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CORRESPONDENCE.
[We do not hold ourselves responsible for the opinions expressed by our correspondents.]
THE STUDY OF THE CHINESE LANGUAGE IN HONGKONG.
*
TO THE EDITOR OF THE "DAILY PRESS.' SIR-I would be glad for space to offer a suggestion as to the teaching of the Chinese language in Hongkong. Many of the police, sanitary staff, and others have to take up this language, but beyond offering money rewards to those who pass an examination there is no- thing done to aid students in acquiring this language.
one
2-I beg to offer this suggestion. I think that one of the qualified English masters at Colonial the Victoria College should be named Professor of Chinese," and in addition to the appointment he holds at the College, he should twice each year, say in November and March, give a brief course of twelve lectures as to say "How to study Chinese," and to give a general outline of the construction of the language.
3-I am of course well aware that to learn Chinese
must have a personal teacher as at present, but I think many difficulties to beginners could be cleared away and much lost time saved if the colonial authorities placed some responsible person in the position I suggest, and that he would explain to those anxious to learn the language what they should do and what they should not do in acquiring this difficult language.
4-Perhaps a small fee should be charged for all persons attending such a course of lectures, but the colony itself should pay the appointed professor such an honorarium as would com- peusate him for his trouble. Chinese teachers also might attend such a class and learn how to instruct their pupils.
5. That distinguished sinologue Dr. Eitel was good enough to give a series of lectures on Chinese to the sanitary staff and I understand they benefited much from such able teaching; and perhaps others could be found to do as a duty what he did out of kindness to these sanitary officials.
Great loss of time now results to students from not knowing how to begin to study Chinese. I ask the colonial authorities to give some help in this matter. A dozen lectures of one hour each would put people on the right track as to how to work. An afternoon hour would suit.-Yours,
LOCAL STUDY. Hongkong, 18th October, 1897.
SHANGHAI GENERAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
Minutes of a Committee meeting held at the offices of the Chamber on Monday, 4th October, 1897, at 4 p.m.
Present-Messrs. E. F. Alford (in the chair), J. C. Bois, Wade Gardner, F. W. Koch, A. Korff, W. D. Little, J. H. McMichael, E. Shellim, A. Werth, and the Secretary.
The minutes of last meeting were read and confirmed.
Revision of Yangtze Regulations.-A letter from the Senior Consul asking for further in- formation on certain points in the report drawn up by the Sub-Committee in February last was laid before the meeting, together with the reply that had been furnished the Chamber at a special meeting of the Sub-Committee nuder date of the 30th of September. It was decided to for. ward a copy of this reply to the Senior Consul. Typhoon Signals at Woosung.-The atten- tion of the Committee was called to the fact that it would be a great convenience to masters of vessels anchored at Woosnag if the typhoon siguals displayed at Shanghai were also ex- hibited at the Harbour Master's station at Woo- sung, and it was decided to address the Com- missioner of Customs and ask if this could be done..
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
ing to this letter until the plan of the proposed extension was furnished by the Council as promised.
Minutes of a Committee meeting held at the offices of the Chamber on Monday, the 9th of October, 1897, at 4 p.m.
Present:-Messrs. E. F. Alford (in the cbair), C. J. Dudgeon, J. C. Bois, Wade Gard'ner. F. W. Koch, A. Korff, W. D. Little, J. H. Mc. Michael, E. Shellim, A. Werth, and the Secre- tary.
[October 21, 1897.
THE BENNERTZ CASE.
Sir Nicholas Hannen on the 5th September sent the following protest to T's'ai Taotai :-
PROTEST. BENNERTZ AND CO. v. THE KIANGNAN PAY AND DEFENCE DEPARTMENT. I regret that I have to protest not only against the decision of the court but also against the method of the enquiry.
At an early stage of the case, at the instiga- tion of the defendant's counsel, the court or- The minutes of last meeting were read and
dered that no private discussion should take confirmed.
Extension of the Settlements.-The Chair-place between the judge and myself. This decision was arrived at without discussion and man said that as the plan of the proposed exten-
without hearing the plaintiff's counsel upon the Bion of the Settlements had now been furnished
point. It would have been unseemly on my part to argue the question then when the decision of the question had already been an nounced by the judge.
by the Municipal Council, a special meeting of the Committee was called to consider same and to decide on a letter to be addressed to the Doyen of the Corps Diplomatique through the Senior Consul. After some discussion it was decided to at ouce address the Doyen, strongly advocating the proposed extension.
THE FIRE ON THE “MONGKUT.."
Bangkok, 9th October.
