JB/169/148/003

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is followed through all the subordinate government in the
Empire, who excuse themselvse from the supposed necessity
of supplying the Emperor's demands on them.

The Viceroy & government of Canton are supposed to
be exceedingly rich. They pay the Emperor his annual duties
& endeavour to raise an overplus to themselves by exactions
on the Hong Merchants in the style of gifts, who must reimburse
themselves by extra levies on the trade under pretence
of presents to the Mandarines for dispatch of business, or any
of those pretexts which are practised by mercantile people
in all despotic countries. The Nankin Merchants who come
down with the Tea annually to Canton, must by & sell with
the Europeans throu' the Hong Merchants, & the Hong merchants
with the company, thro' the select committee.

On the one side the Hong merchants, must conceal their
own profit, for fear of being squeezed closer, & must be cautious
of encreasing their trade, when it will not bear the
charge of new levies and new bribes and exactions. The Company
not to overstock the China market, prohibit the sale
of many articles. Our woollens, in particular, Remnants,
Serges Long Ills purpets Camblets, and many other articles
are forbid in private trade, and on these articles the Compy.
gain from 70 to 30 per Cent by selling them to the Hong Merchants,
who monopolize the sale again to the Nankin Merchants,
which added to the price of carriage, must make them of great
price when they come to be distributed among the nothern
provinces, where they are sought after. This is the secret that
prevents the more general sale of our commodities, which will
continue with the monopoly, unless some spirited well informed
Minister should interfere his authority, & alter the shameful
practice. But the desideratum would be to have more than one
place of Trade in China, which I know is likewise Lord Langsdowns opinion.

Another abuse is the expence with which the trade is
carried on both in China and the carriage of the goods home.
To remove our Factory annually from Canton to Macao & back,
costs

Identifier: | JB/169/148/003 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 169.
Date_1		Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	169	Main Headings
Folio number	148	Info in main headings field
Image	003	Titles
Category	collectanea	Number of Pages	4
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering
Penner	lady bentham	Watermarks	[[watermarks::gr [crown motif] [britannia with shield motif]]]
Marginals		Paper Producer
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	56968
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