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Mr. Wilcox.-Does he guarantee the boy and other domestic servants ?
A. Every one."
Mr. Badeley. Do you know what wages are paid by other people in Queen's Gardens ?
A.-Some are paying nine and-a-half dollars, I think Messrs. Siebs and Harling are living next door to each other and the one pays higher wages than the other.
Mr. Wilcox.-Why?
A. Nobody knows why. They don't know themselves.
The Chairman. You mean one house raises its prices and the other house has to go one better? It is like a game of poker.
A.--In Queen's Gardens the coolies once asked for higher wages and Mr. Hancock came and said "Don't pay higher wages because the whole terrace will have to pay higher wages,' The above mentioned two houses under the same roof have to pay
different wages and they don't know why.
Q. Are they aware of the fact?
A. Yes.
LO SZ declared :-
The Chairman.-What are you?
A.-I am a sort of coolie. I go to Yaumati daily and get some earth work to do, and besides that I do some private trading business of my own.
Q-Where do you live?
A.-My family house is in Gough Street.
Q.-Do
you live in a lodging-house?
A.--I keep a lodging or coolie house at No. 20, Gough Street.
Q.-But you don't live there?
A.—No, I don't live there. I live in my family house.
Q. How many storeys is the house No. 20, Gough Street?
A.-Four, including the cock loft.
Q.-There is a basement?
A. No, there is no basement floor, but there is a ground floor.
Q.-Ground floor, first, second and third floors. The third floor is the cockloft.
Do
you
rent the whole house ?
A. Only the ground floor.
Q.--And you use it as a coolie lodging-house?
A. Yes.
Q.--How long have you rente
A.-About twenty years.
at as a coolie house?
Q.-Five years ago how many coolies used to live in that basement?
A. The most was 24 coolies.