45
words, to return to the question we put earlier: how representative was the electorate in terms of numbers for the total (foreign) population of the settlement?
For this we have to rely on scattered figures. Even for the years up to 1865, which I have examined carefully, it is very hard to obtain the necessary data. But apart from details the trend is clear. In 1855 the total foreign population of the Settlement was 2434, while the number of landrenters, all of whom then had the vote, was 107.35 Thus this would mean that 44% of the foreigners were entitled to vote.
Eighty years later in 1935, foreigners numbered 38,940 whereas there were 3,852 voters, roughly ten percent. So, although we should bear in mind that in 1935 there were many more children included in the total population number than there were in 1855, with the result that the figure for the potential politically active population should be lower and the figure of 10% somewhat higher, it is nevertheless evident that only a small proportion of foreign residents was eligible for the vote. Far less at any rate than in the 1850s and this notwithstanding the fact that land and house values had gone up very considerably; this could only mean that many foreigners still did not reach the very high standards set by the Land Regulations.
Throughout the history of the Settlement the Chinese who constituted the vast majority of the population were not allowed to exercise the vote at Public Meetings or for the election of the Municipal Council as was of course the case in many countries which enjoyed full colonial status. The reasons for Chinese disenfranchisement have already been quoted from the succinct statement by consul Alcock, but it should be added that only at a very late stage did part of the Chinese population become dissatisfied with their not being represented on the Municipal Council and their inability to take part in elections. Later I shall devote some more attention to efforts to secure Chinese representation on the Municipal Council, to which body we must now turn our attention.
The Municipal Council
Like the Public Meeting, the origins of the executive branch