CO129-074 - Lieut. Governor Caine & Sir Robinson - 1859 [6-12] — Page 342

TEE

338

( 24 )

"Mr Caldwell has sold this house," without mentioning to whom. The man looked at me and walked away, with out making any answer, and then we also walked away. There are two houses to the westward of this; and there are several others to the eastward. I do not know whether the house above alluded to was a brothel, but it had a ticket with large black figures 48 on a white ground. I spoke to no other person in that street. The last witness is not the man with whom I had this conversation.

Cross-examined, Mr May did not tell me the object of his visit to Taipingshan, nor why he asked the question.

Re-examined, The man with whom we spoke at bro- thel 48, was inside when we went, and came out to us when we called. I did not see him until I called out " to whom does this house belong," he then came out and stood at the door. Nothing was said about a range of houses with a brick front, and nothing about the fire. Two days ago Mr May told me to try and find the man I had spoken to, On the first occasion that I went for him, an old wo man told me that he had come up to the Government Offices, and on the second occasion a girl told me that he had gone to Canton.

WONG ASHUN,-Called and examined.

I am Shroff and Assistant Collector of Police and Light ing Rates. I know Mrs Caldwell, and have known her since she resided in the Central Police Station, four or five years ago. I do not know her surname. I do not know if Mrs Caldwell has any Chinese sisters by adoption. [Some Chinese characters were shewn to witness,]-This is the name Shaplok. I have known hier about ten years. She has been married ever since I knew her. Her husband keeps an opium and chlothire's shop. I do not know if Shaplok ever kept a brothel. I do not know whether she is sworn-sister god-sister, or sister-in-law, by blood or usage to Mrs Caldwell. I do not know whether she is any rela- tion, or connected in any way with Mrs Caldwell.

CHARLES MAY,-Recalled,

I have more evidence to give the Commission in this particular branch of the inquiry, but decline to do so. I consider that the Commission have asked questions of witnesses touching my private reputation, in no way pertinent to the inquiry, and not likely to tend to the slightest public good. I consider, farther, that as the Com- mission has withheld witnesses from stating subjects as matters of repute, much which might have been elicited cannot by any possibility come otherwise before them. I will cite for instance the last witness Wong Ashun, who, when asked a question touching Shaplok and her relation- ship with Mrs Caldwell, said, "I do not know; some people say so."

DANIEL RICHARD CALDWELL,--Called and exa- mined.

With reference to charge 2 that I have a scandalous con- nection with brothel 48, I deny it altogether; it is an un-

founded charge. Brothel 48 stands on lot 241 B, one of the lots sold by Siemssen & Co. through me to Lum Ateen, in June, 1857. I sold 8 lots to Lum Ateen; they had been previously valued [put in valuation 0,] by Mr Lapraik at $2,480. Lum Ateen gave $2,500. My instruc- tions to Mr Stace as to the amount of purchase-money being $2,150 for the five lots, was a simple error of mine in making the calculations, when giving him the instructions; it should have been $2,050. At the time I sold the lots by private contract to Lum Ateen, and by auction to Mr Woods, there were no brothels in either of the houses on those lots; there had been before but not at the time I purchased them in 1854. Lum Ateen at the time he purchased the ten houses from ine for the $2,200, wished to set off that amount against his claim on my state--- which was refused. At that time the leases of all those lots were in the hands of Chinese creditors, who had mortgages on them. I explained to Lum Ateen that until the dividends on my estate were paid, I could not give him up the leases. An arrangement was therefore made between us, that the completion of the transfer should be delayed for six months, the rent to be received by me in the meantime, and that I should pay him in lieu thereof $50 a-month, which arrangement was carried out and the bill of sale signed by me and delivered to him, on the expiration of the six months—the 15th De- cember, 1857. I gave them into his hands on that day. A day or two afterwards I went to Mr Stace, and gave him instructions regarding the transfer, and gave him all the leases I had. There was no lease for lot 240; it was sold by the bailiff of the Supreme Court. From this time it never entered my head to speak to Mr Stace on the subject. He told me on two occasion it would be necessary to get the bills of sale. The first time I forgot it, and did nothing. The second time I wrote to Lum Ateen at Macao before I heard of these charges, and told him to come over with them, so that the transfer might be completed. There was no private arrangement of any kind between Lum Ateen and myself, that I should retain any direct or indirect interest in this property. I gave up the whole of my property for the benefit of my creditors. The dividend was 471 per cent, and I submit that it is not probable that had I retained any part of my estate, my Chinese creditors to whom I owed $12,000, or even Europeans, would voluntarily hava accepted so small a dividend.

Adjourned till to-morrow,

NINTH DAY,

Saturday, 12th June, 1858, at 12 o'clock Noon. Present,-All the Members.

'NG MUN SOW,-Called and examined.

I am Interpreter at the Police Court. I have known a female in this colony called Shaplok, about three or four years. She has no other name to my knowledge. I do not think she is married- she now lives in Queen's Road West. I last saw her about two months ago. She was about two years ago a keeper of a brothel in Hillier Street.

