殘本此
建百
之法理
心猛烈
殘忍之
張張 四提舉濟貧法 由上所言可見卑服非鍋鍋立貧人似非常强大社 不以甘受調濟爲如此則畏葸幾希失望之人不愁絶望又不患無慮偷閒之輩渐樂流爲無願之徒但如此之非人手所可立者必須先 本由以 語此等道理卑職心甚悅服與之符合故理香港窮窘之濟貧之法最妙莫如便百姓自行施濟盡力維持但國家須用所有之權宜例安理。 建屋宇之資如此之會可察窮窘人之景况實爲有補但無庸官支俸只須有萱望之殷戶踴躍輸識耳如此之會足使棍徒莫展其狡又使 百姓自行施濟情事且用國家資財助彼周邮之項故香港應特立者即華人受理濟貧會按該會卽華人自行勸捐樂助而國家亦可以創 此情事 國家可讓則必讓百姓自司施濟之職卽分別某欸確是劬勞及某款不是等語値又云國家斷莫能分別貧人中爲邁當孰爲不堪者等 菱蓋如 彼雖聲名狠藉卑職亦未肯詔美理所陳人必信爲全璧但照患意確知他在食貨總要一書第五百八十五篇所言不斷莫能摘其瘲云 莫知原 各法本因英國情形而立制故與本港商民大異者不符發明此事諒或不難竊甲職愚意夫理所陳之道非謂操全璧之權咸富信服者是以
事而來
窮窘之
望者數位爲公局之基而商以國家所欲知者如此之人國家宜尊重之照華人規矩使彼有榮兼之彼與國家商所有華人窮窘求濟事 長之處而使凡有辛勤明敏仁愛者莫不叨榮故欲勸本港華民自立安理濟貧會照卑職所陳腐見 督憲大人以爲可否卽立華人之有聲 有殷戶有聲望善品之人自樂以此爲已任者而後可照卑職愚見凡國家治理本土人應以人心趨向爲要然後教使日上卽推尊其所有善
使創
constantly occurring in Hongkong, and of cases of persons found dead, is to be laid at the door
of this brute deterrent policy in dealing with destitution.
4.--Remedies Suggested.
As will be seen from the preceding remarks,
I neither recommend the introduction of a Poor
Law and compulsory Poor Rates, nor direct assumption by the State of the work of dispens-
ing public charity. It could easily be shown
that many of the canons of English Political
Economy, based as they are on the state of things
which the United Kingdom presents, are inappli-
cable to the different conditions of commerce and
society in this Colony. I am therefore by no
means prepared to accept even JOHN STUART
MILL as an infallible authority. Nevertheless
I am also persuaded that he is incontrovertibly right in saying (Principles of Political Economy, People's Edition, p. 585) that “what the State may and should abandon to private charity is the
task of distinguishing between one case of real necessity and another," and that "the State
cannot undertake to discriminate between the deserving and the undeserving indigent." In harmony with this principle I would recommend that the remedy for Hongkong destitution be left in the main to private charity and to voluntary effort, but that the Government should do every- thing in its power to organize by law private charity which may then be supplemented by State aid: What Hongkong specially needs therefore is a “Chinese Charity Organization Society” which would raise funds by voluntary subscrip- tions, supplemented if need be by the Government for constructional purposes at first; which would subject destitutes to a vigilant and beneficial
scrutiny, not by paid Inspectors but by voluntary workers of social position and wealth; which would render fraud impossible and relief unpala- table and thus neither discourage the faint-hearted and despairing, nor suffer the inprovident and idle to lapse into contented pauperism. Such a Society, however, can of course not be created artificially. It requires men of wealth and posi- tion, men of character and influence, men who have love and vocation for such work. But in my opinion it is the duty of a Government deal- ing with native races to take advantage of native virtues and educate them up to a higher level by encouraging and drawing out every good tendency and giving countenance to deserving
แ
men of energy, intelligence and humane feeling.
The best way of encouraging the Chinese in the Colony to establish of their own accord such a Charity Organization Society " as I recommend,
would be for His Excellency the Governor at once to appoint a certain number of influential Chinese gentlemen as a first nucleus of a “Com- mittee of Referees." They should be recognized
as such by the Government, honoured in native style, and trusted to advise the Government in all cases of appeal made by individual Chinese desti- tutes, to investigate such cases, to deal with them discriminately and to afford relief so as to