SUPPLEMENT TO THE "HONGKONG TELEGRAPH."
ness,
HONGKONG, THURSDAY, AUGUST 4TH, 1881.
public men, are always amenable to fair criticism. Beyond that we do not wish to go, and we rather desire to or on the side of lenioney. But in even the most carefully edited newspapers, a phrase or oxpression will at times creep in unnoticed which may tend to injure, or give offence. In all such cases, we ask our friends who feel aggrieved to lose no time in stating their griev-
NEWS for the ENGLISH MAIL. breath of suspicion; and that we had ment, and can do much to make war the authorities, since the licenses were cancelled, and the vice declared no intention of imputing improper on the undertaking, at all events in its motives to a gentleman whose wider scope. We fail therefore to illegal. That the old system of Several rumours have reached us position was his misfortune, not his see what was to be gained by ignoring Chinese detection was ill suited to the requirements of the Act which during the last few days that cortain fault, and who for aught we know to him. On the contrary, that course remarks which appeared in our art-the contrary, may be a paragon of was pretty certain to arouse his op- prohibited gambling, events very icle on Chinese Emigration to Aus- Government servants for trustworthi- position. In this, as in the Woosung soon plainly demonstrated; and we tralia, in the Telegraph of the 12th
railway, we firmly believe that, if are informed on what may be con- and efficiency. instant, have given offence to Cap-
It is our desire to conduct this the matter had been straight-forward-sidered reliable authority, that even tain Thomsett, and one of his sub- ordinates in the Emigration depart journal honorably, and impartially, explained to the authorities, and after the closing of the public gambl ment. It would appear that these in the interests of the public. Gov-fairly discussed in its different bearing houses, the number of private gentlemen consider that our observernment servants, as well as otherings, their support instead of their hells in swing, almost equalled the hostility might have been fairly licensed houses in their palmicst counted upon.
days. Taking a common sense, practical view of the case, it appears to us a very grave question whether the enforced closing of the public gambling houses in this Colony was such a master stroke of policy after all. In the days of licensed houses, gaming was conducted under the immediate surveillance of the police authorities, so that cheating, and all the double dealing and chicanery which are specially characteristic of private and illegal gambling dens, were rendered well nigh impossible. With public resorts to go to, where everything was square and above board, there was no inducement for would-be gamblers to patronise un licensed haunts, consequently illegal gambling houses were comparatively few and far between. That there was a certain amount of illicit gambl ing oven when licenses were issued, cannot be doubted; but its presence was not felt so objectionably as has been the case since the passing of the Ordinance prohibiting gambling in any shape or form."
acknowledge our errors, as we shall be to lend our aid to put down abuses of every description.”
It would seem that the Woosung railway muddle is very likely to be repeated in the North, in the matter of the Shanghai Tramways.
ations reflect unfairly on them as officers of the Government. We gladly avail ourselves of this oppor- tunity to assure Captain Thomsett and the Portuguese gentleman (whose name we have not the plea- sure of knowing), that nothing was further from our intention, than that our remarks should be so construed as to reflect in the slightest degree either on the Emigration Officer or his clerk. Captain Thomsett is well-ance, as we shall ever be ready to known as an officer of high character and distinguished ability, and the eminent services he rendered his country in the Royal Navy for a period of over 21 years, have been equalled by the admirable and efficient manner in which he has served the Colonial Government in Hongkong, as Harbour-Master, Marine Magis- trate, and Customs Officer since 1861.
The true history of the vexed In the article which is said to have Woosung business has yet to be given offence, we hazarded an
written; suffice it to say now that opinion to the effect that the ef- the Chinese Government considered, igration officer's examination (of the
we think with justice, that they had Chinese emigrants in the Glamis been deceived, and that a march had Castle), was a thorough farce, must been stolen upon them. Consequent- he patent to every one who knows ly, they resisted its working to the anything of the manner in which utmost, and finally succeeded in these sham examinations are con- forcing its sale. It is true that they ducted"; but we utterly disclaim had to pay a pretty price--no less any intention on our part that this than the cost of a first-class English should be construed as a reflection railway-for what was really noth- either on the character or competing more than a "toy" tramway, ency of Captain Thomsett. As a matter of fact, we distinctly stated that the Governor was the officer who, was responsible for the exist- ence of a state of affairs, which wo
but, as they considered that an im- portant principle was involved, they did not shrink from the outlay. No sooner did they obtain possession of the line than they removed it to Formosa, and utilised it in connec- tion with the Coal mines in the Northern part of that island. With such an experience to guide them, it might have been expected that our Shanghai friends, before setting on foot in their settlement a some-
The Chinese are a proud and it may be, a somewhat stiffnecked race; but if one thing stands out more clearly than another, as the result of forty years of foreign intercourse, it is that we have gained little in the long run by driving them. On the other hand, it cannot be disputed they are a reasonable and intelligent race, and open to conviction by fair argument and practical illustration. We venture to believe that, if the Woosung railway question had been conducted in a wiser manner, and in accordance with the principles on- umerated above, railways might ere this have been in full operation in many parts of China. The attempt to thrust that measure upon them proved fatal, for the time at least, to all such enterprise; and it is to be feared that this last movement at Shanghai, if not quickly remedied, will only aggravate the difficulty.
