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45. At the time when the Bureau was created, doubt was expressed in some quarters as to the wisdom of the step, on account of the supposed antecedents of some of the General's men; but the Government very wisely reposed full confidence in the General. It must be obvious that the men who are to intimidate the intimidators must be of a bold type-a quality which was so very rare among the Chinese at that time. Such men, in the present state of China, are likely to have had a some- what adventurous existence, but this is no necessary disqualifica- tion for our purpose. Though it is necessary that our agents for this dangerous work should act for us in a clean way, they should not be required to furnish proof of having worn kid gloves from their youth up.
46. We realised from the first that there must be an air of mystery about the organisation if it was to succeed; and this atmosphere has to some extent been maintained up to this moment. The public does not know exactly how the Bureau is maintained; and the bad characters do not know how many men the Bureau has, and consequently they see spies everywhere. Intimidation ceased within a week, and although it again broke out from time, to time, once with bomb-throwing, it was soon put down on each occasion by the Bureau with the co-operation of the police. The Chinese, so easily terrified, have proved equally easy to reassure. The lesson is that they must not be left without support in the face of an unknown terror.
47. Besides putting down intimidation, the objects of the Bureau were to protect labourers in their employment, and to find men to fill the places of strikers. It undoubtedly succeeded in instilling courage into waverers at the time, and also in supply- ing labour to people requiring it. It has registered and passed into employment about 2,000 men, and these men, I understand, have proved to be quite satisfactory.
48. As the object of the Bureau is, in effect, to enable the workmen to secure a sort of re-insurance against the tyranny of their guild-leaders without abandoning their own guild organisa- tion, the men on being registered for employment sign a form in which are given the name, age, place of birth, occupation, address of the person registered, and objects of the Bureau, which are (1) to assist members in earning an honest livelihood; and (2) to protect them in the pursuit of their living.
49. In another and indirect way the Bureau has proved its usefulness. The work of the Bureau, as that of the Police Reserve, has certainly stimulated the Chinese regular police and the district watchmen to greater activity than they showed at first. In other words, the regular police and watchmen were shamed into greater efforts by the example of these "ex-pirates."
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Kai-Ching or Street Committees and Street Guards.
50. One very efficacious device which was adopted among the Chinese was the formation of Street Committees and Street Guards to assist the police, particularly by giving them informa- tion of the arrival of strange or undesirable people. The inhabitants of each street, or each suitable section formed of
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