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Original
Hongkong, 24th April, 1862 07
The Duke of Newcastle
Sin St. Robinson.
Hongkong, 25 April 1862.
N79.
Received
2 Inclosures.
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My Lord Duke,
It has long been my intention to address Your Grace with a statement of personal grievances to which I have been subjected by the illegal and oppressive acts of the late administration of this colony, from the consequences whereof, I am not yet free. The difficulty of obtaining the required proofs has been considerable, and my time is so much occupied that I have been necessarily compelled to defer the task from month to month, until even now I am not prepared to trespass upon Your Grace's time and attention by bringing forward my case, for the reason that I cannot yet submit it with that precision and perspicuity which a due and proper respect for Your Grace dictates the necessity of my doing.
2 I therefore pray that it may suffice for my present purpose to state, that when in accordance with Your Grace's instructions, His Excellency the Governor of this colony, caused it to be publicly notified that an enquiry would be held as to the abuses which had been said to exist in the Civil service thereof, and that any party having charges to prefer should appear before the Executive Council and make them, I was the only individual who came forward. I have resided permanently in the South of China for twenty four years, and have ever made myself conspicuous in resisting and denouncing the oppressive and illegal acts of the officers of the British and other Western Govern- of in a cordaw ments. I was deprived of all my property and driven from my occupation as a merchant by the illegal acts of the Hongkong authorities, and involved in permanent and hopeless bankruptcy. I was forced to follow the profession of the press for a livelihood. Suc- eceding beyond the most sanguine expectations, I have labored for nearly six years for the behoof of my creditors and have still to work three years longer, there being no bank- ruptcy laws here nor any other legal mode whereby a ruined man can obtain freedom from his liabilities. This statement, incredible as it may appcar, can be certified to by the pre- sent Attorney General of this colony. I have a large and peculiarly strong claim on the Canton Government for losses sustained by the Arrow outbreak in 1856. All the other claimants are satisfied, whilst my name is entirely omitted from the list. In proof of this statement I crave Your Grace's perusal to the enclosed copy of a letter which I received from II. M. Consul at Canton, into whose hands has been entrusted the adjust- mert of the claims.
3 These are some of the circumstances which I desire to lay before Your Grace. At this stage I can hardly hope that Your Grace may credit my statement, and all I can crave at present is to entreat Your Grace to respect my integrity of purpose, and to believe that whether my grievances be real or imaginary that I conscientiously believe them to be real, and that in seeking redress for myself I only desire the eradication of those evils which have cast such discredit on Christianity and occidental civilisation in China. I find I have been tempted to touch on the subject of my personal grievances to a greater extent than I intended, but as have been induced to do so in the hope of earning respect for motives, which if misconstrued, will naturally spoil the cause I take so lively an interest in advocating, I trust to Your Grace's indulgence to excuse me.
my
4 As I have said I was the only individual who came forward in response to the invitation of His Excellency the Governor. I laid twenty four charges of these only six were gone into, and as Your Grace must be well aware I proved my case, the finding of the Council, bing, to the limited extent it went, entirely satisfactory.
Restricted as the finding was I doubtless should rest contented if the result produced the eradication of the evils I have suffered so much for denouncing. But I res- pectfully and earnestly assure Your Grace that such a desideratum is far from having been accomplished, and I have simply the satisfaction of seeing an unworthy branch lopped off, whilst the trunk and root which produced and sustained it are allowed to remain."
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29 19/
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22.
The Right Honorable
The Duke of Newcastle
Secretary of State for the Colonies.