COLONIAL SECRETARY'S OFFICE,
HongKong, 20th October, 1868.
In 6879/44
295
SIR,
1. The attention of His Excellency SIR RICHARD GRAVES MACDONNELL has been recently called to a Memorial addressed by the Standing Committee of the Social Science Association to His Grace the Secretary of State for the Colonies praying that an immediate stop should be put to the system adopted here of permitting Gambling in certain Houses licensed by Government and subject to Police surveillance.
2. In Paragraph 5 of that Memorial the following passage occurs: "Since the Summer of 1866, when the first Ordinance was passed, the farm had been created by the local Authorities, put up by them to sale, and granted to the highest bidder."
3. That assertion is not merely incorrect, but is even totally opposed to all the details fully given in a series of despatches which must have been at the time before the Committee, because they allude to and quote from them. The Governor therefore is persuaded that the Committee will at once ensure to this contradiction as wide a publicity as to the original misstatement.
4. It is true that the mischief caused by circulating an incorrect version of actual facts, especially when so framed as to support the argument of those who use such a weapon, seldom admits of any adequate reparation. No acknowledgment of such wrongful proceeding, particularly, as must be the case here, when not extracted till months subsequently and perhaps after close of the discussion affected thereby, can undo the mischief which it may have caused. Nevertheless the right of the party misrepresented to require even that inadequate reparation is indisputable.
5. In the present case, it must be conceded that this Government has been most completely misrepresented on the very point as to which it was easiest and most unfair to excite popular prejudice. To speak of this Government as selling the Licenses in question to "the highest bidder," is to imply that it was animated by a sordid motive of greed.
6. Such a statement is a very extraordinary misrepresentation of facts recorded in documents to which the Committee refer and had access. All SIR RICHARD GRAVES MACDONNELL'S despatches in connection with the subject to the end of last April, were before the Committee, having been presented to the House of Lords last June.
7. It would be idle to repeat here the various details given in those despatches as to the anxiety of this Government to deal with a great public evil without reference to the question of Revenue. The Committee can refer to them, if they wish, but I am instructed to beg their special attention to Paragraph 6 in
To
G. W. Hastings, Esquire,
Secretary of the Social Science Association,
¡
X
COLONIAL SECRETARY'S OFFICE,
HoxgKong, 20th October, 1868.
In 6879/44
295
SIR,
1. The attention of His Excellency SIR RICHARD GRAVES MACDONNELL has been recently called to a Memorial addressed by the Standing Committee of the Social Science Association to His Grace the Secretary of State for the Colonies praying that an immediate stop should be put to the system adopted here of permitting Gambling in certain Houses licensed by Government and subject to Police surveillance.
2. In Paragraph 5 of that Memorial the following passage occurs: "Since the "Summer of 1866, when the first Ordinance was passed, the farm had been created "by the local Authorities, put up by them to sale, and granted to the highest "bidder."
3. That assertion is not merely incorrect, but is even totally opposed to all the details fully given in a series of despatches which must have been at the time before the Committce, because they allude to and quote from them. The Governor therefore is persuaded that the Committee will at once ensure to this contradiction as wide a publicity as to the original misstatement.
4. It is true that the mischief caused by circulating an incorrect version of actual facts, especially when so framed as to support the argument of those who use such a weapon, seldom admits of any adequate reparation. No acknowledgment of such wrongful proceeding, particularly, as must be the case here, when not extracted till months subsequently and perhaps after close of the discussion affected thereby, can undo the mischief which it may have caused. Nevertheless the right of the party misrepresented to require even that inadequate reparation is indisputable.
5. In the present case, it must be conceded that this Government has been most completely misrepresented on the very point as to which it was easiest and most unfair to excite popular prejudice. To speak of this Government as selling the Licenses in question to "the highest bidder," is to imply that it was animated by a sordid motive of greed.
6. Such a statement is a very extraordinary misrepresentation of facts recorded in documents to which the Committee refer and had access. All SIR RICHARD GRAVES MACDONNELL'S despatches in connection with the subject to the end of last April, were before the Committee, having been presented to the House of Lords last June.
7. It would be idle to repeat here the various details given in those despatches as to the anxiety of this Government to deal with a great public evil without reference to the question of Revenue. The Committee can refer to them, if they wish, but I am instructed to beg their special attention to Paragraph 6 in
To
G. W. Hastings, Esquire,
Secretary of the Social Science Association,
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.