Two illustrations of a disposition on the part of the Chinese Govern- ment to put the "cart before the horse," in the adoption of foreign appliances, reach us by last mail from the north. The shafts of Coal Mines have been sunk, the workings laid out, and everything made ready for commencing an output of coal on a considerable scale, when it is discovered that the water commun- ication to the neighbourhood of the mines is so shallow that considerable dredging operations will be needed before any large quantities of coal can be sent forward from the mines.
This difficulty was apparent from the first, and should have been provided against long ago.
enough be attributed to the improper and unsuitable system organised" to meet the trouble at the commence- ment. Physicians tell us that the most potent medicines may be too late, when the disease has been per mitted to gain ground by unnecess- ary delay. So it has been to a great extent with the suppression of gamb-
ling. It must be conceded however by every one who is actually con- versant with what gambling was two years ago, and what it now is, that the system of dividing the district into sections, and placing a re sponsible officer of police in charge of cach section, has worked wonder- fully well. There are still gaming houses in the colony without a doubt, but all statements to the effect that they are worse than ever, and always on the increase, are gross exaggera- tions which ought not to be published unless on a better authority than that of "a Chinese correspondent:" The great increase of prisoners in Victoria Gaol is owing to the large number of gamblers detected and convicted under the new system, as the records plainly prove; and one has only to refer to the police court proceedings for the past year, and compare the gambling cases tried with those of any previous year, to receive convin- cing proof that some slight amount of credit is due to H. E. the Governor, for an innovation which has reduced gambling to a very low ebb, and in all respects worked remarkably well.
Government. This is not as it should
be. Officers who do extra work, and that of a special, important, and at times, dangerous character deserve well of the State. The China, Mail
We must however, as a simple act of justice, call attention to the fact In making laws for a Chinese that the Inspectors, who have had community whose habits and idios- the entire charge of the gambling yncracies, are perfectly unintelligible raids, and prosecutions; the men, to the ordinary run of what wo term who have actually done the whole of civilised mankind, it should not be the work, have received no recogni- forgotten that special complaintstion whatever at the hands of the require special remedies. Nor can we altogether ignore the fact that the Chinese residents of Hongkong have some claims on the considera- tion of the Government, even as rc- gards their pernicious habits and prejudices. Gambling is not one whit more sinful to-day when it is pro- hibited by our laws, than it was in those days, not so many years ago, when a portion of our revenue was derived from licenses legalising and protecting it. Of ethics, according to our English ideas, the Chinese know little, and apparently care still less. They know that gambling was once legalised in Hongkong, and they are unable to comprehend the system of morality, or the questions. any apparent benefits to the colony, have necessitated the transformation of what was for years protected and fostered by successive Governments, into a heinous crime. Truly enough they know the law, but what can idle laws do with a people who have no morals? If the moral sentiments
correspondent has done good service in calling attention to the $100 per month, paid to the Captain Super- intendent of Poliec and the Registrar General, for their supposed extra exertions in putting down public gambling. It may be accepted as a matter of fact, that the extra duties performed by the Captain Superin- tendent, in the suppression of gambl- ing, are not sufficiently onerous to
had good reasons for believing, were not satisfactory. We unreservedly withdraw everything which Captain Thomsett may consider an imputa- tion against himself as a private gentleman, and as a Government Officer, stated or implied; and in doing this unsolicited, we are simply performing an act of justice to a public servant, who as Emigration Officer, we are fully convinced, has always performed his dutics, accord- ing to his lights, faithfully, honestly, and to the best of his ability. Captain visable if the promoters were really of Ta-lien-yan Bay, the bay which of general polity, which, without concerned, we cannot find that, under
what similar undertaking, would, as a matter of policy, if not out of com- mon courtesy, have consulted the responsible Chinese officials in their neighbourhood. More especially would this seem to have been ad-
actuated by their professed desire to further the true interests of the whole foreign community. Those interests, as we maintained a few days ago, can only be truly served by working harmoniously with the natives of the country. If the ob jects of the promoters of the scheme
The other matter has reference to the fleet of war-vessels the Chinese are gradually acquiring in Europe, for which they are now thinking of providing harbour protection. The port selected is Port Arthur in the Gulf of Liao-tung, to the northward the British selected as the base of their operations in the north in 1860. It is reported that a considerable outlay is required before Port Arthur can be rendered suitable for the purpose intended. In the meantime the vessels are arriving, and only some three and a half months re-
merit such lavish remuneration; and so far as the Registrar General is
the present administration, he has had or has now.anything whatever to do with gambling, so that his $100 per month is merely a snug sinecure, which ought not to exist in these As the police enlightened times. officers have actually achieved all that has been done in the suppression
Thomsett cannot be held responsible for the existence of the present state of affairs with regard to the examina- tion of emigrants, however unsatis- factory and imperfect the system may be. The Government, and not any individual colonial officer, is solely responsible. As there can be little doubt that emigration from this port be simply speculative, or to improve main before the communications of a people are completely relaxed of gambling, it seems to us that they,
WO
ever,
with the work close, so that the Chinese have no time to lose in making the necessary provision they should have made before.
