CO882-6 — Page 29

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 882

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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"result, clearly foreseen by those best able to judge, of the repeal of the compulsory " clauses of the Contagious Diseases Ordinance; and they felt the more justified in adopting the above course as they were aware that such repeal had been forced upon the Colony against its will by the Home Government, in obedience to the wishes of the "House of Commons, and they considered that the expense attendant upon the un- happy results would be more fairly met by the British taxpayers represented by that Honourable House than by such a charity as Tan Tock Seng's Hospital."

says:

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17. The Jail Reports for the last three years show a startling state of things amongst the lower classes of the civil community. The annual medical report for 1896, Of the 3,497 prisoners admitted to the Criminal Prison during the year, 1,732 showed undoubted signs of having been affected at some time or other, as against 1,692 in 1895, and 597 in 1894. (In 1890 the number of prisoners admitted to the Criminal Prison, Singapore, was 4,856, of whem 202 had, or showed signs of having "had, venereal disease.)"

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For convenience of comparison these figures may be thus presented :-

Year.

1890

1891-

1892

1893

1894

1895

1896

Prisoners Admitted.

4,856

4,404

4,510

3,446

2,979

3,028

3,497

Infected.

202

(Undefined)*

"

609 597

1,692 1,732

That is to say, that in the last three years the disease has trebled itself among the classes of the civil community furnishing the jail population, and it has multiplied itself between eight and nine times in six years. The proportion per mille in 1896 is 495.2, which is in excess of the average amongst the military at Tanglin during the past five

years.

18. When the great disparity of the sexes is considered, this is an index to the condition of the prostitutes, over 3,000 in Singapore, who now practise their trade without let or hindrance or a vestige of medical supervision.

19, Dr. Mugliston, Colonial Surgeon, authorises the Committee to state that in his opinion all of these 3,000 women either have now, or have had, venereal disease. When Dr. Ellis, as Acting Health Officer, visited recognised brothels to inspect their sanitary condition, he looked at 1,710 prostitutes, without special local examination, and found that in a large number of cases, signs of venereal disease in various forms were present. He also noticed then that 22 babies and children in these houses were the subjects of hereditary syphilis in a severe form, many other children in whom the disease was suspected only not being chronicled. (See supplement to Straits Settle- ments Government Gazette, 7th July, 1893.)

20. During Dr. Ellis's sanitary tour of the brothels in 1893 he saw one girl in a state of high fever. This attracted his special notice, and on the mistress of the house casually leaving the room the girl burst into tears, and stated that she was very ill with venereal disease, and that she had been made to receive three men in succession the pre- vious night. This is but one instance of the condition of things which the abolition of registration and protection has produced. It is safe to assert that nightly prostitution is practised by 2,000 or 2,500 women, known prostitutes, who should be under treatment in the Lock Hospital. The majority of these are under coercion to do so, and to remain at work when they know themselves to be unfit, owing to disease.

21. Speaking on this point, Mr. Tan Tiak Kim, a well-informed Chinese resident and Municipal Commissioner of Singapore, states:-"The majority of our unhappy women are not in the strict sense of the term free agents, especially those young girls who form the bulk of our prostitutes; they have been in most cases, sold, trained, and brought up for the sole purpose of earning money for their mistresses

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Taking into account this and the social restrictions imposed upon these wretched women by the old customs of their nation, I am not far

poor, wrong when I sa.y that they occupy a position, in a free country like this, nearly equal to that occupied by a bondage slave." (Report of Proceedings of Municipal Commissioners, Singapore, 12th September, 1889).

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The Inte Dr. Hoad, in the Prison Medical Report for 1891, says (para. 7):-"It is striking to "notice the number of men admitted who suffer from, or have traces of, venereal disease. Some

112 were treated in my hospital, and innntnérable cases come up for daily treatment."

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22. Writing on 30th January, 1888, to the Secretary of State, the Governor states.*"The women in brothels are in the position of daughters of the keepers, and call The such a state of affairs. them mothers. There is no sense of freedom possible

*

women are fearful of the unknown-of what would happen to them should they be disobedient to their 'pocket mothers—and are terribly ignorant of everything con- nected with the Government under which they nominally live. It is out of the ques- tion to educate them up to the English standard of liberty of the subject."

23. The enforcement of the Ordinance led to a great improvement in the position

of the unhappy class chiefly affected by it, not merely in the matter of health, but in the general condition of their lives, mitigating to a large extent the evils of brothel slavery, and to the release of many who wished to return to family life.

24. Mr. W. A. Pickering, C.M.G., Protector of Chinese, in his Report to the Colonial Secretary of 9th December, 1886, states that the Contagious Diseases Ordin- ance 'was the only possible way of ameliorating the sad condition of the prostitutes in "the Colony."

25. Dr. T. Irvine Rowell, M.D., C.M.G., Principal Civil Medical Officer, Straits Settlements, states (28th February, 1887), in regard to the working of the C.D.O.f: "It There have has proved the greatest blessing to the women themselves.

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been many instances of women giving up their enforced calling as prostitutes when they learned their freedom by coming in contact with the officers of the Ordin- ance. Many such are leading happy and contented lives as wives or mistresses of "well-to-do men, and are mothers of families, an utterly impossible state of things

before.

That disease has been largely checked by the Ordinance does not require the voice of a trumpet to proclaim, and to go back now to the former state of neglect would not only be an unpardonable sin, but an act of unparalleled folly."

26. It is submitted that the women themselves were not averse to the medical inspection provided for by the Ordinance. "The examinations are never objected to by the women. It is only the keepers who raise objections, owing to the loss of the girls' profit when they are found diseased and sent to hospital." (Principal Medical Officer, Straits Settlements, 28 February, 1887.†)

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27. Owing to the cessation of the Lock Hospital system, and all fear of detection being now removed, it is known that private prostitution is largely on the increase amongst the Asiatic and Eurasian community.

28. The immense increase in the number of houses of resort, and the way in which they have invaded parts of the town where they were never seen before, are the natural results of the removal of the checks that were enforced when prostitution was held under repressive control. This great increase in the facilities for recourse to prostitution has unduly multiplied temptation, and has thus greatly increased disease.

29. Dr. Leask states that an important point to be considered is the very great danger to the community from indirect contagion through domestic servants and house- hold utensils. The household servants in Singapore (with the exception of ayahs) are male Hailams (Chinese). The census proportion of men to women in the Hailam com-, munity is as 70 to 1, a most unnatural proportion. The results are two-a large recourse by these men to low brothels, and the common practice of unnatural vice. It is found that even in the latter case anal syphilis is by no means infrequent.

30. In considering the general question, it is important to keep in mind the great disproportion between the sexes. The census of 1891 gives us the following figures for the whole Colony.

Male.

Female.

Europeans and Americans Eurasians

5,290

1,299

3,409

3,648

Chinese

184,241

43,748

Malays and other Natives of the Archipelago Tamils and other Natives of India

108,873

104,200

40,786

13,141

Other Nationalities

1,952

344,551

1,755

167,791

It is worthy of remark here that the population of the Federated Malay States (Pahang excluded) is given as:-

Males. 264,020

• Page 8 of [H.C. 59] March, 1889.

Females. 97,045

† Pages 34 and 35 of [H.C. 347] September, 1887.