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farm! What became of the reward or why the rendition of the murderers was not demanded, or whether the evidence referred to in the Supreme Court on the 23rd was the arrest of the real murderers, are points which I have no means of ascertaining.
14. On the 22nd April last, an inquest was held on the body of a Chinese who was found in a moribund state in the Street at the door of emigration depot known as the Allan Fook.
A policeman took the dying man to the Civil Hospital where he expired. Before he died, he told the Inspector that his name was Tai-Akwa, that his age was 35, and that he had been forcibly ejected from the Allan Fook depot. The Inspector proceeded to the depot and, examining the book, not only found the entry of the name but did not find any other coolie who answered to the description.
The manager of the depot was called and denied all knowledge of the deceased, but could not account for the name being entered on the book. He stated that he was employed by Mr. Caldwell, whose orders were that all bad cases of sickness should be sent to the Eloge hospital.
The clerk of the depot gave similar testimony, admitting that no record was kept of the coolies who might be sent to the Eloge.
The inquest being adjourned to the day following (23rd April), Mr. Caldwell was sworn.
He deposed that he was employed to obtain coolies for Surinam, that the Allan Fook had many branches, whereof the depot in question was one. He could neither account for the name of the deceased being entered on the books nor for his being found in a moribund state at the door of the depot. His orders were that all bad cases should be sent to the Eloge at his cost and charge.
He had not been to the Eloge himself lately, but he knew of many who had gone there and who had not died. The Coroner remarked that he had visited the Eloge the previous day and that the terrible sight he had witnessed had sickened him ever since. Mr. Caldwell repeated that common people and even respectable shopkeepers went there to be cured.
The Coroner, in summing up, said there was no evidence to prove the complicity of any person in the exposure of the deceased, although he believed him to be the person he had represented himself to be, and whose name was entered on the books of the Allan Fook depot.
The Coroner concluded by thanking Mr. Caldwell for the full, frank, and free explanation which he had given, adding that the Court felt much indebted to him. A verdict was returned of "Death from natural causes." Mr. Caldwell then addressed the Court on the subject of Emigration, pledging himself to see existing abuses rectified, and a proper system inaugurated.
15. Your Lordship can hardly fail to observe that in this case, Mr. Caldwell took the ground that sick coolies in his depot were not thrown into the Street to die, but sent to the Eloge to be cured and properly attended. I place no opinion as to how far the evidence warranted the conclusion that the deceased had really been evicted from the Allan Fook depot.
On the 24th April last, another coroner's inquest was held in Hong Kong on the body of a coolie who had died in the Eloge. Mr. Lister, the Acting Registrar General, deposed that he had been for some time aware of the existence of this establishment and had visited it, but until lately had not seen...