D
Exchange
at
Mongkong has
in consequence of the scarcity
of Mexican dollars, risen
to $4.4/20
Cash in.
Hongkong
5/8/1⁄2 thus working rate of 21 per annum - at
least 12 or 13 per cent of
which would
be saved
by a
Mint in
Hongkong.
I annex
a
cutting
from a
Hongkong
daily paper of
a
case
of Piracy
outside the
harbour, and may
mention
that four
such exports often
occur monthly in the
Police Reports.
Ms.NN.
PIRACY OUTSIDE THE HARBOUR.
The following is from the Daily Press of this morning:
On Sunday evening a Chinese passage-boat coming from Chungchow to Hongkong, having a crew and passengers numbering ten in all, was attacked by a piratical Hakka boat outside Lamma Island, and after a sharp contest in which four persons in the passage-boat were killed and three wounded, the piratical craft made off towards the Capsuymoon. It appears that the passage-boat had observed the Hakka boat bearing down upon them, but they anticipated no attack until they were hailed to stop. Discovering the nature of their visitor, the crew got up their arms, which consisted of four old muskets and some swords, and kept on their course with a light wind, when the other boat fired into them a charge of musketry. The fire was returned, all the passengers assisting in defending the vessel; and after a contest described as having continued for nearly an hour, the piratical craft made off, and the other boat kept on and anchored about 9 o'clock at the Salt Fish Bay, Lamma.
Mr. Sherman, bailiff of the Supreme Court, was returning from Aberdeen on Sunday evening, and when between Pokfulam and Mount Davis on the Aberdeen road, he had his attention called by a Chinaman who was looking on, to sharp musketry firing going on about 200 yards from the shore - two boats firing into each other. There were other boats in sight. One boat made off towards the Capsuymoon, and the other boat towards Hongkong. The boats were very near together, about ten yards apart only, during the time he saw them. He did not see the first of the firing.
Through the negligence of somebody, the matter was not brought to the notice of the proper authorities so soon as it should have been. The wounded men were conveyed to hospital, we believe not till the following day, as the Colonial Surgeon stated that he knew nothing of it till 2 o'clock on Monday afternoon, when amputation of some of the limbs became necessary in the case of one or two of the wounded men.
An inquest was held yesterday at noon at the Coroner's, and a verdict of wilful murder returned against some persons unknown.
At the inquest, the owner of the passage-boat who escaped personal injury was asked if he had ever paid any "squeeze money," or if he had reason to anticipate an attack through refusing to pay such. He replied that passage-boats and salt-fish-boats from Chungchow paid no such, nor was anything demanded in extortion from this class of boats to his knowledge.
5
CUTTING