The Age of Imperialism1850-1914

The following discussion questions are based on the reâdings below. You should complete the readingsand review the questions to prepare for a seminar on the topic.

Also see the question for our classroom blog. In addition to posting a brief response to the question onthe blog, you should repþ to ofher students' postings to get the conversation going.

British Contract with an African KingAfrica at the Center, W .8.8. Du BoisPrivate Company Rule in fhe Congo, A.E. Scrivene¡Letter Opposing the English,Motíavy Syad Shah SahibThe Opium WarsLetter to Queen Victoria, Ltn Zexu

1. A contract involves a'bargained-for exchange." What was King Lo Bengula to receive from the Britishmining company? What was the company to receive?

2. What adjectives would you use to describe the contract?

3. Why do you think the mining company wanted to obtain mining rights through a contract rather than takingthem by force?

4. To what does Du Bois attribute the fighting among European nations during World War I?

5. How would Du Bois characterize the British conûact referenced above?

6. According to Du Bois, what is the bond that holds together the modem nation-state?

7. A.E. Scrivener equates imperialism in the Congo wilh terrorism. Is he justified in making such acomparison? Support your response with references to his letter.

8. One ofthe main justifications European powers gave for colonizing Africa during the 1880s and 1890s wasthe desire to end slave trarling and slavery in Africa. Usirg Scrivene¡'s letter, evaluate that justification.

9. What perspective does Moulavy Syad Kutb Shah S¿rhib offer on British imnerialism in India?

10. Explain how Britain's distribution of opium in China was a fomr of imperialism.

1 I . How would you characterize the tone of Lin's letter to Queen Victoria?

Blog question: What aspects of just war theory are most relevant to ân evaluation of WesternImperialism?

@Section f

pRrMARy rou*.= British Contract with anAfrican Kittg

tn 1888 Cecil Rhodes senú f¡¡ree ðgents of his South Afr¡ca Company-Cha esRudd, RochfoÌt Mdguire, and Franc¡s Thompson-to see ttre kíng of the Ndebelepeople. The m¡n¡ng company agents persuaded the Afücan k¡ng Lo Bengula tos¡gn a contract granting the Bút¡sh m¡n¡ng ights. Laf€', Lo ßengula sa¡d that hehad been trìded ìnto sign¡ng the agrcemenl ênd he wrote a lettêt of protest toQueeD Vìctoiía of Grcat B'ita¡n. What we¡e the te¡.'n.s of th¡s contrcct?

TZnorv all men by these preseots, ùat whereas

-Ñ.Ch*rl., ot,¡eÚ R udd.^ ol ru n be rley' Roch fortùIaguire, of Londou and Francis Robei Thornpson.of Kimberþ hereinafler called the gra.ntees, havecovenanted and agreed, and do hereþ covenartaad agree, to pay to me, my heirs ard successors,tlre sum of one hundred pounds sterlìng, Britishcurrency, ol the ffrst da;v- of every lunar nonth;and, further. to deliver at my roy'al kraal one thou-sand Martini-Henry- breechìoading rifles, togetherr.vith one Ìrundred thousand munds of suitâble bâllcartridge, five hundred of the said rifles and ffftytliousa¡d of the said cartrídges to be o¡dered f¡omEngland fofihwith and delivered with reasonabledispatch, and the remainder of the said rifles andcar[idges to be delivered as soon as the saidgrantees shall have commenced to work miningtrachinery rvithin my territory; and fuidrer, todeliver on the Zaurbesi River a steamboat withguns suitable f:or defensive purposes upon the saidriver, or in lieu of the said steamboat, should I soelect to pay to me the sum of five hundred poundssterling, British currency. On the execution of thesepreseûts, I, I.o Bengula Kûrg of lvlatabeleland,Mashonalard, and other adjoining teritodes, inexercise of nry council of indunas, do hereþ grantand assign unto the said grantees, their heirs, rep-resentàtives, and assigns, jointly and severally, theconrplete and exclusivie charge over all metals andminerals sítuated and contained in my kingdoms,princþalities, and dominions, together with fullpolver to do all thiugs that they rnay deem necessaryto wia and procure the same, and to hold, collect,and enjoy the profits and revenues, if any; derir,able

