The Chinese repository - 1847 Author:Unknown Author Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Value of British Imports (year ending 31st Dec. I."4.r) £3,.r66,16l Value of Opium, say 40,000 Cliets at $600 per Chest 5,1100,000 Total value of Imports 8,5... more »66,161 Value of British Export (year ending 3Jst Dec. 1845) 5.7H5.171 Excess of Imports. £-2.781,044 not including the outside trade, a considerable quantity of goods being sold at Hongkong, Macao, and on the Coast. The American and other foreign trade gives an excess of exports over imports of about one million sterling; so that the actual balance " is nearly two millions sterling against China (or according to the" Friend's calculations, in her favor)—which amount is annually drawn from this country in specie, to pay the East India Company for the " demoralising drug," of which they have the monopoly. Now it must not be supposed that the Chinese are better able than any other nation to sustain a continued drain of the precious metals. What then is to be done .; The experience of the past year proves that the exports to England cannot be increased under the present system: so that we may reasonably conclude, unless a new vent is iound for China Exports, a reduction must gradually take place in either the quantities or prices of her Imports until they balance :—On the other hand it is impossible to calculate to what extent the Chinese would purchase our Cottons, Woollens and other goods, were we able to take their produce in return—of which they can supply an almost unlimited quantity—the drawback is, that tea the principal article, is taxed so enormously in England as to prevent any increase in its consumption." Former volumes of the Repository (and especially vols V. and VI) will show the rapid growth of this branch of commerce in the east, rising in less than half a century from a few tens of chests, introduce...« less