Page 414 - Merchants and Mandarins China Trade Era

400.

of peace and the resumption of trade between foreigners and

Chinese. By the spring of 1843 he was ready to depart, but

the opium trade once more occupied his attention. After the

Treaty of Nanking, American merchants' participation in the drug
16
traffic returned to pre-1839 levels. The bulk of opium trans­

actions now occurred on the coast, in the areas of the additional

ports opened to English trade in the Treaty. Kearny first real­

ized the immensity of the coastal opium trade after he left

Macao. He had decided to visit one of the new ports, Amoy, be­

fore he headed across the Pacific Ocean.

At Amoy Kearny observed several American opium clippers

engaged in the trade. Although his earlier notice had merely

removed naval protection from any opium vessels seized by the

Chinese, the Commodore now acted to stop the trade himself. He

issued a warning to all foreigners not to ship any goods 0n board
11
any vessel in the 'opium trade,' sailing under the flag of the
17
United States of North America.11 To emphasize the reality of

his warning, he attempted to apprehend several of the illicit

opium clippers. He succeeded in capturing the "Ariel, " which be­

longed to Russell & Co. Kearny, acting under his orders, explained

to the Secretary of the Navy: 11With regard to the Ariel I have

taken her papers & colors from her; & I have obliged her master

to discharge the whole of her cargo here, and then he is to

16
Letter, A. Heard to J. Cursetjee, May 11, 1813, Heard MSS.
Letter, P.S. Forbes to R.B. Forbes, May 27, 1843, Harvard Business
School, Baker Library, Forbes MSS.

17
Kearny's notice of May 18, 1843, is in "Squadron Letters, 11
East India Squadron, May 18, 1843.