CO129-074 - Lieut. Governor Caine & Sir Robinson - 1859 [6-12] — Page 314

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Despatch N.11 01857.

Enclosure No. 1 in

The China Mail.

HONGKONG, THURSDAY, IST SEPTEMBER, 1859.

WE take the following affidavit of Colonel Caine, in the case of Mr Tarraut, from the Friend of China of yesterday's date :-

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF HONGKONG. Crown Side.

I, William Caine, Brevet Lieutenant Colonel in the Army, make oath and say,-

1.

That I am Lieutenant-Governor of the Colony of Hongkong, and an at present adri- nistering the Government thereof, and that I I have successively held the offices here of Chief Magistrate, Colonial Secretary, and Lieutenant Governor.

Why to this hour, Chinese reports, coupled with con temptuous laughter, go that he pays his old comprador a pension for some purpose or other-this comprador being the man on whose receivings those entries were made in the Central Markot books of "Paid Caine duty honey" Paid Catue bimself," &c.,-monies to the extent of £500 within one month, all of which was clear extortion.

"Such, then, are our grounds for saying that there can be little difficulty in substantiating a charge against Colonel Caine of malversation of office. The reports to which we have referred, may, as Colonel Caine would have his friends believe, be all reports and nothing else; but though the scandal be but scandal, the extraordi nary course which Colonel Caine bas taken to rebut it is so rysterious and reprehensible, that, forit alone, he deserves punishment as a malfeasant. This conduct may be likened to that of the Governor of a castle who, whilst he stoutly maintains the gate, permits the enemy to enter by another and a prepared way. It was ever his bounden duty to keep the character of this govern ment in the eyes of the Chinese pure and undeffled, and of all things to keep his own hands clean. The hands may be clean, but what has become of the character? What is the charactor of the Hongkong Government as represented on the name of Colonel Caine?

"If Colonel Caine is guilty of but a tithe of what is laid at his door, then we say that Mr Caldwell, of whom our Newcastle friends are making so much noise, is an angel of light when placed in comparison; and, guilty or not

2. That I have perused the hereunto annex-guilty, it is all the same, for we say it without the

ed impression of a certain Newspaper entitled the Overland Friend of China, numbered 16, and bearing date the twenty-fourth day of August, 1859, and purporting to be printed and published by Luiz d'Azevedo for William Tarrant, Editor! and Proprietor thereof.

3. That in such impression, and in the third and fourth columns of the first page occur the following remarks, viz;—

"Notwithstanding the non-arrival of Bir Hercules Robinson, it is understood that Lieut.-Colonel Caine, who, since Sir John Bowring left has filled the post of Governor here, proceeds to England by the outgoing mail. This is the party referred to by Chisholm Anstey In his speech at Newcastle (extracts from which will be found on our third page) as 'the veteran from India, whom he had heard declare many a time and oft, found it easy for officers to add £500 per annum to their pay by receiving presents from natives, and who, Mr Anstey went on to say, had shown by his prae- Lice in Hongkong that he had not profited badly by the Lessons so learned when in India.

alightest fear of contradiction, that neither Mr Caldwell, Dr Bridges, nor Mah-chow Wong would ever have dared the spectacle of Downing Street's determination to ignore to act as they did bad they not had before their eyes all complaint; not simply to ignore complaint, but to visit with pecuniary loss and contumely, present and prospective, all who dare to intrude complaint on their notice.

thereof,monster, Downing Street! that rival of the worst days "Oh for a more than Herculean power to crush that of the Spanish Inquisition, or the German Vehm!"

4. That by the words Lieutenant-Colonel Caine, ing, I only, and no other person can be meant. Colonel Caine, and Caine, in such article appear

Chisholm Anstey that I had found it easy for 5. That I never at any time informed Mr Officers in India to add £500 per annum to their pay by receiving presents from the natives, nor have I at any time said any thing to the said Mr Chisholm Anstey, or to any one else, from which such assertion could be fabricated.

6. That I never at any time wanted a dollar a head from each resident in Chinese brothels-- that I never at any time wanted fees for keeping gambling-tables-that I never at any time wanted what was termed hiang gun, duty money, for licen- ses to sell in markets-that I never at any time wanted presents for my influence in Council-that I never at any time wanted a full supply of every thing for my table from the market holders, except

"This is extraordinary language to use of a public mali, and must necessitate a stringent enquiry. Should that enquiry be properly gone about, the rosult cannot Le doubtful. Mr Anstey, it will be seen, bases his charges on what appears in the book before him, and in the papers to be moved for by Mr Edwin Janies; but, unless Mr Anstey is requested by Government to give his aid to the unravelling of what that book and those papers unfold, we entertain grave fears for the success to truth of what may be done under the auspices of Downing Street.

[Downing Street Fangh! The very name of Down-upon the usual terms of paying for what I had ing Street, to victimized Colonists, stinks in our nostrils.like other people that I never wanted a huge, If there is one germ of revolution and danger to the State, which of all others should be first eradicated, that germ lies in Downing Street. Downing Street, the callous-hearted, blind-eyed, deaf eared monster-the pulse which of all others throbs untrue to the great heart of England.]