The Mongkut arrived on Thursday with 600 coolies on board, and the remains of a fire in the stern hold. Exactly how the fire came to break out is not known, as the first intimation of it was received on Sunday morning, when flames were noticed coming out of the ventilator of the hold. The days that followed were full of an- xiety for Captain MacLellan, who had been placed in charge of the steamer for the first time this voyage. He immediatel y had cleared
every
away,
stitch of
and
can vas on board
did his ntmost to confine the fire to the hold. Fortunately the coolies were too frightened to give any trouble, and got right away forward as far as possible from the fire, so giving the officers and crew a free hand. At first there was no knowing how serious the result might be, and accordingly the Captain had the steamer run in to shore at the, nearest point, and kept her at anchor until the fire was sufficiently under control to make it safe to come on to Bangkok. Mrs. MacLellan was on board also, and had a busy time attending to several Chi- nese babies whose mothers had quite abandoned them in their fright. On Thursday morning the Bar was reached, but there was not enough water to allow of crossing, as the quantity that had been poured into the hold had naturally increased the draft of the vessel. The mate was therefore sent up in a boat for instructions as to the coolies, and the bringing up of a ship with a smouldering fire still in her hold. Eventually, after several narrow escapes of grounding, she was scraped across, and brought up, the Government allowing the examination of the coolies to take place in the river under
the circumstances,
have
L
We hear that the agents here complimented Cr.ptain MacLellan very cordially on the way in which he had fought the fire, and saved the steamer for the owners. It would have been quite impossible to have launched a boat with so many Chinese on board mad with fright, and had the fire not been managed as it was there would have been nothing for it but to run the ship ashore, and so saved the lives of the crew and passengers at least, By putting off this course to the very last moment he saved the vessel for the fleet, and was able to bring her up with such of her cargo as had been placed in the forward hold. He was ably supported by his officers also, and it should not be omitted, for the credit of the Chinese crew, that they stood by the Captain to a man.-Siam Observer.
41
A long official correspondence is published in the Gazette with reference to the so-called Spanish Swindle," the Consul at Barcelona having suggested that the various Colonial Governments should be warned of the nature The modus of these swindling operations. operandi of the swindlers is to write to their in- tended victim stating that money which has been left by a deceased relation, or has been secreted by a prisoner, may be recovered, but that a sum is required for preliminary expenses. Presumably many dupes send the sum asked for, or the swindle would not be continued so
Extension of the Settlements.-A letter from the Municipal Council, enclosing copy of their letter forwarded to the Senior Consul, was road, in which the support of the Chamber in advocating the granting of the desired extension was requested. It was resolved to delay reply.persistently.
Such a decision is against all precedent, either in China or anywhere else. Cases where a Chinese judge holds a court at which a foreign Consular official assists, are of daily occurrence. In such cases the Chinese magistrate and the foreign assessor invariably consult together in private. Upon appeal from the Mixed Court
In all
the Taotai has more than once sat with a Con- sular official of suitable rank. On these occa. sions the T'aotai and the Consular official have consulted in private. In all the treaty ports the same thing has occurred. Courts consisting of a judge and assessors are common. cases coming before them the judge and assessor consult in private. The decision of this Court that no consultation should take place, was therefore contrary to all precedent and contrary to the spirit of the letter of the Taotai by which
was invited by direction of the Viceroy of Nanking, to investigate the case jointly with Mr. Tsai and endeavour to arrive at a just and amicable arrangement. I therefore protest against it.
It is necessary that I should do so lest it should be drawn into a precedent, although this should be impossible as the Court was a special and exceptional one.
I feel also bound to protest against the length to which the proceedings were allowed to be drawn out. This was owing to the method in which the enquiry was conducted; it was neither Chinese nor foreign, but. it seemed to me, controlled entirely by the defendants' counsel whose suggestions on important or animport- ant points were adopted in every instance,
sometimes without hearing the plaintiffs' counsel's objections. Had it been conducted according to the method followed in English and other foreign Courts, a mass of evidence which was admitted would have been excluded. There were many ways in which the enquiry might have been shortened. Had I been at liberty to consult in private with the judge upon points upon which we were agreed, an accumulation of evidence would have been unnecessary. Decisions, upon main questions might have been arrived at, which would have rendered the production of much of the evidence nseless.
I feel bound also to protest against the use- less expense to which the plaintiffs were put by insisting on a full translation of all their vouchers being made. This was done upon the declaration of the defendants' counsel that he intended to cross-examine apon the detailed items. This he never did. It is true he argued upon them, but this argument could just as well have been founded upon their nature as as upon their detailed items. For instance, many bills were for things necessary to the Whether they ships as passenger steamers. were properly chargeable to the defendants is a question. The defendants' counsel said they were not, and it was waste of time to go into the numbers of cúps and saucers charged for if none were to be paid for by the defendants. Moreover, the defe: dants did not say that too many had been bought or that any had been. charged for which had not been supplied. These translations were not necessary, and, having been made at the instance of the de- fendants should be paid for by them in any event.
Another point relating to the matter of the enquiry to which I feel bound to enter my protest is that the plaintiffs were compelled to sum up their case before defendants had summed