The Opium Tribunals
Premise –
The year is 1841 and the First Opium War has begun but hasn’t reached a critical level yet. This tribunal
has been called by the Qing Government in an effort to raise awareness of British actions and try to
deescalate the conflict. The tribunal will be held in Canton (Guangzhou). Despite the ongoing war,
China is so sure of its case that it has invited Great Britain to defend itself against the charges in an open
inquest set up exactly like an American court. If it wins, China will propose to the rest of the world the
setting up of an international court, one which all countries would be subject to.
A tribunal is different from a trial because it does not find guilt or innocence. It simply decides whether
there is enough evidence for a trial to be held.
Procedure –
- Opening Statements – Statements made by the advocates of the parties involved
(2 Minutes each max.)
- Examination/Cross-examination of the Witnesses for the Prosecution
(5 minutes per witness max.)
- Examination/Cross-examination of the Witnesses for the Defense
(5 minutes per witness max.)
- Closing Statements – Statements made by the advocates of the parties involved
(4 Minutes each max.)
Characters/Roles –
You will be playing the different roles of the tribunal. Each character/role will have different
responsibilities which will be laid out in more detail in the character sheets. Here are the different roles
in this tribunal.
- Judge –
- Jury members –
- Advocates for Great Britain –
- Advocates for Qing China –
- Witnesses for Great Britain –
- Witnesses for Qing China–
Captain Charles Elliot
Commissioner Lu Kun
Medical Doctor
Commissioner Lin Zexu
Importation Officer from Jardine and Matheson
Daughter of Hong Guild Member
Charges against the British –
- Enticement of Chinese People with intent to do harm
- Coveting of Profit with disregard to injury to others
- Manslaughter
- Disrespect of the Chinese Emperor
- Smuggling of Opium
Charges against the Chinese –
- Coveting of Profit with disregard to injury to others
- Manslaughter
- Disrespect to the British Monarch
- Smuggling of Opium
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Character Sheets/Personalities –
- Judge The judge’s duty is to ensure an impartial trial and preserve the rights of the plaintiff, defendant, and
witnesses during the trial. The judge also serves as a guide for the jury during their deliberations.
- Jury members Jury members will listen to the testimony given and pass judgment on the plaintiff’s charges against the
defendant. Jury members are to remain impartial and fair. They should solely rely on the testimony
given by the witnesses.
- Advocates for Great Britain Work with your witness to create a list of questions that you will ask your witness and an opposing
witness during the trial. Remember that your goal is to show that there is not enough evidence to
persuade the jury that Great Britain is guilty of the charges brought against them. You should try to
create questions that will get you answers that help you convince the jury of your position. Work with the
other lawyers and their witnesses as a team over the weekend. If you work together, you can make a
much stronger case, increasing the chances that your side will win!
- Advocates for Qing China Work with your witness to create a list of questions that you will ask your witness and an opposing
witness during the trial. Remember that your goal is to show that there is enough evidence to persuade the
jury that Great Britain is guilty of the charges brought against them. You should try to create questions
that will get you answers that help you convince the jury of your position. Work with the other
prosecutors and their witnesses as a team. If you work together, you can make a much stronger case,
increasing the chances that your side will win!
- Witnesses Work with your advocates to create a list of questions that you will be asked during the trial. Your goal is
to help your lawyer or prosecutor convince the jury of his/her position through your answers. You may be
asked questions during the inquest for which you do not have a prepared answer. In such cases, you will
need to make up something on the spot. You can say whatever you like, but there is one very important
rule: you must stick to all the facts given in your written statement. That means that you will need to
know the information in your statement like you know what happened in your own life yesterday. Study
it often over the weekend, along with the questions you will be asked and your answers to them. Next
week you will not be you, you will be that witness! If you say something different from what’s in your
written statement, you could be accused of lying, which will hurt the case of the advocate and could
result in punishments/fines for you.
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Objections
Here is the list of objections that you will be able to use during this trial. This list will identify what the
different objections are so that you, as a lawyer, can use the effectively during the trial.
- Hearsay
As a lawyer you can use this to object to a line of questioning that the witness has no way of knowing the
answer to.
