should sign a bond, submitting
himself, and all on board his ship, to be dealt with according to the
laws of China. The noble lord has found fault with Captain Elliot upon
this, as well as upon another matter. Now, this objection is most
extraordinary, and it rather tends to prove that the noble earl, though
he has paid great attention to this particular blue book, is not very
well acquainted with former transactions in that country, or he would
have found that former traders with China had invariably refused to
subscribe to such proposals, and that they had broken off the trade with
the Chinese, rather than do it; rather than give up British subjects to
be dealt with according to the laws of China. I think they acted most
properly; and that Captain Elliot, very much to his credit, refused to
do it; at the same time, he did no more than his duty. He did what
others would I trust have done under the same circumstances; and he is
entitled to great praise for his firmness in resisting that demand. Then
there is another circumstance in which Captain Elliot acted as became
him. I allude particularly to his refusal to give up Mr. Dent. It was
declared that the opium trade was not to be continued; that it was an
illegal trade; and that dealing in opium should not be suffered. It was
supposed that Mr. Dent had been a person very much concerned in that
trade, and had made a large fortune, as I believe many others have
done, by that illicit trade. And Captain Elliot was blamed, when it was
sought to have Mr. Dent given up, because he, her majesty's
representative and the chief superintendent of trade in that country,
stepped forward and said, "I won't allow this gentleman to be given over
to the Chinese government, and to be tried as the Chinese government may
direct." I should, my lords, be ashamed of the name of Englishman, if
there could be found one in her majesty's service capable of acting
otherwise than this gentleman did, under such circumstances. The noble
earl has stated that a great deal of difficulty would have been got rid
of, if Captain Elliot had complied with the request of the Chinese; and
that the Americans gave up a seaman to be dealt with according to the
Chinese laws. I am sorry for it. I must say, it was not their duty to do
so. They would have done better to have taken a leaf out of our book,
and to have followed the example of the East India Company, to put an
end to the trade rather than risk the life of on