Cochin-China, and a treaty 

 was signed in 1885 giving France juris- 

 diction. 



Germany's first expedition was in 

 1 861, but her chief connection with 

 China was the occupation of Kiaochau 

 in 1897, which practically gave her con- 

 trol of thc' rich and resourceful province 

 of Shantung. 



English intercourse began with the 

 East India Company in 161 5, when it 

 opened agencies at Amoj' and in For- 

 mosa. For the next two centuries this 

 great compan5^'s interests were Eng- 

 land's own interests, but her position 

 was that of a suppliant trader. In 1 74 1 , 

 and again in 18 16, British gunboats at 

 Canton reminded the Chinese that Brit- 

 ish traders had certain rights that the 

 mother country would protect. The 

 embassies of Lord Macartnej^ in 1792 

 and of Lord Amherst in 18 15 accom- 

 plished but little. 



Relations grew" more and more strained 

 after Lord Napier and Sir J. F. Davis 

 had endeavored by authority of Parlia- 

 ment to establish new and better condi- 

 tions. Open hostilities began in 1839. 

 In 1 84 1 the Island of Hongkong, now 

 the most important port on the eastern 

 Asiatic coast, was seized by Great Brit- 

 ain. This struggle was the celebrated 

 ' ' Opium War, ' ' which really opened 

 China to the foreign world, and for 

 which Britain has too often been un- 

 justly criticised. Though it is called the 

 Opium War, opium trading was only an 

 incident in the list of causes. The war 

 was waged, in fact, to stop an endless 

 array of grievances that had accumu- 

 lated during two centuries. The best re- 



sult was the opening as ' ' treaty ports ' ' 

 to the commerce of foreign nations 

 Canton, Amoy, Fuchau, Ningpo, and 

 Shanghai. 



In 1856 England was again engaged 

 in a brief Chinese war, and trouble con- 

 tinued until the Convention of Pekin 

 was signed, in i860. Other treaties, the 

 occupation of Wei-hai-wei, Kowloon, 

 and kindred negotiations I pass over, 

 though important. In considering Great 

 Britain's relations to China in the past 

 and at present, it should be borne in 

 mind that no other country had or has 

 so much at stake in commerce and poli- 

 tics. For that reason w^e commend her 

 energy in the former days and wonder 

 at her inactivity in the last years and 

 months. 



AMERICA AND CHINA 



America's. relations with China have 

 always been to her credit. Whether we 

 consider the pioneer methods of our 

 merchants and missionaries of a century 

 ago or the work of our diplomatists and 

 generals today, our Government has 

 little or nothing of w^hich to be ashamed 

 and much of which to be justly proud. 



The records of relations begin with 

 the report of Major Shaw, the clever 

 supercargo of the ship Empress of China, 

 which, loaded with ginseng, sailed from 

 New York Harbor for Canton on Wash- 

 ington's birthday, 1784, and returned on 

 May II, 1785, with a cargo of tea. The 

 Secretary of State was then John Jay, 

 w^ho, like his successor, John Hay, was 

 an honored advocate of the legitimate 

 development of American interests. 

 Major Shaw reported to him, and he 

 submitted the report to Congress, which 

 immediately resolved ' ' That Congress 

 feels a peculiar satisfaction in the suc- 

 cessful issue of this first effort of the 

 citizens of America to establish a direct 

 trade with China, which does so much 

 honor to its undertakers and con- 

 ductors. " 



