a Government officer before they go there, they will obey that the word of the keeper is law, and that they will obey her. Brothel keepers under the present system know that if they maltreat the inmates they have everything to lose and nothing to gain. They are therefore afraid to maltreat them, and, as a consequence, the life of an inmate of a brothel is one of less hardship than in China. Under the present system of registration, the power of the brothel keeper is greatly reduced. By abolishing the present system, the brothel keeper will become all powerful, and it is easy to foresee what a life of hardship will be that of inmates under such circumstances.
Another point to which we wish to invite attention is that, at present, brothels are confined to particular neighbourhoods, whereas it is now proposed, we understand, to remove that restriction, and to allow brothels to be opened anywhere and everywhere. We most sincerely trust that in the interest of the morality of this Colony that the old restriction may be allowed to remain. If it is done away with, we have no hesitation in saying that family life among the Chinese will decrease rapidly in this Colony. Who will care to bring his female relations to live or even to visit Hongkong, when there may be a brothel next door to him? Who will care to invest in property in Hong Kong when any unscrupulous person may depreciate it by opening brothels in its immediate neighbourhood? In China, there exists with regard to brothel the principle of local option. As that is a principle not yet in force in this Colony
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