from ttre said metals and minerals- subject to theaforesaid payment; and whereas I have been muchmolested [ofl late by dir.erse persols seeking arddesirhg to obtair gnnts and concessions of landand mining rights in mv territories, I do hereþauthorise the said grantees, their lreirs, represerta-tives, and assigns, to take all necessary ald lav{ulsteps to exclude from ny kingdom, prilcipalities,and dominions all persons seehng land, metals.minerals, or mining rights therein, and I do helebyundertake to ¡ende¡ thern all such needful assis-tance as thev may froÍr time to time require for theexclusior of such persous, aud to grant üo corces-sions of land or nining rights fron ard after drisdate without their consent and concu¡rence; pro-vided tJrat if at any time the said montlrly paymentof one hundred pounds shall cease [dre agreement'send dates from] the last-rnade pa)'mert.

fm'n Si¡ Lewis lvf itcìrell, Tha Life of the RBltt Honombl¿Cecil loht Bhod.es, Yol. I (lon<lor: 1910), 24.1-245.Re.printed iû PeLe¡ N. Steams- ed.- Do¿r¡¡n¿ùts ín Vod¿IIistory, Yol.II (Nerv York: Harper Collins, 1988), 102-103.

Discussion QuestionsRøcognízíng Føct* and Detatils

1. What v'as the king to receive from the Britishmining company-?

2. What did the kùrg agree to give the Brìtish miningcompany?

3. Drauíng Conckßiot s !\4ry do you diink theBritish mining company agents wanted to obtainmining rigl.rts thmugh a contract rather dran tak-ing them by force?

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56 UNm 3, CHAPTER 11

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ATnICA AT THE CENTERt975

W.E.B. Du Bois

Throughout his life, VE.B. Du Bois worked to improve the conditions of AfricanAmericans. He viewed the struggle of African Americans as connected to thestruggles of black people throughout the.world. He articulated Pan-Africanism, a

belief that African Americans shared common interests and experienced a com-mon oppression with all people o{ African descent. In the following selection,Du Bois explains that Africa was at tÍe center o{ many great crìses in histor¡including World War I.

THINK THROUGH H ISTO RY3 Analyzing Causes

According to Du Bo¡s, what caused World War I?

Nearly every human empire tlat has arisen in the world, material and spiritual,has found some of ifs greatest crises on this continent of Africa, from Greece toGreat Britain. As [the German classical historian Theodor] Mommsen says, "Itwas through Af¡ica that Christianity became the religion of the world." In Africathe last flood o{ Germanic invasions spent itself within hearing of the last gasp ofByzantium, and it was again tfuough Africa that Islam came to play its great roleof conqueror and civilizer. . . .

So much {or the past; and now, today. . . . The methods by which this continenthas been stolen have been contemptible and dishonest beyond expression. Lyingtreaties, rivers of rum, murder, assassination, mutilation, rape and torrure havemarked the progress of Englishman, German, Frenchman, and Belgian on theDarkContinent....

It all began, singularly enough, like the present wa¡, with Belgium. Many of usremember Stanley's great solution oÍ the puzzle of Central Af¡ica when he tracedthe mighty Congo sixteen hundred miles from Nyangwe to the sea. Suddenly theworld knew that here lay the key to the riches of Central Africa, It stirreduneasil¡ but Leopold of Belgium was first on his feet, and the result was theCongo Free State-God save the mark! . . .

Thus the world began to invest in color preiudice. The "color line" began to paydividends. For indeed, while the exploration of the valley of the Congo was theoccasion of the scramble for Africa, the cause lay deeper. The Franco-Prussian Wartu¡ned the eyes of those who sought power and dominion away from Europe. . , .

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World. History: Patterns of Interactìon @ McDougal Littell Inc.

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Vith the waning of the possibility of the big fomrne, gathered by starvationwage and boundless exploitâtion of one's weaker and poorer fellows at home,arose more magnificentþ the dream of exploitation abroad. . . .

