Sessional_Paper_1901 — Page 857

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A. Yes, I have myself had difficulty and many others. I have been here for 37 and I have had coolies for as long as seventeen years in my service before the last one of them died. He became sick and I was afraid he might get plague and he himself wanted to go away, and he, being my servant for seventeen years, asked me for $25 and I gave him it. He went off with his brother. At that time there was a typhoon. In three days, his brother came back and said that, on account of the ty phoon the steam-launch could not reach his country and the master of the steam-launch had brought her back to Hongkong and would not go back again. He said I must lend him another $30 to charter a private launch-the brother too had been in my ser- vice for fifteen years nearly. In 1895 I had to go to Bombay and during my absence one of these coolies went to my representative saying he wished to go to his country, but, when I came back, I found he was engaged running a street ricksla. I said Why did

you leave?" He said he could not agree with my representative. I said he must come back, but he would not come back, though his other brother was with me till the last moment. The brother came and asked this second loan of thirty dollars.

I gave it

to him and he came back and said his brother was dead and the money had !! been spent on funeral expenses. He brought me a few eggs and said his mother had sent him. I said "All right; I don't want the eggs, but you have taken a loan of $30 from me and you must return it to me, and come back to my service. He never returned, and I see him still running a street ricksha. In the year 1898, I had a little robbery from my drawing room, some ornaments were stolen, and I prosecuted the coolies, and they were sent to gaol for three or four weeks. Since then, I could not get any coolies. I have now coolies but I don't know their languages, very few people could understand them. On the 1st of this month I had two more coolies for nine dollars each, that is for chair work. They took my wife to the Bowen Road. Next day, at noon, I the foot of Ice House Street. They took me up. I live at No. 2, Seymour Terrace. At four o'clock, my wife wanted to visit. They said "We can't give you chair.

We have carried master and we are tired." I have seen coolies- several of our brokers' coolies-they go to the coolie kun and you will see them in the street working with the street chairs and next day you will see them half dead or dozing when you want them.

asked them to come to

Mr. Badeley. Do they go and carry public chairs?

A. Yes they do.

The Chairman.-They must be licensed for that purpose.

Witness. I don't know whether they take out licences or not; but I can assure you that it is quite true.

Mr. Wilcox.-I have heard that they take the place of the public chair coolies for the time being.

Witness. For the last two or three years, I have been taking chairs from Jardine's Office to my house. They used to carry me for fifteen cents. There is a strong com- bination now and I have given their names to Inspector Mackie, who forced me to pay twenty cents. I pay them their legal fare. I can well afford to pay twenty cents but it would be a great hardship on others if the charge went up so high.

The Chairman.—I take it that the Parsees here are experiencing difficulties iu obtaining reliable servants?

A. That is so. Now-a-days the coolies are most awful,

Q.-That being so, Mr. Byramjee, can you give us a reason for this difficulty? Why won't men stop in their employment?

A. They want such light work as carrying you once or twice not three or four times a day, and, after leaving your service, and you prosecute them, they don't like your service again.