Product Description
General Books publication date: 2009Original publication date: 1843Original Publisher: Saunders and OtleySubjects: ChinaGreat BritainHistory / Asia / GeneralHistory / Asia / ChinaNotes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free.Excerpt: CHAPTER II.The formation of the Expedition -- Its strength and constitution -- Its departure from India, and arrival at Chusan.It was supposed by Lord Palmerston and the other advisers of her Majesty that the mere presence of a force off the China coast would of itself be sufficient to awe the Chinese, and that they would at once submit to our demands without its becoming necessary to proceed to hostile measures. Contrary, therefore, to the advice of the greatest general of the age, an " army of demonstration" only was directed to proceed to China. This army was formed by her Majesty's 18th, 26th, and 49th regiments, Madras Artillery, and Sappers and Miners, and the Bengal Volunteer corps, in all about 3000 strong. TheEXPEDITION AGAINST CHINA. 11naval portion of the force consisted of three line of battle ships, two frigates, carrying 44 guns, and fourteen other ships, carrying some 28 and some 18 guns. There were also four armed steamers attached to the expedition. With this small force Great Britain had the audacity to suppose she could bring under subjection a nation, an idea of the immense population of which will be gained by the reflection that its present generation (according to Gutzlaff) consists of nearly as many people as have lived in our small island since the creation of the world.So far back as the reign of Queen Elizabeth, when England gained for herself a name never to be erased from history, the highest naval and military commanders concurred in the opinion... ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from GeneralBooksClub.com. You can also preview excerpts from the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Volume: 1; Original Published by: A. Constable & Co., Ltd. in 1903 in 458 pages; Subjects: China; Peninsular War, 1807-1814; Sikh War, 1845-1846; Sikh War, 1848-1849; History / Asia / China; History / Europe / France; History / Military / General; History / Military / Other; ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism since 1450, brought to you by Gale®, a part of Cengage Learning, a world leader in e-research and educational publishing for libraries, schools and businesses.The length of the article is 1273 words.The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase.You can view it with any web browser.The Encyclopedia of Western Colonialism since 1450 provides students and researchers with a much-needed, comprehensive resource on the subject of colonialism and expansion. From a global perspective, the set traces many facets of colonial growth and imperialism, including Europe's overseas expansion into the Americas, Asia, Africa and the Pacific, beginning in the 15th century; the collapse of empires; race relations in decolonized regions; and current examples of continuing dependence by much of the developing world on Western nations (often former colonial powers themselves). In addition, a number of articles address the ideology and theories behind colonialism and imperialism, as well as the major and controversial issues at the core of the debate on colonialism and its consequences, such as Apartheid in South Africa, the Maji Mahi Revolt, and the Minas Gerais Conspiracy. ... Read more

Product Description
Mark Twain once famously said "there was but one solitary thing about the past worth remembering, and that was the fact that it is past and can't be restored."  Well, over recent years, The British Library, working with Microsoft has embarked on an ambitious programme to digitise its collection of 19th century books.

There are now 65,000  titles available  (that's an incredible 25 million pages) of material ranging from works by famous names such as  Dickens, Trollope and Hardy as well as many forgotten literary gems , all of which can now be printed on demand and purchased right here on Amazon.

Further information on The British Library and its digitisation programme can be found on The British Library website. ... Read more

Product Description
Some periods in history are best illuminated by the stories of the people who lived through them. This is one such story ? the bizarre but true account of Peter Hui, a man involved with scandal, corruption, drugs, pirates, triads and colonial high society; who collaborated with the Japanese, spied on the Communists and fought with American servicemen on R&R; who really did, for a short time, own all the opium in Hong Kong. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

How Much Is Truth and How Much Is Fiction?
The nagging question I was left with after reading Jonathan Chamberlain's King Hui: The Man Who Owned All The Opium In Hong Kong was how much was truth and how much was a figment of one man's vivid imagination.

I noticed that even the publisher cautions us stating: "This book reflects the memories of the man known as Peter Hui, or Hui Shen-kei. These memories may not be accurate."

While the author informs us in his introduction that the general consensus among the European community was that you couldn't believe everything Peter told you, as he would say anything to get you to buy him a drink. And as we discover, drinking was one of Peter's favorite pastimes. However, Chamberlain goes on to point out that over the years of listening to Peter there was never any sense of discrepancy or contradiction. In fact, he even set him small subtle tests and he passed all of them and thus he concludes that "he has no doubt at all this is a true story."

