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vants, but although I have applied to many well-informed Chinese to give an ap- proximate number I cannot get them even to form a conjecture, and the Registrar General has been unable to get any approximation either. In the absence of a census it would be impossible to form a notion of their number and the Chinese say that even a census would not be reliable, for the respectable Chinese do not like to speak of their adopted children. They prefer that the adopted children should think that they are natural-born, and obviously the disreputable people would strive to keep from the knowledge of the authorities the nature of the relation existing be- tween themselves and female children who are being reared for an improper life. Therefore any estimates of the number which have been put forward by the various writers on this subject must be regarded as purely conjectural,
Although I have pointed out that Hongkong might be reckoned a suitable place. for the operations of the kidnapping fraternity, nevertheless the checks now in force have made it an undesirable resort for them. The Government has been fully alive to the abuses connected with the system. The Imperial Act 24 and 25 Vict. C. 100 is in force here. In 1873, an Ordinance was passed for protection of women and children, and in 1875 it was found necessary to amend it-see Appendix. In addi- tion to these stringent laws the following existing safeguards are to be noted:
The per-
1o. Increased knowledge on the part of the people of late years.
manent residents know that they have no claim on a child which has been stolen and which they have purchased either for adoption or service under the belief that it was sold by its parents, and they also know the difficulty in escaping from the penalties provided by the law against harbouring or receiving or buying or selling knowing the child to have been kidnapped. They also know that by English law the fact of money having been paid to a parent of itself gives no claim to the possession of the child even as against the parent who had received the money.
"
2o. Rewards are given by the Government for the detection of kidnappers, and
by the "Chinese Society for the protection of women and children.' 3°. The system of photographing for purposes of identification in order to pre- vent personation of registered prostitutes and women and children who pass the Emigration office, and the promulgation of the fact that such a system exists.
4°. Every registered prostitute gets a paper in Chinese telling her of her free- dom and every room in every brothel has a notice affixed like the one annexed. (See Appendix).
The frequency with which steamers leave the Colony for Singapore and Penang led to much kidnapping of both young girls and women and children. Children were easily passed as those of Chinese returning to Singapore. Girls too and women. were said to be personated before the Emigration Officer. Others who had been de- coyed were said to be put on board the steamer when the vessel was about to start. Other frauds of substitution were frequently reported. Having found the system of photographs very successful in preventing personation in the registered brothels the Government, on my recommendation last year adopted the same system with refer- ence to women and children about to emigrate. The system with intending emig- rants is as follows: A woman or child takes each two photographs to the Emigration Officer. He enquires as to their freedom. If they are passed one photograph is stamped, the name inscribed on it, and it is numbered. It is given to the emigrant. Duplicates are filed at the office and are preserved for three months. Any one who loses a child, wife, or sister can go to the Emigration Office and inspect the Albums. If the missing one is on board a telegram is generally sent to the Singapore Govern- ment asking that inquiries should be made. By an arrangement with this Govern- ment the Straits Government requires every woman and child to produce the stamped photograph, and the officer there would immediately detect the person presenting a wrong one. The Po Leung Kuk write on the 13th September, 1882, (See Re- gistrar General's letter of the 19th submitting a translation):-"We are of opinion that since its adoption (i.e., photographing brothel inmates) the number of young