T
to the colonies and other places has the locomotion for the benefit only been tainted with many evils, it is of the few foreign residents, it is in- incumbent on the Government to see telligible that they should elect to that all examinations are conducted proceed in the manner best suited with a strictness to defy imposition to their own convenience, and with- in any shape or form; and this, we
out regard to the views of the Chi- think, can only be properly done by nose, though we are far from ad- an officer who understands the Chi-mitting that this course would be nese language, and whose time is not
a wise one. On the contrary, how taken up with other, and more im-
it is urged, as one of the chief portant duties. Captain Thomsett, prospective benefits, that a scheme are informed, does not speak of tramways in Shanghai will fur- Chinese, and we know that, as nish an example, to bo in course of Harbour Master, Marino Magistrate, time followed up throughout the and Customs Officer, he is one of the Empire, of improving the means of most hard worked officials in the Gov-communication and working in- ernment service; and it is on these estimable-good. In the face of this grounds, and on these grounds alone, axiom, it seems incredible that some that we consider a change in the effort should not have been made at Emigration Department would be the outset to secure the goodwill and beneficial to the public service. co-operation of the Chinese authored with the actual position of affairs,
With special reference to the Por-itics. Yet it appears from the tuguese clerk, of whom we said: latest advices that the Taotai has "whose honorarium from the state been ignored altogether in the pro- hardly places him in the position posed undertaking, and has sent, as, assigned to Cæsar's wife," we need under the circumstances, is nat only state that we wished to draw ural enough, a vigorous protest to the attention of the Government to the board of Foreign Consuls. The the fact, that at times vory important Tagtai is the prefeet of the district duties were entrusted to a miserably in which this scheme, from which so paid clerk, instead of to a highly much good is looked for, is to be carri- paid and responsible. officer, whose ed out. Unquestionably he is all pow- position would place him beyond theerful beyond the limits of the settle
or forgotten, the penalties imposed by the wisest legislature for what is not considered criminal, can effect little good. As a question of expediency, therefore, it would al- most soom that the colony would have been financially far better off, and morally, certainly not much worse than at present, had the law never been repealed. legalising public gaming houses
The question of the prevalence of gambling in this colony has again cropped up, a leader in Saturday's Daily Press, and a letter in the Ching Mail, keeping the subject well before
However, we must now take mat- the public. Our morning contem- porary; on the alleged. authority of a Chinese correspondent, repeats the tors as we find then.. The Downing astounding assertions which we cal- Street authorities, although com- led attention to, and disproved by pelled to shield with the arms of the incontrovertible facts, and plain fig-law, that necessary evil, licensed ures, on the 7th instant. The gentle prostitution, would doubtless object, man who writes to the evening paper under any representations, to return is evidently perfectly well acquaint- to the old state of affairs as regards gambling. There may be a good and as his views are expressed in deal of inconsistency in making such every instance but one with becom- a wide distinction between the two have much crying evils of every large community ing moderation, we pleasure in directing the attention in the Far East; but whereas gambl of every one interested in the matter, ing can be reduced to a minimum including the Daily Press, to tho by a well-organised police force, that letter signed "Enquirer" in Satur- other unspeakable vice can never be day's China Mail, for a most impar made, altogether amenable to law tial statement of the actual position and discipline, so it is perhaps better
to leave it as it is. of affairs.
The suppression of gambling has always presented many difficulties to
The groat difficulty experienced in putting down gambling, may safely
and not the Captain Superintendent of Police and the Registrar General, should receive the $200 per month, or any other sum which the Govern- ment thinks proper to allot as a recognition of their efficient services.
The complications and troubles in
poly business at Macno, are, to all ap- connection with the Wei Sing Mono. pearance, a long way from being ended, The latest move in reference to the ex- traordinary proceedings of the past
ernor. Graça and his advisers in the few weeks, must have come upon Gov- light of a genuine surpriso. It is currently reported that the original purchasers of the monopoly have in- itiated proceedings against the Macao
Government for breach of contract; and further, that the Chinese member of the syndicate who was detained in custody at Macao, has commenced an action against the Governor, claiming
from a thoroughly reliable sourco, we heavy damages for falso imprisonment, Although our information" is derived doom it prudent to commit ourselvos“ to no definite expression of opinion, until the reports above referred to are properly authenticated.