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DAILY PRESS- 4′′ APRIL, 1868.-
The Chamber of Commerce Meeting.
A veuoral meeting of this Chamber was held yesterday afternoon, at 3 o'clock. for the pur pose of considering the effect of the present system of Licensed Gambling on the Trade of the Colony. The following members were pre. sent: Mr. Ryrie, ocupying the chair, Mosers. Taylor, Hitchcock, B. Pallanjee, Rowatt. La praik, Kaye, Macauley, Zimmern, Pyke, Duo. canson, Deacon, Bosman.
In opening the meeting, the CHalbman said that they would have all seen from the circular what was the object or which they had met to-day, and before the resolutions which he understood had been prepared were put to the meeting, he should, with their leave, any n few words. He confessed that when the ques tion of licensing gambling in this colouy was first mouted, he was of opinion that it would not do any harm, and that it might be the means of doing some good; but since the system had been in operation, and instances of ite evil influence had come under his personal knowledge, he had seen reason to alter bis opinion, and he now thought that it was a system which Was working an incalculable amount of harm, and that the Government of this colony would be studying its best interesta by abolishing it altogether. During the last two or three months be bad made it a point of asking the opinion of nearly every respectable Chinese with whom he bad come in contact. and they one and all denounced the system as one which was creating much wischief to the trade of the colony, and this was the ground on which it came within the province of the Chamber to endeavour to abolish it--that is, of berse, if the information the other members had obtained lead them to the same conclusion as thal to which be had arrived. He nuderstood that one member of the Chamber was in possession of information showing that the gambling had diminished very materially the | number of traders with small meaus-nicu who were in the babit of buying 20, 30, or ap to 50 pieces shirtings, and taking them for sale to the various towns and villages in the neighbour- bood These men, seduced by the allurements of the gambling hells, had abandoned their former occupation, and taken to the loss laborions and seductive, although risky, ocen- pation of gambling. He must say that this view of the case had only been put before him by one or two of his Chinese friends. The great evil which he would urge, and the one which they already had, and could obtain more ample proof of, WIS the number of robberies from employers by shroffs and others engaged ia collecting money, and he felt confident that many of the robberies would not have been commitió I were there not these pub lie gambling-houses invitingly open. On this ground alone, be meant the danger to which! the mummies of persons in trade were exposed, i he thought it was the duty of the Chamber to| express a strong opinion against the system. On! the bad moral effects of the system he need not euter, as the views on this bead had already met able exponents The Lord Bishop of Vie toria, and he believed the whole clergy in the colony, of all denominations, were entirely op. posed to licensed gambliny. It had been said that it is utterly impossible to stop gambling altogether. But the same might be said of any other crime or evil practice, and would it, there- fore, be an argument to do away with police. eutirely? Certainly not. A good deal has been said of late about the great efficiency of our police, and if that really was the case, he cou sidered that with the assistance which the better class of the Chinese community would gladly give, gambling could be almost entirely prev- ented, and, in any case, it could be redaced to such a small compass that it could be only carried on in ont of the way dens, which would be resorted to by the very dregs of the pop- ulation. He then said he should leave the matter in their hands, to give such expressions of opinion and pass such resolutions as they might think fit.
Mr. TAYLOR said that being the proposer of the present meeting, and that this matter should be brought before the Chamber, ho now wished to offer a resolution, which he would | introduce with a few remarks. He had found in his experience that it was a very difficult
thing to get correct information from the ti nese. When questioned on any subject, they almost always first endeavoured to find out what you wanted to get on, and then endca- voured to reply in such a manner as they sup- posed would please you. More especially was this the case he thought, when they were deal- ing with any persons in anthority. With this fact in view, he could not but think but that the Governor had been misinformed when making inquiries, and in this way had been lead into the casure which all respectable Chinese condemned as most pernicious. In all the inquiries that be had made lately on the subject of the gamblog ordinance, he had received but one emphatic auswer from the Chinese, and that was that it was bad. The removal of the fear of apprehension, and pu nishment could. he thought, have but one result, and that was to very widely and indiscrimina tely increase gambling in the colony. There were now a set of men in existence who endea- voured to attract as many to the gambling table as possible, these were the gambling farmer and his associates, for it was notorious that the present farm was carried on by a joint stock company, and it was their interest to encourage legit mate gambling to the greatest possible exteit. The Government found this man and his associates a very convenient tool, ! but it could hardly be expected that he would serve the Government any further tunn bis own interests were directly concerned.. He had first to make the sum of $260.000 to pay his fee, and a commensurate income with this must be over $100,000, a sum of money that repre- sents શ vast amount of misery, and one which of itself employed in legitimate trade would do unich to dispel the pernicious vice. Within his own personal knowledge he knew of the direst effects of this ordinance, some of! which he would mention. His compradore! could no longer trust a shroff to go ont alone, to collect money, on account of the attractions offered by the gambling-houses, and he was now obliged to send out two, hoping that one would be a check upon the other. The Chinese were complaining on every side, but above this was to be considered the temptations that were offered to others of quite a different class. There were owners of ships in both England and America who were in the habit of entrust- ing the captains in their employ with Jargo sums of money, and if these places were open these men did and would go into them, and what he would ask might be the temptation to risk large sum that did not belong to them and; perhaps loose. There could be no question, but that Licensed Gambling was most injurious to the trade of this colony, as many bad found, out by dear bought experience. He would offer the following resolution ---“It is the opinion of the Chauber that liceused gambling, is affecting the trade of the colony injuriously by encouraging dishonesty amongst large pur- tions of the native population engaged in business and amongst the native employés of foreign firms.”
Mr. Hindacocit, in rising to second this resolution, said that, unfortunately, owing to the fact of there being no custom-honse or official returns of the trade of the colony, it was impossible to find out with any certainty what affect this legalised vice was having spou trade. In the absence, therefore, of official, they had to fali back upon information gathered from the natives themselves, and he would re- late some that had come within his knowledge, He had questioned a very respectable and in- telligent Chinese querchant as to what he thought about gambling, and had received in reply that he thought it was very bad. He could not e timate how bad the effects were. but he could say they were so bad that he could not estimate them. Trade, to his know- ledge, had fallen off 25 per cent, auong the small traders, who had no doubt given up their business because they thought they coul make an easier living at gambling. They also found a great deal of dishonesty among their shroff's and employés. One shroff he bad known of was sent to collect $6,000. Having obtained the money, he stopped on his way back ut a gambling-house, and there lost $690 of this very Luoney, Mr. Hitchcock mentioned another instance of which he himself knew. The shroff of a very large steamer running between here Land Shanghai, was found with a large deficit in This cash account, a short time since, and on in- quiring into the matter it was found that gambling bad been the cana. Here was a man - 1 - J Jumpour un sur Vad. V te puedo sta a o N