60
and may be regarded as dead letters.
7. If importation of
fresh Muitsai cannot be
prevented is it to be
understood that you
consider effective
abolition of the system in
Hong Kong must wait until that importation ceases?
If not, how can the
institution be brought to
an end earlier?
(Para 18)
In the opinion of the
Governor and his advisers effective
abolition seems impossible except
by gradual education of the Chinese
community on this subject and by
slow, but constant, pressure and
discouragement of the system in every
possible way. The practice will
probably never entirely disappear
from this Colony unless and until
China really gives it up. It
colours all the Chinese population
that flows into Hong Kong. It
would be as hard to free Hong Kong
from it as to keep a space clear of
mud at the mouth of the Canton River.
8. It was alleged in a
leading article in the "Hong Kong Morning Post" of 6th
February, 1929, that the
Secretary for Chinese
Affairs assists in the
recovery of the purchase
price in cases of muitsai
who have run away. I shall
be glad of your observations
on this and other allegations
in the same article.
(Paras 10-11) It has for some time been a settled policy of the Hong Kong
Government not to assist any
person to recover money paid for the
Cases purpose of acquiring muitsai. have occurred in the past in which
individual officers, including
magistrates, have adopted a
different practice in order to
punish deliberate fraud.
The
Chinese Committee of the Po Leung
Kuk, under the influence of
Chinese custom, and actuated also
by the desire to secure fair
treatment
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