December 23, 1905.]
have only committed a trivial offence are kept iu custody,
Never has there been equal treatment in allthe cases without regard for the severity of the case. Your request that I should agree with the female convicts for the prosent being sent to the Municipal goal is not in accordance with the treaties, and I am therefore not in a position to comply with it.
Translation ofthe Senior Consul's rep'y dated 21st June, 1905.
I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter dated 10th of this month which I have submitted to the Consular Body.
have received instructions to reply to you as follows:
Yo forget to mention that male prisoners in all Chinese cases of the Mixed Court have been taken to the Municipi gaol since its creation. In this way thous ods and thousands of Chinese have undergone their punishment up to the present date, and the average number of convicts detained there is 45 per day.
Female prison rs have not be. n taken to the Municipal prison so far because no accommoda- tion for women was in existence up to a short time ago. But the. Municipality bare granted a large amount of money and erected a sp cial gaol for woman.
There is no difference in principle het ween male and female prisoners and it is not com- prehensible, why, if you agree that male prisoners to the number of four hundred and fifty are kept regularly in the Municipal gaol, you should object to a fox female prisoners being sent to the same establishment.
It is evident by your conduct in this matter as well as in many others, that your principle is obstruction to any progress in the interest of humanity.
There appears to be no chance of coming to an understanding with you.
I have, therefore, received instructions from my colleagues to proceed to Nanking and to negoti.fe with H. E. the Viceroy in this aud some other matters.—I have the honour, etc.
Dr. KNAPPz.
AUDI ALTERAM PARTEM.
A "foreign resideut" wrote on Dec. 11th
as follows:
In the interest of fair play would it not be well to consider more fully the Chinese side of the Mixed Court question? It has been stated at the recent meeting of the Chinese Clamber of Com merce and referred to in the leading article of the Nanfangpuo for December 11th, in English. There is no doubt that all Chinese opinion, official and mercantile, consi ers that the treaty rights of Chinese in Shanghai have not been maintained or advanced by this assault by the servants of the Council on ti o Mixed Court, but on the contrary have been disgracefully and bru- tally trampled down. The Council's advocates claim that they are protecting the rights of Chin se r sideuts. But this claim is quite ridiculous in the presence of the fact that all the great guilde, as well as the officials, are [reparing to take such unit d, action as will bring this community, which lives by commerce, to realise the danger of overriding the rights of the Chinose, no matter under what pretext. ven if force is used to coerce the Chinese authorities loca ly, one cannot tell whether this matter will end ere or in the interior. The Chinese are coming to the point of standing up for their rights as they understand them, even if it giv s us foreigners a shock.
:
The speech made by Taotai Yuan on Satur day, when the ads of the Chinese organisa- tions of capi al cal'ed upon tim, is indicative of the new era. He said: ·
1 must apologise to you all for not having managed foreign affairs in the past with suffi cient fi mners, il us resulting in the disgraceful trampling upon our rights, as was witnessed at the Mixed Court two days ago. Be assured that in this inst nce I will exert my utmost to erase the shome in flicted on the Chinere Go- vernment and t a1eople by the action of the British assessor and the municipal police. I am willing to give up my post in the fight for just ce and fair | lay.
ET
The bravery of magistra'e Kuan in main taining against all odds the sovereign rights of China is praiseworthy, and it is my intention to see that reparation be done to him for the
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
insults and shameful treatment he underwent at the hands of the police.
"I thank you for cal'ing upon me, and I can- not praise you enough for your exhibition of public spirit and of loyalty to country."
The Tuotai followed his speech by prorogu. ing, for the present, the Mixed Court, and I, for one, do not blame him for doing so."
A CHINESE OPINION.
A Chinese correspondent said the Chinese people are not willing to see their women, bow. ever guilty they may be, kept in foreigners' custody. It has been stated in the foreign | Press that by this special police regulation the Chin se would be benefited. I am sorry to say that we Chinese do not concur with your views in the matter, and in this special case I may also add that the whole Chinese people will be a unit in sympathising with the energetic ac`ion of our good Mixed Court m1gis'ra'es,
It is true that in consideration of the great amount of taxes paid by us Chinese in the com- manity, the foreign Municipality gives us a certain pretection but we do not want that, under the pretence of protection the police can enter our houses, wrongly arrest our women, our sisters and daughters, and detain them in their custody; it is a question of principle for us. and we, as far as in us lies, will allow it never."
+4
YOUNG CHINA BLAMED: A CURIOUS
SUGGESTION.
11
|
An American at Soochow says: - "It seems to be the idea of a great many Chinesa reformers and patriots that the only way in which they will be able to overthrow the présent dynasty would be to have another an'i- foreign disturbance such as they had in 1900. It is their belief that in the confusion that would ensue they would be able to dethrone the Emperor and set up a Republic. They believe That Foreign Governmen's would not allow Kuang Hsu to remain as Emperor for allowing another Boxer uprising in the Empire: It is also a current belief that England would help the Manchus, but that the United States with the help of Germany and France would stand by the Chinese. They believe firmly that foreign nations would never agree to destroy the in- tegrity of China, as that would c use interna- tional wars.