It is no longer simply the merchant princg or the aristocratic monopoly, or even

the employing class, that is exploiting the world; it is the nation, a new democraticnation composed of united capital and labor. . . .

Such nations it is that rule the modern world. Their national bond is no meresentímental patriotism, loyalty, or ancestor-worship. It is inc¡eased wealth, poweqand luxury fo¡ all classes on a scale the world never saw before. . . .

Whence comes this new wealth and on what does its accumulation depend? Itcomes primarily from the darker nations of the world-Asia and Africa, Southand Central America, the \fest Indies and the islands of the South Seas. . . .

Thus, more and more, ¡þs imFeriâlists have concentrated on Africa.The greater the concentration the more deadly the rivaþ. From Fashoda to

Agadig repeatedly the spark has been applied to the European magazine and ageneral conflagration nanowly ayerted. We speak of the Balkans as the storm cen-ter of Europe and the cause o{ waq but this is mere habit. The Balkans are conve-nient for occasions, but the ownership of materials and men in the darker world is

the real prize that is setting the nations of Europe at each other's throats today.The present world wâr is, then, the result of iealousies engendered by the recent

rise of armed national associations of labor and capiøl whose ain is the exploita-tion of the wealth of the world mainly outside tle European ci¡cle of nations.These associations, grown iealous and suspicious at the division of the spoils oftrade-empire, are Êghting to enlarge their respective shares; they look for expan-sion, not in Europe but in Asia, and particularly in AÊica. 'We wa¡t no inch ofFrench territory," said Germany to England, but Germany was 'unable to give"similar assurances as to France in AÊica. . . .

'What, then, are we to do, who desire peace and the civilization of all men? . . .

How can love of humanity appeal as a motive to nâtions whose love of luxury isbuilt on the inhuman exploitation of human beings, and who, especially in recentyears, have been taught to rega.rd these human beings as inhuman? . . .

What the primltive peoples of Africa and the world need and musr have if waris to be abolished is perfecdy clear:

First: land. Today AÊica is being enslaved by the theft of her land and naturalresources. . . .

Secondly; we must train native races in modern civilization. . . .

LasdS the principle of home rule must extend to groups, nâtions, and races. . . .

We are calling for European concord today; but at the utrnost European con-cord will mean satisfaction witÀ, or acquiescence in, a given division of the spoilsof world dominion. . . . From this will arise three perpetual dangers of war. First,renewed jealousy at any division of colonies or spheres of influence. . . ,

Secondly: war will come from the revolutionary ¡evolt of the lowest wo¡kers.

2'World History: Patterns of Inteîactiok A McDor¡gal Littell Irc

foaz AFRrc ÂT Trü fuüER

. . . Finall¡ the colored peoples will not always submit passively to foreigndomination. To some this is a lighdy tossed truism- When a people deserve libertythey fight for it and get ig say such philosopherg ¡l¡5 making war a regular, nec-essary step to liberty. Colored people are familiar with this complacent iudgment.They endure the contemptuous treatment meted out by whites to those not"strong" enough to be Ëee. These nations and races, composing as they do a vastmaiority of humanity, are going to endure \is treatrnent iust as long as tley mustand not a moment longer. Then they are going to 6ght and the Var of the ColorLine will outdo in savage inhumanity any war this world has yet seen. For coloredfolk have nruch to remember and they will not forget.

f,,¡¡¡ is this inevitable? Must we sit helpless befo¡e this awful prospect? . , .

Steadfast faith in humanity must come. The domination of one people by anotherwithout the other's conseng be the subiect people black or white, must stop. Thedoctrine of fo¡cible economic expansion over subject peoples must go. . . .

