Expanding Possibilities 349
They are often ofβicial compilations that offer only scattered, but
nonetheless indispensable information about the junk trade. In the
matter of the Chinese junk trade in the Nanyang in the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries, western eyewitness accounts or reports are the
most informative materials because they were recorded by ofβicials or
observers who had βirst-hand contacts with the traders in the markets.
Those who can cross the language barrier and afford the time will want
to consult the various archives of western trading companies that were
present in Southeast Asia and trading to Canton in the seventeenth
and eighteenth centuries. These company records also contain original
Chinese correspondence relating to the trade transactions in Canton.
For the βirst half of the nineteenth century, contemporary western
accounts given by observers on the spot provide valuable information.
Writings often cited in the past are the works by John Crawfurd that
offer glimpses of the Chinese junk trade during this period. Crawfurd
published two books in 1820 and 1828. He also left behind important
ofβicial documents relating to his mission to Siam in 1822. Born in 1783,
John Crawfurd became a medical doctor. During the British occupation of
Java from 1811 to 1816, he served as British Resident at the Court of the
Sultan of Yogyakarta. Upon his return to England in 1817, he penned his
three-volume work, History of the Indian Archipelago that he published in
1820.^3 The book recorded his investigation into the affairs of the Malay
Archipelago during his service in Java. In 1821 he was appointed envoy
on a mission to the Courts of Siam and Cochin China. His journal on
the mission appeared in book form in 1828 and 1830.^4 The documents
relating to his mission to Siam were published in Bangkok in 1915.^5
Crawfurd took up another ofβicial appointment as Resident to Singapore
from 1823 to 1826.^6 Being a keen observer, in some parts of his two books
and papers he is able to reveal valuable sources of information about
the Chinese junk trade in Southeast Asia. As a highly qualiβied expert on
eastern affairs, John Crawfurd was called in for consultation by the Select
3. John Crawfurd, History of the Indian Archipelago (3 vols.; orig., 1820; reprint,
London: Frank Cass & Co. Ltd, 1967).
4. John Crawfurd, Journal of the Embassy to the Courts of Siam and Cochin China
(orig., 1828; reprint, Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press, 1967).
5. John Crawfurd, The Crawfurd Papers: A Collection of Ofϔicial Records relating to
the Mission of Dr. John Crawfurd sent to Siam by the Government of India in the
Year 1821 (Bangkok: National Library, 1915).
6. For John Crawfurd’s bio-data, see David Wyatt, “‘Introduction’ to John Crawfurd”,
Journal of the Embassy (1967 ed.).