( 25 )

I cannot tell when she ceased keeping a brothel, nor do last few days charged with receiving stolen property. This I know whether she keeps one now. I have known Mrs was also before Mr Mitchell; the case was dismissed. Caldwell since about five or six years ago. I know that The charge was made upon the information of a prisoner Shaplok is an adopted sister of Mrs Caldwell, and the fol--the man convicted of unlawful possession of the property. lowing are my reasons for knowing. Before Mrs Caldwell's The Magistrate made no remarks upon the case when I was formerly employed at Dr conversion she frequently came to my house to visit my he discharged me. wife. Shaplok also had a son who had been a pupil of Legge's mission house. I have never been discharged by mine for about two years. Mrs Caldwell told me she had him; but was once suspended from Church fellowship. a nephew, and that she wanted him to go to school-his 1 decline to state for what reason I was suspended. Since name was Akow, and he was the son of Shaplok. By the I became Interpreter at the Chief Magistrate's Office, I term "adopted sister" I mean that Mrs Caldwell when a have often interpreted before Mr Mitchell, and have been child was adopted by the mother of Shaplok. By Chinese also examined as a witness by him. After my suspension usage such adoption makes Mrs Caldwell the adopted sister by Dr Legge I was employed three or four years, and my of Shaplok. There are two senses in which we use the conduct as far as I know during that time was satisfactory. word adopted; the sense in which I use it here means that [The Chinese female Assow referred to in Mr May's the adopted child becomes the brother or sister of the real evidence was summoned, but was found to be absent from child. There is another expression-"pocket children" the Colony.] which applies to those who are purchased. I know of this adoption by having been told of it by Mrs Caldwell and Akow. I do not know whether Mrs Caldwell has another sister, and do not know the name Chun Atsoo. I know nothing of my own knowledge of Mrs Caldwell's history previous to my acquaintance with her five or six years ago.

I know nothing of charges 2, 5, 14, 15, and 17.

Mrs

Cross-examined, I have personally visited Shaplok's brothel about eighteen months or two years ago. It was opposite the Taicheong hong. (Corrects himself. I never was told by Mrs Caldwell that she was the adopted daughter of Shaplok's mother. Mangtai told me so. Caldwell only told me that Shaplok was her sister. The term used by her for sister might mean a sister by blood or by usage. Mangtai is a brother of Shaplok; according to his own explanation he is an adopted son of Shaplok's mother. There is a custom amongst Chinese girls whereby they become sworn sisters of each other. There are sworn brothers also. The general object is to bind themselves together for mutual support and assistance. The children of sworn sisters have no relationship amongst each other. I was present at the Central Station about ten days ago when Aping the silversmith was brought in to Mr May's private room by Lyons. Mr May asked him what he had got to say; Aping asked me "What for." I then directed his attention to Mr May. Lyons said to him, "did you not tell me that you knew something about Mr Caldwell?" -he said that he did not know anything except from hearsay he did not say what he had heard. I was once charged with perjury about a month or two before

before joined the Chief Magistrate's Office five years ago, Mr Mitchell the Assistant Magistrate. The Magistrate did not, to the best of my belief, say that he had no doubt of my guilt, but that from the conflicting evidence he was I will not say so positively. compelled to discharge me.

I do not believe he said that if ever I came to give evid- ence before him he would not believe a word I said what I understood him to say was that he would never I have been within the allow me to interpret for him.

ALEXANDRE GRAND-PRE-Recalled.

On having my attention drawn to the letter of 24 Decem- ber last from the Acting Colonial Secretary to the Superin- tendent of Police, I perceive that I am attached to the Registrar General's department second in rank and subor- dinate to the Registrar General, and that I and my staff are expected to co-operate generally in the service of the department, when not employed in the discharge of our peculiar duties; but I desire to explain to the Commission, that I have never been upon any occasion called upon by the Registrar General to assist or take part in the peculiar duties of his Office, nor have I ever done so. My time has been fully occupied in the discharge of my own duties.

D, R. CALDWELL,-Called and examined as to char- ges 2, 5, 14, 15, 16 and 17.

I had not then, and I have not now, any direct or indirect interest in lots 206, 263, 264, or the lot in the Western Market purchased by Lum Ateen through me from Mr Woods. It was a bona fide sale and purchase between Mr Woods and Lum Ateen. I remember having a conversa- tion with Lyons, as to the party-walls on lot 206, when I told him that the man to whom they belonged had request- ed me to speak to the Surveyor General, and that he wished to pull down the corner wall and rebuilt it. I never told him, nor was there anything in my manner which could have led him to suppose that I was the owner of, or in any I spoke to the Surveyor way interested in, the house. General,

About the latter end of February last, my old Comprador Sze-kai came to me, and said that he wanted to pay the ground rent for Lum Ateen's lots, as he had requested him to do so. He asked how much it was, and requested mo to give him a note, so that he might take the money up to the Treasury. This reminded me that I had not paid the ground rent for Chun Atsoo's lots. I said, "the ground rent is about $50, and as I shall go up to-day to pay the