Twenty centuries befo¡e Ch¡ist a gleat cloud swept or'er sea and setded onAfrica, darkening and well-nigh bloning out the culture of the land of Egypt, Forhalf a thousand years it rested there until a black woman, Queen Nefertari, "themost veneÍated figure in Egyptian history" rose to the throne of the Pharaohs andredeemed the world and her people. Twenty centuries after Christ, black A{rica,prosüate, raped, and shamed, lies at the feet of the conquering Philistines ofEurope. Beyond the awful sea a black woman is weeping and waiting with hersons on her breast. What shall the end be? The world-old and fearful things, warand wealth, mu¡der and lumry? Or shall it be a new thing-a new peace and newdemocracy of all races: a great humanity of equal men? 'semper noui qaid exAfñca!"t

Source: Excerpt frorlr WE-Ù. Speaks: Speeches and Addresses 1897-7919 (NewYork: Pathfinder Press, 1991).

L Sentpel norrì qø¡d ex Af.tica!: "There's always something new out of Africa!"

3Wo d. History: Pønens of lnterd.:tio1, @MlcDougal Littell Inc

f'.*PRrverr CoupeNy Rurr

rN THr CoNco1903

A. E. Scriuener

By the late 1800s, European countries were competing to get at the great riches ofAfrica's natural resources. In 1882, Belgian King Leopold II founded a companycalled the International Association of the Congo. Its goal was to exploit the rub,ber and mineral lands along the Congo River. The company controllers fo¡ced thenative population to do the work, European mìssionaries who went to the Congoto teach Christianiry were appalled by the companyh activities. The followingjournal entry by the missíonary A. E. Scrivener describes the brutality that theAfricans faced at the hands of the company owners.

THINK THROUGH H I STO RY: Recogn¡z¡ng EffectsWhat effects did the pract¡ces ot the company owners have on lhe people of theCongo?

Everything was on a military basis, but so fa¡ as I could see, the one and onlyreason for it a rvas rubber. It was the theme of every conversation, and it was evi-dent that the only way to please one's superiors was to increase the output some-how I saw a few men come in, and the frightened look even now on their faces

tells only too eloquently of the awful time they have passed through, As I saw itbrought ìn, each man had a litde baskeg containing sa¡ {our or Êve pounds of rub-ber, This was emptied into a larger basket and weíghed, and being found sufficient,each man was given a cupful o{ coarse salt, and to some of tlte headmen a fathomof calico. . . . I hea¡d f¡om the white men and some of the soldiers some most grue-some stories. The former white man (I feel ashamed of my colour every time Ithink of him) would stand at the door of the store to receive the rubbe¡ from thepoor trembling wretches, who after, in some cases, weeks of privation in theforests, had ventured in with what they had been able to collect. A man bringingrather under the proper amount, the white man {lies tnto a. rage, and seizing a riflefrom one of the guards, shoots him dead on the spot. Very rareþ did rubber comein, but one or more were shot in that way at the door of the store "to make thesurvivors bring more next time." Men who had tried to run from the country andhad been caught, were brought to the stâtion and made to stand one behind theothe¡, and an Albini bullet sent through them. "A pity to waste cartridges on suchwretches." On --- removing from the station, his successor almost fainted on

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Wodd. History: Patterns of Intero.tion el McDougal Littell Inc

Íozz PRTVATE CoMpÂì{y RULE rN THE CoNGo

attempting to enter the stâtion prison, in which were numbers of poor wretches soreduced by starvation and the aw¡l sænch from weeks of accumulation of filth,that they were not able to stand. Some of the stories are unprintable. , . . Under thepresent régime a list is kept of all the people. Every town is known and visited atstated intervals. Those stationed near the posts are required to do the various tasks,such as the bringing in of timber and other maærial. A litde pa¡'ment is made, butthat it is in any respect an equivalent it would be absurd to suppose. The peopleare regarded as the property of the State for any purpose for which they may beneeded. That they bave any desires of their own, or any plans worth carrying outin connection with their own lives, would creaæ a smile among the ofÊcials. It isone continual grind, and the native intercourse between one district and another inthe old style is practically non-existenl Only the roads to and fio from the variousposts are kept open, and large tracts of country are abandoned to the wild beasts.The white man himself told me that you could walk on for five days in one direc-tion, and not see a single village or a single human being. And this whe¡e formerlythere was a big tribe! . . . From thence on to the Lake we found the ¡oad more andmore swampy. Leaving Mbongo on Saturday (2fth) we passed through miles ofdeserted villages, and saw at varying distances many sþs of the former inhabi-tants. . . . Leaving the plairq we . . . followed for three-quarters of an hour thecourse of a fast-flowing, swollen stream. Then for half an hour through somedeserted gardens and amongst the ruins of a nr¡mber of villages, then a sharp turnto the left through another low-lying bit of grassland. . . ,

