MEETING OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
April 18, 1889.
147
Present:-
A Meeting of the Legislative Council was held this afternoon. His Excellency Sir G. WILLIAM DES VŒUX, Governor; Hon. FREDERICK STEWART, Colonial Secretary; Hon. A. J. LEACH, Acting Attorney General; Hon H. E. WODEHOUSE, Acting Colonial Treasurer; Hou, N. G. MITCHELL-INNES, Acting Registrar-General; Hon. WoNG SHING, HON. C. P. CHATER, HON. J. J. KESWICK, and Mr. SETH, Clerk of the Councils. Absent; Hon. W. M. DEANE, Captain Superintendent of Police; Hon. P. Kruis; Ion B. LAYTON,
last
the
SUNDAY LABOUR IN THE HARBOUR.
Statement by the Governor.
HIS EXCELLENCY.--Before going further, I desire to refer to a subject which is of some importance to the community, especially to some members of it. During year I have had a number of petitions from various quarters praying for some measure by which there should be brought about a cessation of Sunday work in the harbour. Having very great sympathy with those who desire relief in this matter, and being anxious to afford that relief, to the extent of my ability, I have given the subject very full consideration. I have made inquiries in various quarters, and having at length come to the determination that it is out of my power to devise a measure which would at the same time effect the relief desired and be free of a very serious injury to the community, I think it only right that I should make public to some extent the considerations which have so far guided my judgment. In dealing with this matter, I found that those people who desired relief specially, are the Europeaus employed on vessels in the harbour, numbering, so far as I can make out, at the most a thousand, employed on vessels and on land in connection with vessels, and that of these a very large proportion being Hongkong only a few Sundays in year, would be benefitted only for those few Sundays. Then the question is:-- With a view to However desirable it is to benefit them, how can we benefit then? find how such benefit can be derived by workers in other parts of the world, I made enquiries of various countries, and I find that the means is practically one, namely, the closing of the Custom Houses on Suuday; for beyond a few obsolete statutes, can find no law on the subject anywhere. Sunday labour in a harbour ceases because the Custom House closos, and for no other reason. As we are fortunately without a Custom House in Hongkong, it is evident that means is not open to us, and there is no other alternative I know of, but a law enforcing the cessation of labour on Sunday either by fine or imprisonment. And that being the case, the next question that arises is, what must be the scope of such a law. am informed that it could not be confined entirely to European vessels; that at once a very great advantage would be given to Chinese vessels and junks, on the part of which the rivalry is already keen enough. We must therefore make a law applicable to all the vessels in the harbour without exception. But can we stop there? I doubt it. It would be scarcely possible to conceive men being sent to gaol for working in the harbour on Sunday, when they see thousands of their fellow-countrymen pursuing their usual avocations on land, and doing so without any molestation whatever.
venture to
say that not only would that be a great evil in itself, but it would destroy among the Chinese that reputation for justice in British law which has done so much to create the population and prosperity of Hongkong. But we could not stop there: we must inevitably make the law a law against all Sunday labour whatever out-of- doors. Can we even stop there? It is unnecessary to pursue the subject further, whether we can or not. I think it is even doubtful if we could stop at out-door work, but supposing we could stop there, it is quite evident there would be a very
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