Page 116 - Merchants and Mandarins China Trade Era

102.

house could fill a cargo more quickly.

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During the 1820 s the first commission houses t o appear
at Canton were connected with the major commercial houses in the

United States. Perkins & Co. of Canton had been the China agent

of Perkins & Co. of Boston since 1803. The chief of the estab­

lishment John Perkins Cushing, after the death of his partner

in 1829, joined forces with another agency house Samuel Russell
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& Co. In the 1830 s Russell & Co., arawing consignments

largely from Boston merchants, expanded into the largest and

most important American commercial operation at Canton. This

house became so large that it spawned a rival house. Augustine

Heard and Joseph C. Coolidge, both former partners, in Russell
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& Co. in the 1830 s, formed A Heard & Co., which ultimately

became one of �he four largest American commercial houses in

China.

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Also appearing in the late 1820 s were two other major
houses. David W.C. Olyphant formed Olyphant & Co. from the

shambles of T.H. Smith's business in New York. His partners

were all Smith's former associates in New York. In the early
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1820 s Nathan Dunn of Philadelphia built up Nathan Dunn & Co.

in connection with Archer, Jones, Oakford & Co. of Philadelphia,

by bringing Joseph Archer into his agency. Dunn left Canton

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in the early 1830 s, relinauishing his position in the house
to William Shepherd Wetmore. Thus began Wetmore & Co., Russell

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. & Co.'s largest competitor in the 1830 s and 1840 s. Smaller
commission houses appeared at Canton, especially after the

dissolution of the East India Company's charter in 1834 and