CO129-255 - Governor Sir Robinson - 1892 [5-7] — Page 53

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prevent the system of substitution which used to obtain. A woman would pass the Emigration officer, and just before the vessel sailed another one would be put in her place another ticket handed to her. But it was arranged that every female emigrant would have two photographs one of which, bearing the stamp of the Emigration office, and the initials of the Emigration officer, she took with her the other was recorded - so if a woman had been under a wrongful influence when she was before the officers for the purpose of seeing that she knew what she was doing, and had been wrongfully taken from her home, her peo- ple by looking over the departed Emigrants photo-

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graph book could see where she had gone and try and re – cover her. The bearing with them their own photo soon stopped the substitution, but it is almost impos- sible to meet a case such as the one to which I think you refer the girls recognise the purchaser - will say he is their father & near relative that they are not purchased that they want to go to Singapore- that they perfectly know?) what they are doing - and

are very much obliged to the officer for his kindness

in telling them of their right to be free, but that

if they are not allowed to go with their relative they

will starve or be thrown into a brothel at Hong Kong

Want is to be done if one allows emigration at all?

Later on they find themselves away from British pro- tection, they then see that they have made a mistake and, I remember, that was the case of the girls in question who complained from some brothel in Jehore in Siam. This is a subject which has always interested

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