[In due course Mr. Scrivener arrived at Ngongo, where the surviving relatives ofthe refugees whom Mr. Scrivener had brought with him, as already mentioned,met after their long partingd

As one by one the surviving relatives of my men arrived, some affecting sceneswere enacted. There was no falling on necks and weeping but very genuine ioy wasshown and teârs were shed as the losses death had made were told. How theyshook hands and snapped their fngers! What expressions of su4rise-the wide-opened mouth covered with the open hand to m¿fte its evidence of wonder themore apparent, , . , So far as the State post was concerned, it was in a very dilapi-dated condition. . . . On three sides of the usual huge quadrangle there were abun-dant sþs of a former population, but we only found three villages-bigger indeedthan any we had seen beforg but sadly dininished from what had been butrecendy the condition of the place. . . . Soon we began talking and, without anyencouragement on my part, they began the tales I had become so accustomed to.They were living in peace and quietness when the white men came in from theLake with âll sorts of requests to do this and to do thag and they thought it meantslavery. So they attempted to keep the whiæ men ouù of their country, but withoutavail. The rifles were too much for them. So they submitæd and made up theirminds to do the best they could under the alæred circumstances. First came thecommand to build houses for ttre soldiers, and this was done without a muÍnur,

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World History: Panems of Interaction @ McDougal Littell lnc.

Éorz PRwÀTE CoMpÁNy RuLE Dr rrrr CoNc,o

Then they had rc feed the soldiers, and all the men and women-hangers-on whoaccornpanied them. Then they were told to bring in rubber. This was quire a newthing for them to do. There was rubber in the forest several days away from tåeirhome, but that it was worth anything was news to them. A small reward wasoffered, and a rush was made for the rubber; '\ùlhat strange white men to give uscloth and beads for the sap ofa wild vine." They reioiced in what they thoughtwas their good fortune. But soon the reward was reduced until they were told tobring in the rubber for nothing. To this they tried to demuq but to their great sur-prise several were shot by the soldiers, and the rest were told, with many cursesand blows, to go at once or more would be killed. Terrified, they began to preparetheir food for the formighCs absence from the villagg whích the collection of therubber entailed. The soldiers discovered them sitting about. 'WhaE nor gone yet!'Bang! bang! bang! And down fell one and another dead, in the midst of wives andcompanions. There is a terrible wail, and ân attempt made to prepare the dead forburial, but his is not allowed. AIl must go at once to the forest. And off the poorwretches had to go without even their tinder-boxes to make fi¡es. Many died in thefo¡ests from exposure and hungeq and still more from the rifles of the ferocioussoldiers in charge of the post. In spite of all their effons, the amount fell off, andmore and more were killed- . . . I was shown round the place, and the sites of for-mer big chiefs' settlemenb were pointed our. A carefì¡l estimaæ made the popula-tion of, sa¡ seven years ago, to be 2,000 people in and about the post, within theradius of, say, a quarter of a mile. All told they would not muster 200 now; andthere is so much sadness and gloom that tìey are fast decreasing. . . . Lying aboutin the grass, within a few yards of the house I was occupying were numbers ofhuman bones, in some cases complete skeletons. I counted thirty-six skulls, andsaw many sets of bones from which the skulls were missing. I called one of themen, and asked ¡¡rc ¡¡saníng of it 'Vhen the rubber palaver began,' said he, 'thesoldiers shot so many we grew tired of burying; and very often we Ìvere notallowed to bur¡ and so just dragged the bodies out into the grass and left them.There are hundreds all round if you would like to see them." But I had seen morethan enough, and was sickened by the stories ttrat came from men and womenalike of the awful time they had passed through, The Bulgarian atrocities might beconsidered as mìldness itself when compared with what has been done here, . . . Indue course we reached Ibali. There was hardly a sound building in the place. . . .Why such dilapidation? The Commandant away for a trip likeþ to extend intothree months, the sub-lieutenant away in another di¡ection on a punitive expedi-tion. In other words, station must be neglected and rubber-hr¡nting caried out withall vigour. I stayed here two days, and the one thing that impressed itself upon mewas the collection of rubber. I saw long files of men come as at Mbongo with theirlittle baskets under their arms, saw them paid their milk-tin-ftrll of salt, and thetwo yards o{ calico flung to the head men; saw thei¡ trembling tirnidity, and in facta great deal more, to prove the state of terrorism that exists, and the virtual slavery