Example: The British lawyers are asking the Daughter of the Hong Guild Merchant if the British
Monarch was offended by the Hong Guild system. She has no access to the British Monarch. She doesn’t
live in Britain. She has no way of knowing this information.
Here is an example of a question that the character can know. If the lawyers ask her father’s opinion on
opium and the opium trade. She can answer this question because she has access to this information.
What happens if it is sustained?
If this objection is sustained the judge will ask the lawyer to rephrase the question or ask a new question.
- Relevance
As Lawyer you can use this to object to a line of questioning that you can’t find a reason why they are
asking the question. The idea behind this is to stop people from wasting time talking about things that do
not relate to the charges.
Example: The Chinese lawyers start question the Importation Officer from Jardine and Matheson about
the conditions of the workers who are involved in the opium trade in India. There are no charges that this
information can relate to.
What happens if it is sustained?
If this objection is sustained them the judge will ask the witness to get to the point or ask the lawyer to
ask a new question
- Leading
As a lawyer you can use this to object to a line of questioning that is putting word into the mouth of the
witness, the idea behind questioning a witness it to get what their testimony not the lawyer’s opinions.
There are a couple of ways to identify leading questions:
1) The lawyer is doing most of the talking
2) The ideas in the line of questioning are coming from the lawyer not the witness
What happens if it is sustained?
If this objection is sustained the judge will ask the lawyer to rephrase the question.
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Captain Charles Elliot
I was the in command of the British frigates that headed to Canton to retrieve Lord Napier in Canton in 1834.
While in the process of sailing up the Li River my command was attacked not once but twice by Chinese forces in
fortresses. I cannot understand why the forces of the Qing government could possible view three ships as a threat
to their rules of conduct or territorial sovereignty. As we passed the two fortresses at the mouth of the Pearl River
they opened fire upon us. During these unprovoked exchanges with the Chinese fortresses my ships suffered only
light damage due to our maneuvering and their lack of aptitude in cannonry.
After this exchange, I was ordered to continue up the river by Lord Napier. There was one more fortress that
guarded the river and we passed it with trepidation. Early in the afternoon on September 9, the Chinese gunners
opened fire on us from a range of only 200 yards. We fired back in self-defense. After a thirty-five minute
exchange of cannon fire, they had killed two of my seamen, wounded five others. We gave better than we received.
We had destroyed the fortresses batteries putting an end to the danger that this fortress presented to our safety.
We proceeded up the river to retrieve Lord Napier. Commissioner Lu Kun ordered that twelve stone-filled barges
in the Pearl River's main channel between Canton and the fortresses and secured them with heavy rope staked to
the banks. We also had gotten word that he had one hundred fire boats readied for immediate use if needed. These
obstructions closed the river to my ships progress made it nearly impossible for me to reach Lord Napier and my
fellow country trapped in Canton. My three ships were trapped in a twenty mile stretch of the Pearl River between
Canton and the fortresses. Shortly after this we were forced to go back to using the unequal and undignified
system of using the Hong guild merchants as middle men. Lord Napier would die from sickness soon after and I
would replace him. The Chinese forced us to go back to the undignified system of interaction between Britain and
China.
On the morning of March 25, 1839, a new commissioner Lin Zexu decided to start to flex his muscles in a show of
force. He ordered the suspension of all trade with western merchants and surrounded the foreign neighborhood,
building barricades across the streets to prevent Chinese people from visiting the docks. He then informed the
foreign community was being held in detention until the opium trade was suppressed.
I immediately protested Commissioner Lin’s actions towards us. We had the full support of the British
government. We aren’t Chinese. We are British and we should not be bound to obey the racist and unequal laws
of China.
I assured the merchants that their freedom and right to trade in Canton would be fought for and was a great concern
to the British Crown. Commissioner Lin gave us conditions under which we could regain favorable status in the
Emperor’s eyes. First, we had to turn over all of the opium our ships. Second, he forced us to sign a binding
pledge not to bring any more opium to China in the future.
