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The Chairman. Which is the harder work, carrying a public or carrying a private chair?
A. Carrying a street chair is harder work, no doubt, but I get more money. Q.-Have you been anything else except a public and private chair coolie since you came to the Colony?
A.-No.
Mr. Badeley. Are some stands better than others?
A. Yes.
Q. Which are the best stands ?
A.-Lyndhurst Terrace and the Clock Tower.
Q. Are you at one of these?
A. I am at the end of Peel Street, near Staunton Street.
Q. How is it determined among the coolies which stand a man shall frequent?
A. Because the coolies who have been frequenting the Clock Tower stand say they would not allow outsiders to come in.
Q. And I suppose you would not allow outsiders to come to yours ?
A.--I don't mean to say I would not allow them. While I was there, they would not come in, but directly I retire they come in.
Q. If you wanted to get a better place in some of the stands, could you do it by paying some money to the men established there?
I can't
A.-Well, I don't think they would accept it. I can only afford to pay one, pay the whole lot. There are a great number of chair coolies there and I would have to pay the whole lot.
LI KWAI declared:-
The Chairman.-What are you ?
A.-I am a ricksha coolie.
Q. What number?
A. No. 287.
Mr. Badeley. Do you mean that that is the number of
number?
A.-The number of the ricksha.
Q. How long have you been a ricksha puller ?
A.
-A little over a year.
Q. When did you come to Hongkong first ?
A.-Two years ago.
Q.-What did you do when you first came here ?
A. I was a street coolie over at Kowloon side.
Q.-At the Godowns ?
A. Yes.
your ricksha or your own
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