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men's maintenance whilst waiting here to be shipped, to which he assented and so informed the owners by telegraph.
A few days later the Agent informed me that the owners would have nothing to do with the maintenance of the men but this unexpected attitude on the part of the owners was too late to prevent a return message having been sent home that the proposal previously mentioned would meet the case. The position entailed was so far unfortunate, that the men once paid off were bound to become distressed - and that until they were the owners' responsibility did not apply.
I next interviewed the crew, who insisted that they should receive their money in full - and further that they would not go to the Sailors' Home. I pointed out that there was no need to be discharged here at all, as their agreement would not expire for another 4 months - but they declared they had been misled as to the terms of the agreement and as the owners would not send them home they would act for themselves. I invoked the good will of the Italian Consul General who very kindly interviewed the men at my office and tried to persuade them that under the circumstances they would be wise to either comply with my advice to deposit a portion of their money with me and so safeguard their stay in this court or refuse to be paid off pending some more satisfactory arrangement than that proposed which virtually meant that they would be stranded in Hongkong as the wages due together with the month's bonus was far too small to pay their passage home.
The men however proved obdurate with the exception of two who decided to remain in the ship - and accordingly the men were discharged on the 2nd instant.
The consequence is that 28 foreign seamen are now at large in the Colony - and it is only a matter of days before they will become destitute and remain so until opportunities occur, which are very uncertain, to send them home as Distressed British Seamen.