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It is respectfully submitted without fear of contradiction that the Indian money lenders of this Colony are a law-abiding class against whom no charge can be brought except one based on the supposed immorality of usury.
It is most respectfully submitted that if this Section is approved in principle that part commencing "and who (b) satisfies the Captain Superintendent of Police" should be omitted as it may very well happen that some of us during the month following the commencement of this bill may be ill or out of employment.
14. It is respectfully submitted that if Your Petitioners correctly interpret the "reasons" for the bill, the bill was intended to provide a corps of police watch- men. If such a corps is desirable it seems equally desirable that it should be under proper discipline as is provided by the bill. Nowhere however can any reason be found why such an admirable bill should be married to provisions so wide in their scope. Registration of watchmen in principle does not appear in any way contrary to the spirit of freedom of contract. It is only in the compulsory parts of the bill as applied to private watchmen that the rights of the individual citizen are interfered with. It is respectfully submitted that the efficiency either of a corps of watchmen or of a system of registration of watchmen can best be tested by a voluntary system. If employers find police watchmen better than private watchmen surely the private watchmen will lose their employment. If on the other hand employers find private watchmen better than police watchmen, it does not seem unreasonable that they should be allowed to employ those who serve them best, and who are under their own control.
15. Your petitioners therefore pray that the bill be so amended as to exclude all provisions of a compulsory nature which Your Petitioners consider unworkable, unjust, discriminatory, inequitable and unfair and to represent an attack on a loyal and provident class composed of natural born British subjects.
And Your Petitioners will ever pray, etc.
Dated this 2nd day of April, 1928.
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