We discussed our situation for a day or two. There was much disunity among the merchants. Not all the trade
firms trade in opium and were more than willing to sign and continue business. Others were more reluctant to give
their property over to this commissioner for it surely would be destroyed. Resulting in great monetary loss. On
March 27, the merchants agreed to surrender their opium through myself. I turned over 20,183 chests of opium
from their store ships. We learned later that this opium was entirely destroyed with lime and other chemical
methods.
Do the Chinese really think that they can continue to treat us in this fashion? There will come a time when the
British will rise against the Chinese. We will put an end to this unfair, racist, and unbalanced system of interaction
with the Chinese.
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Testimony of an opium expert/enthusiast
Opium is derived from seedpods of the opium poppy. Many physicians believe that it is of divine origin; it has
been called the Sacred Anchor of Life, Milk of Paradise, the Hand of God, and Destroyer of Grief. Many famous
writers have praised opium quite dramatically. Some have even said that it is the opium that enables them to do
their best work. Thomas Sydenham, the 17th-century pioneer of English medicine, writes, "Among the remedies
which it has pleased Almighty God to give to man to relieve his sufferings, none is so universal and so efficacious
as opium."
A leading American medical textbook says that opiates “cause a feeling of delicious ease and comfort, with an
elevation of the whole moral and intellectual nature...There is not the same uncontrollable excitement as from
alcohol, but an exaltation of our better mental qualities, a warmer glow of benevolence, a disposition to do great
things, but nobly and beneficently, a higher devotional spirit, and withal a stronger self-reliance, and
consciousness of power. Nor is this consciousness altogether mistaken. For the intellectual and imaginative
faculties are raised to the highest point compatible with individual capacity...Opium seems to make the individual,
for a time, a better and greater man...."
By relieving emotional as well as physical pain, opium has been understandably popular. Unlike other painrelieving agents such as alcohol, opium doesn't impair sensory perception, the intellect or motor co-ordination.
Pain ceases to be threatening, intrusive and distressing; but it can still be sensed and avoided. At lower dosages,
opium may be pleasantly stimulating. The opioids are of inestimable value because they reduce or abolish pain
without causing a loss of consciousness. They also relieve coughs, spasms, fevers and diarrhea.
Youngsters can be introduced to the pleasures of opiates at their mothers' breast. Harassed baby-minders - and
overworked parents – have found that opium-based preparations are a dependable way to keep their kids happy and
docile. Sales of Godfrey's Cordial, a soothing syrup of opium is effective against colic. But Godfrey's Cordial has
its competitors: Street's Infants' Quietness, Atkinson's Infants' Preservative, and Mrs Winslow's Soothing Syrup are
all products that are available.
Opium was also well known in Chinese and other Oriental cultures in antiquity. One 10th century poem celebrates
how the opium poppy can be made into a drink "fit for Buddha". Ancient peoples either ate parts of the flower or
converted them into liquids to drink. By the 7th century, the Turkish and Islamic cultures of western Asia had
discovered that the most powerful medicinal effects could be obtained by igniting and smoking the poppy's
congealed juices; and the habit spread. The widespread use of opium in China dates to tobacco-smoking in pipes
introduced by the Dutch from Java in the 17th century. Whereas Indians ordinarily ate opium, the Chinese smoked
it. The Chinese mixed Indian opium with tobacco, two products traded by the Dutch.
In North America, early settlers dissolved the resin in whisky to relieve coughs, aches and pains. Many
distinguished early Americans grew opium poppies. Thomas Jefferson cultivated them at his garden in Monticello.
Now, with the development of the hypodermic syringe, morphine can be injected. Injecting morphine isn't
addictive. Quitting habitual opium use can cause malaise, flu-like symptoms, and depression; morphine seemed an
excellent cure.
A significant advance in opium-processing occurred in the sixteenth century. Paracelsus created laudanum [literally:
"something to be praised"] by extracting opium into brandy, thus producing, in effect, tincture of morphine. While
it can be habit-forming, vials of laudanum and raw opium are freely available at any English pharmacy or grocery
store. Laudanum is an excellent cure for insomnia.
The British East India Company dominates the Asian opium trade; but they did not create it. "Take your opium"
was a standard greeting in some Indian cities even before the Europeans arrived. Now, of course, the British East
India Company has a virtual monopoly, controlling supply and setting prices. Dealers, merchants and users alike
talk the quality and potency of their merchandise with the enthusiasm of wine connoisseurs.
