CO129-348 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1908 [7-10] — Page 323

:

:

Enclosure 1.

P Y.

3932.

sir,

C. 0.

33 989

RECE

319

Hongkong, 4th August, 1908.

REGE 17 SEP 08

I have the honour to inform you that I have

made inquiries concerning the circumstances in which the

Indians in question left Hongkong for German New Guinea and

have ascertained from the Agents of the North German Lloyd,

Messrs. Melchers and Company here, the following particulars.

A great number of Indians appeared un-

-expected on the 3rd. of March in the office of the North

German Lloyd and asked for a passage for German New Guinea. As

such passengers had not been carried formerly, and as the rules

about landing of such men in New Guinea were unknown to the

Agents here, they cabled to the North German Lloyd in Bremen,

who comunicated through their Berlin agency with the Foreign

Office at Berlin. As there were no objections raised against

the shipping of Indians to Simpsonhafen, the Agents here had no

reason, to refuse the application of the Indians for passages;

consequently over 300 of them were shipped by the S. S. "Prinz

Sigismund" and S. S. "Manila". After the departure of the latter

steamer the Agents here received a cable fron Simpsonhafen,

asking them not to send any more Indians to New Guinea,

where-

-upon the Agents stopped booking. The booking of the passages

had been done through two Indian brokers of whom one sailed by

the S. S. "Manila" for Simpsonhafen, the name of the second one is Kahair Singh, c/o Opium Farm. These brokers told Messrs. Melchers and Company that several thousands of Indians had

applied to them for a passage to New Guinea.

As the Governor of German New Guinea informa

me

the employment of the Indians was thwarted by their im- -moderate deriands. Workmen asked up to 400 Marks (cr. £20) and

unskilled