3World History: Patterns of lrrieøctior, @ l.0'¡cDalÙ4Éjai Llrff,ltlßc.

foft¿ PRrvÂTE CoMp.qNy RuLr rN TI{E CoNGo

in which the people are held. . . , So much for the ioumey to the Lake. It hasenlarged rny knowledge of the country, and also, alas! my knowledge of tlre awfuldeeds enacted in the mad haste of men to get rich. So far as I know I am the fustwhite man to go into the Domaine priué of the King, othe¡ than the employés oÍthe State. I expect there will be wrath in some quarters, but that cannot be heþed,

Source Excerpt from King Leopold's Rule in Afriea (London: SlilliamHeinemann, 1904), pp. 181-186.

4World Hìstory: Panens of IÌrtetuctioÌt@lj|{,cDoùgal Litfell Irc

@Section 4

pRrMARy souRcE Letter Opposing the Englishby Moulary Syad Kutb Shah SaLúb

DuÌìng Bútísh ¡mperial ¡ule in the 19th century, many tndians bel¡eved that the8t¡t¡sh werc trying to force dßm to conveit to Cht¡st¡an¡ty. ln a letteq Musl¡mleader Moulavy Syad Kutb Shah Sah¡b ¡ssued a warn¡ng to H¡ndus and Muslìms¡n otder to protect them frcm lhe Bút¡sh. The follow¡ng exceryt frcm hß leltetreflecb Ind¡ans' resentment toward ll''e Brítish hecause of religious díffercnces.what course of act¡on díd Moulavy Syad Shah rccommend lndians should take?

flthe Engf ish are people who overthmw al] reli-I gioru. You should u¡¡derstand well tbe object oI

destroying the religions of Hindusta-n; they have fora long time been causing books to be written andcirculated drroughout the country by the hands oftheir priests, and. exercising their audrori$r, havebrought out numbers of preachers to spread theirorvn tenets: this has been learned f¡om one of thei¡owtr trusted agents. . . . [The English] ordered theBrahnans and others of their army to bite car-tridges, in the naking up ofu'hich fat had beenused. The MussuÌman [Muslim] solùers perceivedtLat ìry this expedient the religion of dre Brahm¿nsand Hindus onÌy was in dalger, but neverthelessthey also refused to bite them. On this dre Errglishnow resoh,ed on ruining the faith of both. . . . It isnorv my firm conviction that if these English cor-tinue ir Hìndust¿n they will hll every one in thecouniry, and will utterþ overthrow our religions.Under drese circumstances, I would ask, udratcourse have you decided on to protect ¡,our livesand faith? Were your views and nine the same, wernight destroy them entirel;' with a very litde trou-ble; ard ifrve do so, we shall protect our religiorxa¡rd save the courtry . . - All you Hirdus a¡e here-by solemnly adured, by your faith in Ganges, Tulsi.and Saligrarr; and aÌl you Mussulmans, by yourbelief in God and the Koran, as these English arethe common enemy ofboth, to unite in consideringtlieir slaughter ertremeþ e.qredient, for by thisalone will the lives and faith of both be saved. It isex¡redient, tJren, dut you should coalesce and slaytllem, The slaughter of kine [cc'r.vs] is regarded bythe Hindus as a great iffult to their religion. Toprevent this a solemn mmpact and agreement has