In creating another great anti. foreign uprising it would be clear to the Foreign P wers that the present authorities are incapable of managing the affairs of their country and it would be dangerous to allow them to retain their power. I believe that oll anti-foreign feeling has the hearty sympathy of those who are in official positio8 They feel their power is weakening, and that it would be a very unwise step to interfere with their meetings against foreigners. The boycott is not altogether an anti-American movement, but it is thoroughly anti-foreign."
MINISTER UPSETS CONSULAR PLANS.
"Old Shngbai " remarked on Dec. 15:-"In the present cise is is well-known that the policy and action of the Consular Body have been identical with that of the council, directed solely to the removal of curtain flagrant abuses of the Mixed Court, whose eril name has long bern a reproach to the Settlement. The published dispatches of the Consular Body have expressed that Body's unanimons intention to insist on certain necessiry reforms, one of which was the more humane treatment of. female prisoners. It is also well known that they have now been frustrated in that laudable intention by the lamentably weak action of the British Minister at Peking."
ENGINEERS' BALL.
The pleasures of dancing were thoroughly erjoyed by the large company which assembled in the City Hall on Dec, 15 on the occasion of the annual ball promoted by the members of the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders of Hongkong. Though there were between 600 and 70 present, the floors of both St. George's and St. Andrew's Halls were adequate to permit unimpeded dancing.
This, added to agreeable company, exquisite music, every attention to creature comforts, went a long way to make the event the success that it was, while the secretary, Mr. David J. Lennox, on whom the burden of the work fell, and the committee, are to be congratulated on the completeness of their arrangements, which left nothing to be desired. The stairway leading
to the ballrooms was tastefully decorated with flowers and greenery, bunting covered the walls, while in a conspicuous place was the crest of the Institution. The guests began to arrive shortly before 9 o'clock when dancing began to the music played by the band of the 2nd Battalion West Kent Regiment and was con- tinued with zest till well on in the morning. The gentlemen responsible for the arrangements were :-Sub-committee-Messrs. H. T. Řichard- son (conrener), J. Lambert, C. F. Fooken and F. O. Murphy. Invitation Committee- Messrs. C. F. Focken, (couvener), F. Miller and.... W. Ramsay. Decoration Committee Mesars H. T. Richardson (convener), W. C. Jack, W. Wilson. V. Watson, E. Ć, Wilks,_T. W Robertson and W. A. Örake. Dancing Committee-M 8ssr. J. D. Morrison (convener)
E._._ Murphy. Supper Committee Messrs. J. D. Logan (convener), E. C. Wilks, J. H. McLaren, J. D. Morrison, W. C. Jack, J. F. Miller, T. Banks, T. W. Robertson, W. A. Crake, and V. Watson. Bar Committee- Messrs. J. W. Anderson (convener), W. A. Crake, J. D. Logan, W. J. Hill and T. Banks, Stewards Capt. A. Milroy, Messrs. F. McRobie, W. G. Winterbara, J. McCubbir, T. Skinner, and A. Ritchie.
and
WEI-HAI-WEI SCHOOL.
PUBLIC EXAMINATION.
The results of the examination conducted by the College of Preceptors at the school in Juus last have recently been received, and will be generally admitted to be highly satisfac ory,
One of the more promising candidates had unfortunately to leave the school previous to the examination, and his place was taken at short no ice by an ther. The latter failed to pass the Second Class - or Junior-examination in one subject, but receives the Third Class o rtificate,
Of the remaining eleven candidates three took the First Class-or Senior-papers, four the Secourt Class-or Junior-and four entered for the Third Class examination.
One of the Senior caudidates failed to satisfy the examiners, but ob`aiued a Junior certificate, Of those entered for the Junior examination one failed by a narrow margin of five marks and is awarded the Third Class certificate. The Third Class candidates all passed.. One boy, C. C. Walker, obtained “honours;" and
distinction," ie., not less than 75 per cent of the maximum in given subjects, was earned by W. H. Edgar, W. W. Conner, and C. C. Walker in Drawing, Scripture, History and Geography respectively.
L.
It is worthy of note that in the supplementary lists, pablished in the Educational Times," of❤ successful candidates ermined in foreign centres, W. H. Edgar heads the list of all boys examined outside Great Britain, and W. A Lorenz n is placed fourth.
The subject in which hoye satisfied the examiners are Soripture, History, English, Geography, English History. Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry, Latin, French, German, Book-keeping, Drawing and Shorthand. In Latin the set books were Caesar's Commentaries, Books IV. and V., and in English, Shakespeare's
Julius Caesar.”
"
When it is remembered that all the boys in the "Upper School," ding the regular curriculum, were, without exception, entered for the examinations; that their agos approxi- mate to the ages of candidates for the different classes at home; and that the dull and backward boy is not excluded by a system of entrance examinations and “ superannuation," it will readily ba agreed by all interested in the individual candidates and in the school that they have cuse for congratulation.
The results are also an eff otual reply to
those educational Jeremiahs who so often lamentingly ask, "Can any good thing come.
out of the East?"
LIST OF CANDIDATES.
First Class, or "Senior: "W. H. Edgar and M. A. Lorenzen, Newchwang
Second Class, or “Junior: "-J. M, Bandinėl and W. B. Roope, Shanghai, and C. W. Lorenzen, Naxchwang ; J. P. Moller
Third Class-W. W. Conner, Taku; G, A Buyers and C. C. Walker, Shanghai, T. C. Conner, Taku; E. Grimble, Hongkong; D. Toulmin, Shanghai.