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at all. It is because of these facts that I desire in the name of the Unofficial Members of this Council to protest against statements which have been made widely and publicly at Home both by the Press and by certain individuals which are
a slur upon the good name and Government of this Colony, which are without foundation in fact and malicious in character.
HON. MR. E. V. D. PARR: I desire to support in the strongest possible manner the remarks that the hon. member for the Chamber of Commerce has made in protest against the exaggerated absurdities that have appeared in the Home press upon this subject. As an instance I would mention that when I was at Home some two years ago I visited some relations at a well-known English watering place and accompanied them to the Parish Church. The good Vicar who preached-dpropos of nothing that I could see-began inveighing against the British Colony of Hong Kong for selling Chinese girls in the public market place. "These are not Angles," he said, “but angels.' need not say, I took the first occasion to put the reverend gentleman right on the facts as we know them here and he told me that he had obtained his facts and figures from the public Press at home and that he would correct the misstatements that he had made to his congregation on the following Sunday. It has not been usual since I have had the honour of being a member of this Council for the Unofficials to address the Council on the third reading of a Bill, but I do not consider any apology is needed in this instance, and if it serves to give more weight to our protest against those exaggerated absurdities to which we have referred then, I think the end is justified by the means.
HON. MR. A. G. STEPHEN: Your Excellency, I would like to associate myself with the two hon. members who have just spoken in protesting against the imputations upon the good name of the Colony. In all the speeches made on this Bill the one that struck me as being most propos was that of the Attorney-General in introducing it. After going through the Objects and Reason" damning the Bill with faint praise," She finally reached the impotent conclusion that the measure had to be passed because the system was one which was open to abuse, and grave abuse, at the hands of unscrupulous persons. Well, Sir, he could have said the same about the office he fills with such distinction himself—it is an office that is open to abuse at the hands of unscrupulous persons; and he might have said the same about the position I happen to hold in the Colony: it is distinctly open to abuse in the hands of unscrupulous persons. But what he would have said, I venture to say, if he had been speaking his own mind was this: "We do not think this Bill is any use, but we have got to pass it, because we have been told to." This agitation at Home I do not take so seriously as my unofficial colleagues do, because I have seen so often a similar kind of thing before-people seeking cheap advertisement are quite willing to assume that we Englishmen when we come East of Suez leave behind all we ever learned of humanity and charity. When they see an opportunity of gaining some cheap notoriety they will find some tame Member of Parliament to put questions to the Colonial Office and the harassed Secretary of State for the Colonies ultimately decides that the balance of advantage is to get this Government to pass a Bill which will shut the mouths of these stupid bores in Parlia- ment. Many of the races ruled by the British Government in various parts of the world have habits and customs which do not come up to the standard of Exeter Hall, but it has always been our wise policy to leave them alone in that respect unless, of course, those customs are such as to outrage humanity. I should like to have seen the Secretary of State for India, for instance, sending orders to the Viceroy to disturb some of the customs which are far less innocent and far less humane than the mui-tsai system in this Colony. No, they know very well they cannot do that because local opinion is too strong for them. But here with a Legislative Council that is powerless to oppose the wishes of the Government, they do not scruple, in order to secure peace and quiteness at Home, to set aside the wishes of the majority of the people in this Colony. One thing I would say in conclusion is that the support of the Bill came from a most extraordinary combination of bodies: the Chinese Y.M.C.A. and the labour unions. Anyone who knows anything of the inside history of the Colony could say perfectly well that that support of the Bill is—I hesitate to describe it perhaps it is best to describe it as a fake. There can be nothing in common or in sympathy between the labour unions and the Y.M.C.A. and they join together on this occasion for reasons far different from any consideration for the welfare of mui-tsai.
H.E. THE GOVERNOR: I think, Gentlemen, I would rather not say anything furthe on the subject, except that I desire to associate myself with the Unofficial Members in resenting the offensive and foul-mouthed libels on the Chinese race which hav been a feature of the British Press on this subject, instigated thereto by persons some of who I believe have been influenced by genuine philanthropic motives but but some of whom it is perfectly clear were instigated only by motives of self- advertisement.
The third reading of the Bill was then approved and the measure passed accord- ingly.
The Council then adjourned until Thursday next, 22nd February.
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