been entered ilto by all the lvlahomedal chiefs ofHindusta¡r, binding theuiselves, tliat if the Hi¡rdusrvill cone forward to slay the Engl;sþ, 1h"Mahomedans will from tliat very day put a stop tothe slaughter of cows, . . . but if tìre Hindus rvill not

gird their loins to kill the English, but will try tosave drem, they rvill be as guilty in the sight of Godas thougb they had committed the sins of killingcows and eating flesh. Perhaps the Engtish may, fordrei¡ or.rrr ends, try to assure the Hindus drat as theMussulma¡rs have consented to give up killing corvsfrorn respect for the Hildu religion, they willsolennly engage to do tJre same, and r,vill ask theHindus to join thern against tlre ùlussulmars; butno sersible man lvill be gulled by such deceit, forthe solemr pronises and professions of the Erglishare alwa;n deceitful and interested. Once theirends are gained they will infringe their engage-ments, for deception has eve¡ been habitual t'ithtÀem, and the t¡eachery they haræ ahvays practisedon tle peopÌe of Hirdusta¡ is larowu to rich andpoor. Do not therefore give heed to what the), mai1,

sav. . , . I trusl you wi[ all write answers approvingofrvhat has been proposed herein. This letter has

been printed under the direction of Moulav,v Sy-ad

Kutb Sliali Sahib, at tlie Bahaduri press, in the cityof Bareilly-.

from Selcctûms from the Reoord^t of the C,ooentment ofPtntjøh and. its Dependencies, Ncu; Seriøs, No, YII (Lahore:Iìrùiâb Prhting CoÌrparry, Ltd., Ì870), 173-175. Repriuledb Pete¡ N. Ste¿rrns, ed., DoatmÊnts in \(orld History, Yol.II (Ne.ra York: H¿¡pe¡ Collins, 1988),7ÐJ2.

Discussion QuestionsClarìfuingl. According to tJris letter, why were the Erglisli a

th¡eat to Indians?2. Wliat course of action did Moular.y Syad Shah

believe lndians should take against the English?3. Analgz,ång Cø+ar"s anã, Recogtúzíng Effects

\\4rat connectior¡s, if aoy-- do vou perceivebehveen dre attitudes erpressed in this letter aldthe outb¡eak of the Sepoy Mutiny?

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GEOGRAPHY APPLICATIOñI: MOVEMENT

The Opå;um WørsD¡tect¡ons: Rêad the paragraphs below and study the map carefutly. Then answerthe questions that follow.

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Jn the I700s, Britain began smuggling from lndiaIi¡to China a næcotic knor¡¡¡ as opium ir order toopen Chinese trade ma¡kets. The English had beendesperate to find a product the Chinese would buy.Opium became that product.

The East India Company, the English companychartered to trade in Asi4 opened Chinese trademarkets by addicting tùe Chinese to opium. In thebeginning, the Company kept the distribution ofthe nârcotic to â small amount in order to increasethe price. Àt that tirne, opiurn was a drug used onlyby wealthy Chinese-it was not yet a dmg of ttrec.ommon people. However, in 1819, the Britishbegaa distribu¡ing måssive amormts of opium itrorder to elimi¡rate the cornpetition. Though flood-ing the market temporarily dropped the price, thecheaper púce of the drrg increased the amount of

users. Opium became a recreational drug and cre-aled a vast market of opium addicts.

The British govemment had a vested interest innot only maintaining, but increasing the amount ofopium sold in China. Silver gained Êom the sale ofopium heþed purchase Chinese te4 which theEnglish ilrank by the rnillions-of-gallons every year.The tax on this tea provided the British. govemmentwith ten percent of its revenue.