"There can be no difficulty, we should think, of sub- stantiating against Colonel Caine a charge of malversa- tion of office. The proof of this charge lies in the infer- ences to be drawn from his deportment as exhibited by the papers in question. Colonel Caine's name has been used to obtain taoney from the Chinese in all sorts of ways. According to Chinese report he wanted a dollar a head from each resident in Chinese brothels; he want- od fees for keeping gambling-tables; he wanted what was termed hiang yun, duty money," for licenses to sell in markets; he wanted presents for his influence in. Council; he wanted a full supply of every thing for his table from the market holders; on building contracts, he wanted a huge per centage; on grants of leases, be wanted suins of various amounts, from one hundred to five hundred pounds. Even on offices held by Europeans under the Government he required his thirds, and one of our Contemporaries went so far as to state that in the case of a Mr Holdforth, who for some tine filled the office of Sheriff, if Mr Holdforth were to be believed, he got them! All these things, we say, the Chinese report, and they believe them to be true. Still it is just possible that all those reports are untrue; and certain it is that an enquiry into the brothel dollar extortion failed in eliciting any support to the allegations previously made by Chinese to respectable Europoans Gambling tables again, are kopt by Chinese even under the eyes of the Police, but there is proof of fees going into Colonel Caino's pocket for the privilege. Even in the case re- ported on page 2 of this paper, the Chinese insinuated that they believed the money extorted went to Buro- peaus, but would mention no names.

"As regards the bonuses for leases-supplies for table -per centage on building contracts-fees for influence in Council, &o., all rest on surmise, or the assertions of | Chinese whom the Government will not belleve. Chowh Acan, formerly the Treasury Comprador, and still a Ilcensed farmer of more than one monopoly under Gov. ernment, is the only one that ever told us he was direct- ed by Colonel Caine to demand money from Chinese for benefits be accorded. When taxed with this before the Executive Council, he denied it, of course; nor wore the assertions of two of his victims, as well as our own, considered to weigh so heavily as his asseveration Welghed.

This is the same man Chowh Aoan, of whom it was proved in the Caldwell enquiry that he paid $550 to Mr Caldwell's sister-in-law for the amelioration of his partner's punishment-$50 going to the woman---$500 to some one else the sentence being reduced from f teen years' transportation to two years' imprisonment.]

"All this we repeat, is only report, and Colonel Caine must be one of two things, either the cleverest rascal that ever lived-a felon for whom transportation would be too light a punishment, or he is a much maligned man,

and deserving of the sincerest pity,

"This, then, being hits actual position, the question naturally arising in the mind of any impartial person Is this What has Colonel Calpe himself done to obtain relief from such odious imputation ? And the answer is als condemnation. The answer is this, and the papers to which Mr Austey refers prove It: That when he had a good opportunity to confront his house comprador, the alleged recipient of much extorted money, with the parties who charged him, he did not simply allow, but, appearances go, actually connived at his getting out of the reach of justice. He did worse than this. Upon not a shadow of basis he charged the Englishman-tho oldest subordinate officer of government-who brought the matter to his notice, with the crime of conspiring to Injure his-his-Colonel Caine's fame and repu tatton! In doing this he effectually burked all attempt to vilcit the truth; and initiated such a reign of terror antong Kaglish offlelais, from the highest to the lowest, that not one of thom (excepting Mr Austey) dares to open his mouth, though extortion might go on in Cubonel Caine's name und die S

or any per centage whatsoever on building con- tracts--that I never, on the grants of leases, wanted any sum or sums of money, and much less sums of various amounts from one hundred required my thirds, or any proportion or fee to five hundred pounds sterling-that I never whatsoever, on offices held by Europeans under Government, nor ever did receive any such proportion of either salaries or fees of Office of any Colonial servants that I did not, in any way, allow or connive at my house compradore getting out of the reach of Justice-that I do not pay my old compradore a pension, and that I never (have) been guilty of malversation of office.

7. That the statements in the said Orerland Friend of China Newspaper, to the effect that there can be no difficulty of substantiating against me a charge of rualversation of office, insinuating that I corruptly wanted a dollar á head from each resident in Chinese brothels in this Colony--that I corruptly wanted fees for the keeping of gambling tables in this colony-that I corruptly wanted what was termed the "biang- gun "duty money for liceuses, for persons to sell In market in this colony that I corruptly wanted presents for the iniproper exercise of my influence as a Member of either the Executive or the Legislative Councils in this Colony-that I corruptly wanted a full supply of everything for my table from the market holders of this Colony (without the usual payment therefor)- that I corruptly wanted a huge percentage on building contracts that I corruptly wanted, on the grant of leases, sumus of various amounts from one hundred to five hundred pounds sterling, and charging that on offices held by European servanta in this Colony, I corruptly required or received a third of their salaries, and that when I had a good opportunity to confront my house comprador, the alleged recipient of much extort ed money with the parties who charged him; I not only allowed but actually convived at the said house comprador's getting out of the reach of justice; and that I deserve punishment as a malfeasant, are false, malicious, and defamatory libels, and wholly untrue.

Sworn at the Supreme Court House, Victoria, this twenty-fifth day of August, 1.d. 1859. W. CAINE,

W. H. ALEXANDER,

▲ Commissioner, dia.

311

General of the Proceedings in v: Jarraut

Thport by the reting Attorney

the case

Origina

26th Sept. 1857

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