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Q.--Is it necessary to continue to supply the Pó Léung Kuk with detectives?
A.-I think so. The detectives, I think, are indispensable.
Honourable Ho KAI.-Many members of the Committee of the Pó Léung Kuk are not personally known to the Superintendent of Police, are they?
A.-I think the great majority of them are not known.
Q.-The majority could not speak or write English?
A.-No.
Q.-So there would be some difficulty in communicating direct with the Superinten- dent of Police ?
A. Yes.
Q-But they could do so with the Registrar General ?
A. Yes.
Q.-Now about the Pó Leung Kuk detectives. You say they might do evil, they might accept bribes, be corrupted, &c.?
A. Yes.
Q-Is there so much chance for them to become corrupted as in the Police Force? A. Quite as much I think.
Q. Are they not much more open to detection when they are under a Committee of Chinese gentlemen who know most of their tricks pretty well? Take your own case. When you were Vice-President of the Pó Leung Kuk, don't you think you were in a better position to detect crime of that sort in your detectives than the Superintendent of Police could in his force?
A. Certainly, because if we heard anything suspicious we might dismiss him.
Q.-But I mean in detecting it. Don't you think that being Chinese you are in a better position to detect crime of that kind in your detectives?
A. Yes.
Q.-Accordingly, your detectives, or those placed under you would have less chance of doing evil, because they are more easily detected?
A.—I don't think so. They might be more easily detected, but they would have just as many chances.
Q-Would they dare to take those chances? Suppose you are more liable to detection you would be unwilling to take the risk so much. Do you think that the detectives employed by the Pó Leung Kuk, knowing that the Pó Leung Kuk Committee could receive information direct from the parties aggrieved or that they could hear of the facts much more easily, dare accept bribes to any great extent ?
A.-I do not see why they dare not.
Q.—Is it not a matter of fact that people won't do so much evil if they know that detection is more certain? Is it not-as a philosophical question?
A.-It may be SO.
Q.-Reasonably you would expect that a man will not so readily commit a crime if he is easily detected than if he knows that detection will be difficult?
A. Yes.
Q.-Now in the case of the Pó Leung Kuk detectives. As a matter of fact you know the easy detection under ordinary circumstances?
A. Yes, it would to a certain extent prevent corruption.
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