Opium is a medicine, not a drug of abuse. How is it possible for one to become addicted to a cure?
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Importation Officer from the Firm of Jardine and Matheson
I have been exporting my product to China for seven years now, and until July, my business was quite profitable.
The opium trade is quite lawful, and all parties involved are quite willing participants. My product is raised by
willing farmers in India and harvested by willing workers who are paid. It is processed by willing factories workers
and stored in their warehouse until it is put on ships bound for Guangzhou. It is purchased by willing Hong Guild
Merchants with silver, and these traders then sell it to willing customers. At no point in this entire business is
anyone forced to do anything against his will. In fact, until Commissioner Lin assumed his post, my business faced
no legal resistance from the time the poppy seeds were planted until honorable, law-abiding Chinese citizens used
our product in their preferred manner. In no manner has anyone in the trade ever intended to, or actually, harmed
anyone.
The same cannot be said of the Chinese government’s interference in this trade. Since Commissioner Lin assumed
his duties, it has been China’s intention to drive us out of business and deprive its own citizens of every benefit our
product has to offer. In fact, China demonstrated its criminal intent when it seized my entire stock of 4,000 chests
in July. Commissioner Lin surrounded and barricaded the area where our warehouses are located in Canton
(Guangzhou). My business was effectively wiped out overnight as it could not sustain such a heavy loss from the
destruction of personal property. Farmers and other workers in India have been thrown out of work, my business
has collapsed, some Chinese traders have lost their livelihood, and tens of thousands of Chinese citizens have been
terribly inconvenienced – all because a few moral busybodies have nothing better to do than make scapegoats of
successful foreign traders. It is China who should be on trial here, not Great Britain.
Opium is a high-value commodity for which China was not self-sufficient. British traders have been purchasing
small amounts of opium from India for trade since the mid-sixteenth century. This trade has a long history of
legality and therefore is a legitimate trade commodity. India opium is also a premium product. It commands twice
the price of the domestic Chinese product, which most people regard as inferior in quality. If the Chinese grow it
themselves how can they complain about it being imported?
To further prove the legitimacy of the trade in opium, this trade has been standardized in many ways. There are
proper sizes and standardized means of packaging the opium for sale. Chests of opium are sold in auctions in
Calcutta with the understanding that the independent purchasers would then sell them to whomever they can for
whatever profit they can obtain. It is not illegal or outlawed in any way shape or form in India. In India, opium is
highly prized and is grown freely by farmers and sold in open markets.
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Commissioner Lu Kun
On July 15, 1834 Lord Napier and his party, against the regulations of the Celestial Court, arrived in Macao. When
I received word of the disregard for the Emperors decrees I issued an edict to the Hong merchants on July 21
compelling them to go to Macao immediately to ascertain exactly why this official had come to China, and remind
him of the Trade Regulations and the laws of China. They were ordered to instruct this official that, except for the
merchants, no foreign government officer was permitted to enter Canton until he petitioned for a permit, a report
was made on the matter and the emperor still hadn’t authorized his entry.
Lord Napier then proceed to set sail for Canton on July 23 still disregarding the decrees of the Celestial Court. He
reached Canton on July 25 where his party was met by the British merchant William Jardine and escorted to the
English factory.
On July 26th two representatives of the Hong merchants, arrived with a copy my edict from July 21st. As the two
men announced their intention to present the edict, Napier curtly dismissed them with the explanation that his
instructions directed him to inaugurate a new procedure under which he and his colleagues would deal directly
with the local authorities.
I was appalled at the disrespect for the Emperor and Chinese law that Lord Napier showed. Then he continued his
behavior by preparing a letter to be sent directly to myself announcing his arrival. The document, was titled
"Letter," and not "Petition" as required by the rules.
On July 27, Lord Napier's letter to the Petition Gate in Canton to hand it over for delivery to myself. The Chinese,
in reverence to the Celestial Court would not take possession of the inappropriately titled document. The following
days, on July 30 and July 31, I issued edicts on the developing situation.
