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1林则徐致英国维多利亚女王信CommissionerLin:LettertoQueenVictoria,1839【Lin,highimperialcommissioner,apresidentoftheBoardofWar,viceroyofthetwoKeängprovinces,&c.,Tang,apresidentoftheBoardofWar,viceroyofthetwoKwangprovinces,&c.,andE.,avice-presidentoftheBoardofWar,lieut.-governorofKwangtung,&c.,herebyconjointlyaddressthispublicdispatchtothequeenofEnglandforthepurposeofgivingherclearanddistinctinformation(onthestateofaffairs)&c.FromSsuyuTengandJohnFairbank,China'sResponsetotheWest,(CambridgeMA:HarvardUniversityPress,1954),repr.inMarkA.Kishlansky,ed.,SourcesofWorldHistory,VolumeII,(NewYork:HarperCollinsCollegePublishers,1995),pp.266-69LinTse-Hsu(1785-1850)wastheChineseCommissionerinCantonwhoseactionsprecipitatedtheOpiumWars(1839-1842).AlthoughopiumwasusedinChinaforcenturies,itwasnotuntiltheopeningoftheteatradetoDutchandBritishmerchantsthatChinawasabletoimportlargequantitiesofthedrug.BytheearlynineteenthcenturyopiumwastheprincipalproductthattheEnglishEastIndiaCompanytradedinChinaandopiumaddictionwasbecomingawidespreadsocialproblem.Whentheemperor'sownsondiedofanoverdose,hedecidedtoputanendtothetrade.LinTse-Hs?wassent.toCanton,thechieftradingportoftheEastIndiaCompany,withinstructionstonegoiateanendtotheimportationofopiumintoChina.TheEnglishmerchantswereuncooperative,soheseizedtheirstoresofopium.Thisledtoimmediatemilitaryaction.TheChineseweredecisivelydefeatedandhadtocedetoahumiliatingtreatythatlegalizedtheopiumtrade.AsaresultcommissionerLinwasdismissedfromofficeandsentintoexile.】1洪惟我大皇帝抚绥中外，一视同仁，利则与天下公之，害则为天下去之。盖以天地之心为心也。贵国王累世相传，皆称恭顺。Itisonlyourhighandmightyemperor,whoalikesupportsandcherishesthoseoftheInnerLand,andthosefrombeyondtheseas-wholooksuponallmankindwithequalbenevolence---who,ifasourceofprofitexistsanywhere,diffusesitoverthewholeworld---who,ifthetreeofeviltakesrootanywhere,plucksitupforthebenefitofallnations;---who,inaword,hathimplantedinhisbreastthatheart(bywhichbeneficentnatureherself)2governstheheavensandtheearth!You,thequeenofyourhonorablenation,situponathroneoccupiedthroughsuccessivegenerationsbypredecessors,allofwhomhavebeenstyledrespectfulandobedient.观历次进贡表文云：凡本国人到中国贸易，均蒙大皇帝一体公平恩待等语。窃喜贵国王深明大义，感激天恩，是以天朝柔远绥怀，倍加优礼。贸易之利，垂二百年。该国所由以富庶称者，赖有此也。Lookingoverthepublicdocumentsaccompanyingthetributesent(byyourpredecessors)onvariousoccasions,wefindthefollowing:Allthepeopleofmycountry,arrivingattheCentralLandforpurposesoftrade,havetofeelgratefultothegreatemperorforthemostperfectjustice,forthekindesttreatment,andotherwordstothateffect.Delighteddidwefeelthatthekingsofyourhonorablenationsoclearlyunderstoodthegreatprinciplesofpropriety,andweresodeeplygratefulfortheheavenlygoodness(ofouremperor):---therefore,itwasthatweoftheheavenlydynastynourishedandcherishedyourpeoplefromafar,andbestoweduponthemredoubledproofsofoururbanityandkindness.Itismerelyfromthesecircumstances,thatyourcountry---derivingimmenseadvantagefromitscommercialintercoursewithus,whichhasendurednowtwohundredyears---hasbecometherichandflourishingkingdomthatitissaidtobe!2唯是通商已久，众夷良莠不齐，遂有夹带，诱惑华民，以致毒流各省者。似此但知利己，不顾害人，乃天理所不容，人情所共愤。大皇帝闻而震怒。特遣本大臣来至广东，与本总督部堂巡抚部院，会同查办。But,duringthecommercialintercoursewhichhasexistedsolong,amongthenumerousforeignmerchantsresortinghither,arewheatandtares,goodandbad;andoftheselatteraresome,who,bymeansofintroducingopiumbystealth,haveseducedourChinesepeople,andcausedeveryprovinceofthelandtooverflowwiththatpoison.Thesethenknowmerelytoadvantagethemselves,theycarenotaboutinjuringothers!Thisisaprinciplewhichheaven'sProvidencerepaginates;andwhichmankindconjointlylookuponwithabhorrence!Moreover,thegreatemperorhearingofit,actuallyquiveredwithindignation,andespeciallydispatchedme,thecommissioner,toCanton,thatinconjunctionwiththeviceroyandlieut.-governoroftheprovince,meansmightbetakenforitssuppression!凡内地民人贩食者，皆应处死。若追究夷人历年贩卖之罪，则其贻害深而攫利重，本为法所当诛。惟念众夷尚知悔罪乞诚，将趸船二万二百八十三3箱，由领事官义律，禀请缴收，全行毁化。叠经本大臣等据实具奏。幸蒙大皇帝格外施恩，以自首者，情尚可原，姑宽免罪。EverynativeoftheInnerLandwhosellsopium,asalsoallwhosmokeit,arealikeadjudgedtodeath.Werewethentogobackandtakeupthecrimesoftheforeigners,who,bysellingitformanyyearshaveinduceddreadfulcalamityandrobbedusofenormouswealth,andpunishthemwithequalseverity,ourlawscouldnotbutawardtothemabsoluteannihilation!But,consideringthatthesesaidforeignersdidyetrepentoftheircrime,andwithasincereheartbegformercy;thattheytook20,283chestsofopiumpiledupintheirstore-ships,andthroughElliot,thesuperintendentofthetradeofyoursaidcountry,petitionedthattheymightbedelivereduptous,whenthesamewereallutterlydestroyed,ofwhichwe,theimperialcommissionerandcolleagues,madeadulypreparedmemorialtohismajesty;---consideringthesecircumstances,wehavehappilyreceivedafreshproofoftheextraordinarygoodnessofthegreatemperor,inasmuchashewhovoluntarilycomesforward,mayyetbedeemedafitsubjectformercy,andhiscrimesbegraciouslyremittedhim.再犯者法难屡贷，立定新章。谅贵国王向化倾心，定能谕令众夷，兢兢奉法。但必晓以利害，乃知天朝法度，断不可以不懔遵也。Butasforhimwhoagainknowinglyviolatesthelaws,difficultindeedwillitbethustogoonrepeatedlypardoning!Heortheyshallalikebedoomedtothepenaltiesofthenewstatute.Wepresumethatyou,thesovereignofyourhonorablenation,onpourin