The story of Peter Hui, who was not an important man, but according to Chamberlain was a true son of Hong Kong, "a hero in his own way, though most readers will probably see him as an anti-hero."

You can say what you want about Peter however I have to acknowledge he undoubtedly lived an electrifying existence. How could you come to any other conclusion when you have someone who played many characters such as a playboy, gambler, fighter, wartime collaborator with the Japanese, CIA agent, heavy drinker, bribe taker, friend to the rich and poor, father of nine children, restaurant manager, Kung fu hero and a inexhaustible womanizer. He even at one brief time controlled all the opium in Hong Kong.

What is quite apparent about Peter is that from a very young age he understood that in order to survive it was indispensable to have the right associations. He seemed to be acquainted with everybody and saw everything in Hong Kong during the years 1914 until his death in 1993 including the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong and the Communist takeover over Canton. To put it another way, he was quite adept at adapting to any changing situation no matter who was occupying Hong Kong and weather at the time he was poor or rich. However, one of his shortcomings was that he was a terrible spendthrift who didn't understand how to keep money in his pockets. As a result, he often found himself borrowing from his friends.

As for Peter's work philosophy he believed that it was useless to labor twelve hours a day for very little money when he could count on his drinking buddies to booze it up and from whom from time to time he could tap for money. Although Peter believed he did some foolish things in his life and he may have even been corrupt, he never considered himself to be a criminal. He held that fundamentally he was a good person and not evil as he did come to the aid of more people than he harmed.

Unfortunately, Peter wound up broke and what is so tragic was that he was alienated from his own family, as most of his children had shunned him.

Chamberlain does a masterful job of relaying to his readers Peter's voice as he peels away a life that is as incredulous as the world that contained it. Moreover, as he spins his engaging tale, readers get a good taste of the intoxicating good times he enjoyed, while at the same time questioning his priorities and self-interest in not providing more for his family.

Basically, the story is a great yarn, however, I would have liked to have read what others thought of Peter, particularly his close associates and family.

Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor Bookpleasures

An entertaining story from a born raconteur
I won't say, "The story was so gripping that I couldn't put the book down", but the narrative was sufficiently interesting and well told that I read the book over a weekend.

Through the author, the protagonist Peter "King" Hui recounts his life as a disreputable playboy growing up and living in Hong Kong from the 1920s through the 1960s. I say "protagonist" because this oral history resonates with enough hyperbole to qualify as part fiction.

Nevertheless, Hui paints himself as a likable, if not altogether admirable, hero, whose Kung Fu was so stellar that he never lost a fight and whose personality was so magnetic that the normally demure Hong Kong women were fighting to have him.

The story has choice nuggets describing Chinese culture that may be new and surprising to even those who consider themselves "old China hands". Born into a well-off family and attending Hong Kong's best English-language school for locals, Hui interacted with a number of those who subsequently made fortunes or squandered what they had inherited.

It was interesting to note, however, that Hui mentions virtually no connections with any British colonialists - a testament perhaps to the strict racial segregation that lasted in the colony until the late 1960s.

I've already recommended this book to a colleague in Hong Kong and would do so for anyone who knows the city and is interested in both its people and history. ... Read more

Product Description
Surprisingly little has been written about the complicated relationship between opium and China and its people. Opium, State, and Society goes a long way toward illuminating this relationship in the Republican period, when all levels of Chinese society--from peasants to school teachers, merchants, warlords, and ministers of finance--were physically or economically dependent on the drug.

The centerpiece of this study is an investigation of the symbiotic relationship that evolved between opium and the Guomingdang's rise to power in the years 1924-1937.Despite attempts to find other sources of revenue, the Guomindang became increasingly addicted to the tax monies derived from the drug trade prior to the war with Japan. Based solidly on a previously untapped reservoir of archival sources from the People's Republic and Taiwan, this work critically analyzes the complex realities of a government policy that vacillated between prohibition and legalization, and ultimately sought to curtail the cultivation, sale, and consumption of opium through a government monopoly. ... Read more

Product Description
At the beginning of the 19th century, opium was widely used as an everyday remedy for common ailments. By the 1920s, it was classified as a "dangerous drug". In an examination of the social context of drug taking in Victorian England, the book explains this decisive change in attitude. This revised edition examines how and why restrictive policies were put in place in the early decades of the 20th century and reveals fresh perspectives on the motivations which survive in the formation of current drug policies. ... Read more

Product Description