In the first edict I ordered Lord Napier out of Canton without allowing him time to conclude his business. The
second edict ordered the Hong merchants to once again explain to Napier the "ways" of the Canton system and
make sure he understood them. The third ordered the Hong merchants, under the threat of death, to ensure Napier's
departure from Canton.
It is my responsibility to maintain the existing regulations, and I have no authority to change or alter them without
government approval than any official in any other country. Lord Napier violated a number of Trade Regulations
during his first two weeks in China: he did not wait in Macao for permission to enter Canton; he moved into the
factory district without permission; he failed to address me by a "petition" through the Hong merchants.
Lord Napier even tried to ignore our demands by having three British ships come and take him away instead of
using Chinese Imperial ships. These ships of war violated our territorial sovereignty and were subsequently
attacked as they approached Canton, Napier showing even more insolence to take on the might of the Chinese
military. Do these barbarians understand that they cannot match the excellence of the Celestial Court.
I issued the following proclamation in response to Napier’s actions, ”We know not how such a dog foreigner of an
outside nation as you, can have the audacious presumption to call yourself Superintendent. Being an outside savage
Superintendent, and a person in an official situation, you should have some little knowledge of propriety and law.
You have passed over ten thousand miles in order to seek a livelihood; you have come to our Celestial Empire to
trade and control affairs; how can you not obey well the regulations of the Empire? According to the laws of the
nation, the Royal Warrant should be respectfully requested to behead you and openly expose your head to the
multitude, as a terror to perverse dispositions."
The British have a sizeable population of merchants who resided and traded in Canton, they do so with permission
of the Celestial Court. They have no arms, no troops, no warships; their position in Canton, some eighty miles from
the open ocean, is secured only by the continued Chinese issuance of that permission. Trade can be suspended at
any time and the barbarians can be thrown out at a word. The Celestial Court will not tolerate the disregard for
Chinese laws and disrespect for the Emperor in all his wisdom and gracious wisdom.
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Commissioner Lin Zexu
I have sent many letters to the Monarch of Great Britain spelling out the case of the Celestial Court to sooth and
pacify Chinese anger and to demonstrate His wisdom and restraint to the barbarian nations. It has been received
with graciousness and with knowledge of the wisdom that the Celestial Court shares with the peoples of the world
in all his benevolence.
The troubles with the opium trade have been manifest for many years preceding my commissionership and the
decree to end this infernal trade that brings destruction and ruin to all of those who take part. His Majesty the
Emperor in his towering rage sent me to investigate and settle this matter of the illegal and vile opium trade.
When I first came to Canton (Guangzhou) from Hubei province I came to understand that among the barbarians
there are both good persons and bad, unevenly. There are those who smuggle opium to seduce the Chinese people
and so cause the spread of the poison to all provinces. Such persons who only care to profit themselves, and
disregard their harm to others, are cannot be tolerated by the Celestial Court.
In my investigations I trace the crime of those barbarians who through the years have been selling opium, then the
deep harm they have wrought and the great profit they have usurped should fundamentally justify their execution
according to law. In finding the source of the vile import we took reasonable steps to rid the Celestial Kingdom of
its presence to relieve the towering rage of the Celestial Court.
On the morning of March 25, 1839, I demonstrated the Celestial Courts determination to end this vile trade. I
ordered the suspension of all trade with western merchants and surrounded the foreign neighborhood, building
barricades across the streets to prevent Chinese people from visiting the docks. I then informed the foreign
community that it was being held in detention until the opium trade was suppressed and they turned over all opium
in their possession. Captain Charles Elliot protested the treatment of his countrymen. The merchants, Elliot
asserted, were not bound to obey the laws of China. Suppose a man of another country comes to England to trade,
he still has to obey the English laws; how much more should he obey in China the laws of the Celestial Dynasty?
As for the barbarian merchants who come to China, their food and drink and habitation, all received by the
gracious favor of our Celestial Court. Their accumulated wealth is all benefit given with pleasure by our Celestial
Court. They spend rather few days in their own country but more time in Canton. I assured the merchants that their
freedom and right to trade in Canton could be gained under certain terms. First, they must turn over all of the
opium concealed aboard their ships. Second, they must sign a binding pledge not to bring any more opium to
China in the future. Until these requirements were met, the foreigners would not be permitted to purchase any tea,
rice, or silk for export.
