This article presents annotated translations of two long poems by leading Chinese literati of the eighteenth century who both happened to find themselves in Guangzhou in the fall of 1770, on the eve of the official dissolution of the Co-hong. Zhang Jiuyue’s 張九鉞 (1721-1803) poem Ballad on the Foreign Hongs (Fanhang pian 番行篇) provides a description of the Guangzhou water front and the interactions of Westerners and Chinese, while Zhao Yi’s 趙翼 (1727-1814) The Foreign Vessel (Fanbo 番舶) provides a detailed description of a Western square-rigged vessel and of his interactions with the officers on board of the ship. In their conclusions both authors give their opinion on foreign trade: whereas the unemployed Zhang Jiuyue urges the foreign merchants to return next year, the local prefect Zhao Yi insists on strict control of the foreigners because “the energy of these people is very volatile,” and “treasonous people secretly conspire with them.” Verbal echoes between the concluding sections suggest that the two poems were written on the same occasion.