Britain's expanding sales of opium to Chinacaused the Opium Wa¡ of 1839. China wa¡rted sales

stopped and destroyed an opium shipment atGuangzhou. The British responded by attacking theport cities shown on the map. The war ended in1842 witì a heaty favorable for the victoriousBritish.

lm Itn lm t8æ lm 18411INDIAN O CEAN

Transformations,{round the Globe 77

@Sect¡on f

pRrMARy soutcl frorn Letter to Queen VictoriabyLtnZent

tn 1839 the Qing emperct instrucæd L¡n Zexu, an impoñant Chinese off¡c¡al, toend the opium ttade w¡th Brítain. Un oÌdered a large amount of op¡um se¡zedand pubt¡cly desûoyed and sent d letter to Queen Wdoia about the problems@used by opium. Bñtain refused to stop tad¡ng opium. however, and Brit¡shwaÉh¡ps bdsed in Hong Kong hatbot ¡nitiated the Opium War by aftacking citiesalong the Chinese codst. As you read th¡s excetpt f¡om Lin! Iettett think aboutwhy he opposed the op¡um trade.

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T in, high imperiaì commissione¡ a president ofI ¡tle Board of War. viceroy of tle two Kiang

provinces, &c., Tang, a president of the Board ofWar, viceroy of the two Kwang provinces, &c., andE, a vice-president of the Board of War, lieut.-gov-emor ofKwang-tung &c., hereby conjointly addressthis publlc diqpatch to the queen of England. . . .

We find that your country is distant from usabout sixty or seventy thousand [Chinese] miles,that your foreign ships come hither striving the onewith tìe other for our trade, ard for the sirnple rea-son of tleir strong desire to reap a profft. By whatprincþle of reason then, shouÌd these foreignerssend in rehrrn a poisonous dmg, which involves indesüuction those very natives of China? Withoutneaning to say that the foreigners harbor suchdest¡rctive intentions in thei¡ hearts, we yet posi-tively asse¡t that from their inordinate thirst aftergain, they are perfectþ careless about the injuriesthey in{ict upon us! And such being tle case, weshould like to ask what has become of that con-science which heaven has implanted ;n the b¡eastsof all men?

We have heard thât in your own @untry opiumis prohibited with the utmost strictness a¡rd severi-tyr-this is a strong proof that you larow fulI wellhow hurtful it is to mankind. Since then you do notpermit it to irjure your own country, you ought notio have the injurious drug transferred to anothercountry and above all others, how much less to theInner La¡rd! Of the products wbich China exportsto your foreþ countries, there is not one which isnot beneÊcial to marùind in sorne shape or other. . . .

On the other hand, the things that corne from yourforeign coultries are only caìculated to make pres-ents of, or sewe for mere amusement. It is quiiethe same to us if we have tlem, or if we have them

not. If then these a¡e of no material consequenceto us of the Inner Land, what diffìculty would therebe in prohibiting and shutting our market againstthem? . . .

Our celestiaì empire rules over ten thousandhngdomsl Most surely do we possess a measure ofgodlike majesty which ye camot fathom! Still wecannot bear to slay or exterminate witlout previous\Ã'ârnhg, and it is for t}is reason tìat we now clear-ly make knor,rn to you the ffxed laws of ou¡ land. Ifthe foreign merchants ofyour said honorable nationdesi¡e to continue their cornmercial intercourse,they then must tremblingly obey our recordedstatutes, they must cut off for ever the source fromwhich the opiun flows, and on no accou¡t make a¡reqreriment of our laws in their oum persons! . . .

Let your highness imrnediatd upon tle receiptof this commurrication, inform us prompdy ofthestate of matters, and of the measure you are pursu-ing utterly to put a stop to the opium evil. Pleaselet your reply be speedy. Do not on any acmuntmale excuses or procrastinate. A most importantcommunicâtion.

from Thz Chiwse Bepository Vol, I (February 1840),497J03. Reprinted iû Peter N. Stearns, ed. , Docl¿r'nøús ir1,

Worlil His.t<n1, Vol. II (New York Haqrer CollinsPublishen, 1988), 55-58.

Discussion QuestionsCloríÍgò"C1. According to Lin, what was Britain's motivation

for trading opium?2. Why did Lin oppose the opium üade with Britain?3. Møkìng Inferen¿øs What does Lin's letter

reveal about Chinai attitudes toward foreignersand Western influence?

Transformations A¡or¡nd tle Globe 79