101
(17679/23)
:
age of 10, unless a registered Mui Tsai, was
forbidden; and finally, every Mui Tsai of or
over the age of 10 should be entitled to a
prescribed scale of charge wages.
Part 4 contains provisions as to penalties
for failing to comply with the Ordinance.
in 1923
The Governor's reasons/for deferring the
ffor
bringing into operation of Part 3 was stated in
a Confidential despatch and were briefly as
follows:-
kegistration.
The Chinese have a deep-rooted
objection to any form of interference to the
privacy of their domestic life. They consider
that a system of registration would eventually
involve some system of inspection which would be
most repugnant to them. The political ferment
in South China due to the return of Sun Yat Sen
to Canton made it most desirable to avoid any
steps which would antagonize the Hong Kong
Chinese population against the British Government. Su E. Stubbs
en said that in order to secure the
observance of the law it might eventually prove
registration
necessary to insist on le islation, but until
it was shown to be unavoidable he asked that it
should be deferred.
Further the Chinese
employers of the girls might, if registration
were introduced, deliberately dispense with the
of numbers
services of members of the Mui Tsai in order to
embarrass the Government.
Payment of wages. As the Mui Tsai now knew that
they were at liberty to leave their employers
they could, if they wished, make their own
terms