On March 27, the barbarian merchants agreed to surrender their opium through Captain Elliot. 20,183 chests of
opium from their store ships were turned over. This cache of opium was entirely destroyed and this has been
faithfully reported to the Throne.
In response to these events the Celestial Court has decreed that the following laws be put in force. In regard to
those barbarians who bring opium to China with design to sell shall most assuredly be decapitated, and the
accessories strangled; and all property (found on board the same ship) shall be confiscated. The space of a year and
a half is granted, within which, if anyone bringing opium by mistake can voluntarily step forward and deliver it up,
he shall be absolved from all consequences of his crime. In regard to Chinese people; he who sells opium shall
receive the death penalty and he who smokes it also the death penalty.
I have given this opium trade much thought and here is my conclusion; if the barbarians do not bring opium, then
how can the Chinese people resell it, and how can they smoke it? The fact is that the wicked barbarians trick the
Chinese people into a death trap. How then can we grant life only to these barbarians? He who takes the life of
even one person still has to atone for it with his own life; yet is the harm done by opium limited to the taking of
one life only?
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Daughter of Hong Guild Member
I remember the first time I saw what opium did to people. One morning I went to visit my cousin who was a barber.
In our innocence and naughtiness another cousin and I challenged each other to have a peep at the opium den and
the addicts there. She and I managed to climb the rickety wooden stair case and looked into a huge room which
was partially dark but smoky and smelly. With our hearts beating, hands sweating and our temples throbbing, we
took in the scenario. Against the morning sunlight, I could see smoke twirling up in the room with only one very
old man lying down on a huge day opium bed. There was a small lamp next to him. His pillow was the traditional
bamboo block. He had a long pipe in his right hand and one of his very thin legs was folded at ninety degrees to his
other leg. He was clad in pajama bottoms only. He was definitely drumming on his thigh happily and having
hallucinations. We stayed for just one long minute, which seemed to be eternity to me, to absorb this horrible sight.
We then ran all the way to my cousin's shop. My heart was literally in my mouth.
When we told my cousin what we had seen, he just looked at us and said, "What is there to see? Bad, bad, bad...no
use, no use....waste, waste" and shook his head. He did not say anything else. I suppose his response was a kind of
hopelessness towards addiction. In my youthfulness I could not imagine myself wasting away like that, with a pipe
in hand and spindly legs sticking out from pajamas...Perhaps that scene helped me become a strong woman who
has never touched any drug at all.
Father was very happy the day he was appointed a part of the Hong merchants. Our lifestyle grew considerably
better from him attaining this position. Every so often father would get a letter from the barbarians and would have
to deliver it to the commissioners. He said that his duties were hard but he liked the prestige he gained and our
family especially liked the material gifts that father received. Father started make more deals and every so often
would receive large chests that contained a black ball like objects. He would never tell us what they were. I was
afraid to ask because he grew cross when I was too curious. Life was good until 1834.
Life got harder in 1834, father grew upset because he said that the British were not obeying the commands of the
Emperor. He was afraid that their insolence would cause problems for him. He was called in front of
Commissioner Lu and was threatened with death if he didn’t find a way to escort a British man who had entered
China without permission. He was so frightened that he was shaking with fear. Father was never the same after
this. Imagine my horror, then, when I discovered a few months later that my father was frequenting the same
establishment I visited out of curiosity, rather than going to work.
Soon, things began to disappear from our house. At first, it was just little things, but as time went on, this became
impossible for anyone to ignore. Not only had he pawned almost everything of value, but he began drinking
heavily, gambling, and frequenting brothels, and he soon contracted a venereal disease. My grandmother offered
him money to try to get him to behave, but he carried on as before. He brought much disgrace to our family.
My father had always been a self-disciplined man, with a strong sense of morality, and it was most unlike him to
let himself go in this way. He began to visibly waste away, and he died not long after I turned 19.
How can the foreign devils force this poison on my family and friends? Have they no conscience or sense of
morality? They are responsible for the death of my father and the impoverishment of my family. The opium traders
are no better than murderous thieves and should be treated as such.
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