CO129-066 - Public Offices - 1857 — Page 472

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CONT

in those about him; for favortiem being the order of the day, mert and industry became like the crumbs from the rich man's Table. This man's health failing him, about the beginning of 18510, he obtained a year' leave of absence. He was looked upon as the most obleying, correct, invaluable man possible_ a gem in the eyes of the Governor, and a regular brick in those

of the community generally. He had not been gone long before it was discovered that the depth of his knowledge as Accountant, was beyond the fathom of the auditore office. His accounts evere found in the most inextricable confusion _ it needed neither ghost, nor Philadelphia lawyer to discover that they concealed in their meshes, gross fraud textensive defaleations. Now mark

my

Lord what the Colonial Government det. ! The Colonial Secretary being also the Auditor General, was I presume responsible to Government. During "a season of great peril"," when his services were much wanted, he got ...leave of absence, beyond doubt to look after Reinacker. The Government

have as yet concealed the fraud prachsed on themselves, but as the community were victimized by having paid Reinacker without getting the formal recept, they became cognizant of the defalcation to their Cost. The Government certainly knew that the man did not intend to return, because a successor was appointed to the Office of Treasurer before Reenacker's leave had expired. Still Government allowed the full year

to elapse _ they paid Reinacker's half salary to the last, and when his successor was Gazetted the announcement added "in place of " "Robert Reinacker Esquire ( in full) resigned". "My Lord if this be not sareening and encouraging fraud and embezzlement, it certainly is not denouncing and exposing it. If the Colonial Secretary really has gone Reinacker, I submit to Your Lordship that the Hong Kong TV content on the part of the mile per stands chargeable with compromising a felony. In desmie

Case My Lord, I should mention that the Hongshing Algiets

stated that a party high in office, had borrowed a consider from Reinacker a short time before he left

to seek

Reenacken defale tins. They

Are

extensive atweur, & notorious

Shave Musk, understated

Another subject of very natur

mate-p the absence from their posts of so ma the heads of departments. Thus at present an acting Colonist Se an acting Surveyor General, an

General, an neting & Master, an acting Registrar the an acting Sheriff, and an acting Sa

of

storey brows Recica tendens of Police. We so st

all or most of the officers above ́re to are absent on sick certificate: the duties of the absentees are m satisfactorily performed by nior withent

It was but the other day my Lord that a worse in of their own departments at

neous assistance, and witli little addi pay, the impression naturally gaine that the expenditure in the shape u ries might be readily diministed w very great detriment to pub

471

even this occurred at Singapore. A man named Caldewell, Register of the Supreme Court, was discovered to be a defaulter to a large For amount, under most aggravated circumstances _ the widow's lot &

Orphan's portion having fallen a prey to the spoiler. This man was an requaintance of Reinacker, and his Brother, now high in office here, was intimately connected in business with Reinacker. The Singapore authenties certainly did not go to the length with their Registrar that the Hong Kong authorities ded with their Treasurer_ that is to say, they did not audit hes accounts, give him a year's leave of absence on half pay, and then Gazette him as a

es a resigned Esquire, but they have been publicly accused of Conniving at he escape, and there can be no doubt that they could have prevented him from absconding had they wicked.

A

"

My Lord the Chinese themselves have no lawyer __ they don't- allow them... they call them meddlers. The Chinese have a strange notion that as laws are made to govern the masses, they should be so written & expressed that any man of ordinary intellegenel should be able to understand them, and that any doubtful point should be decided by the test of equity and reason. We lay it. down as a fundamental principle that every man should know- the law of the land. We have statesmen to enact our laws, but we have lawyers to draw them up. The art of doing this consists in making enlargements in rigmarole phraseology with double significations, and to such a height of perfection has the Art-attained, that the Judges themselves get so bothered as sometimes to be unable to nyree In point of fact my Lord, judging from the perusal of any Law paper that may fall into one's hand, it may be said that half the time of our Judges is taken up reversing one another's decisions. Now considering the deep research, the racking brains, the acking heart, that must follow in each others train before a cause can have been sufficcently manipulated to become entitled to

distinguished

honor of an appeal, begin to fancy that there are

occidental

the