Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/24

 of the sixteenth century they sent out several fleets with the object of establishing a trade with the Far Eart. The initial English venture was made in 1596, when Sir K. Dudley and others fitted out three ships with the



intention of trading to China. Wood, the commander, bore with him a letter from Queen Elizabeth to the Emperor of China. With the expedition also went the warm wishes of the commercial community whose hopes of establishing a trade had been raised to a high level in consequence of the reports which bad come in of the riches of the Eastern world. The enterprise, however, ended in disaster. Not a soul of the company which embarked ever returned to England to give an account of the rest. Nothing further was attempted in the direction of opening up the China trade until Sir James Lancaster's successful voyages to the Straits of Malacca, and the subsequent establishment there of factories of the newly constituted East India Company turned the thoughts of London merchants once more towards those rich markets of the Far East which the Portuguese and the Spaniards had hitherto monopolised and which the Dutch were now seriously attacking. The first direct reference to the China trade in the records of the East India Company is to be found in the year 1606. On The occasion of sending out three ships to the Eastern factories the Court issued instructions to "General" Heeling, the commander of the little squadron, directing him to cultivate a trade with the Chinese. "It is to be remembered," said the directorate, "that our Factors att Bantam doe their best endevors to p'cure the Chineses to bring from Cheney aleave and sowing silks, that we may fall into some trade with them; and see yf they can sell any of our English cloth to them that they may be brought to the use thereof." At the same lime the Court wrote to the factors at Bantam desiring them to send home particular accounts of all goods vendible, or to be procured, and directed that "yf Cheney silks are not theare (in Bantam) presenthe to be had, that then you advise the Cheneses to bringe thereof thither, both while soweinig silke, twisted of all sorts and sizes, as also rawe and sleave silke; of all which we have geven Mr. Heeling examples: the which silke yf you can p'cure to be brought thither att reasonable prices we suppose some good proffitt may be had thereby: of all which you have hitherto left us ignorant; whereby we must conceive you to be either unskillful in merchandising or unwilling to



p'form that for which we keepe you theare." The asperity of the last remark is probably to be accounted for by the fact that the Dutch at this time were making considerable progress in the Eastern trade and were reaping rich profits at home from the products brought by their ships from the Far East. However that may be, that the manufactures of China met with great favour in the English markets at this period is very evident from these additional instructions given in 1609 to the Bantam factors: "The silk called Lankin (Nanking) is here (in London) well requested: therefore, we pray you use your best endeavours to put off our English cloth for that commodity, whereto as it steemeth by Robert Brown's (second at Bantam) letters, the Chineses were willing and desirous, if you had been furnished with any; which giveth us good hope that these people will tall to wear our cloth, so as we shall find good bent for the same hereafter; and have better means to maintain an ample trade there; for the better procuring whereof we have now and will hereafter send such cloth as shall be true both in substance and colour, and so you may assure them." In 1613-14 we find the Court in despatching four ships to Surat issuing instructions to the Company's agent at Agra to "discover the trade of Tartary." He was told to find out "what English cloth may be there vended; at what distance the Towns of Trade are situate; how the passages thither lie, and whether secure or dangerous." The writer added, "The Court conceive that much good might be done in vending our cloth in that cold country Tartary, were it well discovered." In this year the several transactions of the Company were united in one joint stock, and it was intimated that on this basis the Company intended to build an enlarged system of commercial enterprise. Bantam factors on being informed of the change were enjoined to make vigorous efforts to extend the Company's trade, particularly to Japan and China. Meanwhile, the Court asked the assistance of their agents in a matter of some importance affecting the silk trade. Difficulty was found in unwinding the Canton cross-reeled silk, and it was suggested that one or two of the Chinese or Japanese should be induced to visit England to give instruction in the matter "in order to bring the Canton silk into