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4. What is the legal position under the Ordinance of the mui-tsai acquired else- where and imported since the date of the enactment of the Ordinance, whether their em- ployers accompany them or are already resident in the Colony?

5. Should addition to paragraph 4 of the Ordinances be enacted so as to provide that no mui-tsai may be brought into the Colony for services in that capacity?

6. Can you obtain e.g. through H. M. Consul General a copy of the regulations. alleged to have been promulgated in Canton abolishing the system and a report on the practical result if any.

7. If importation of fresh mui-tsai cannot be prevented is it to be understood that you consider effective abolition of the system in Hong Kong must wait until that im- portation ceases. If not how can the institution be brought to an end earlier?

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 purchase price in the case of mui-tsai who have run away. I shall be glad of your observations on this and other allegations in the same article.

9. It is constantly alleged that mui tsai are a regular source of recruitment for prostitution. Can any further safeguard against this be introduced?

10. In the unlikely event of a large number of mui-tsai leaving their houses as a result of any measures taken is it quite impossible to supplement the accommodation in Po Leung Kuk by temporary arrangements.

AMERY.

No. 20.

DESPATCH FRom Governor to SecretaRY OF STATE.

16th May, 1929.

Sir,

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your telegram dated 20th April, in which you ask me to furnish by despatch as soon as I can further infor- mation, as complete as possible, on ten points concerning the mui-tsai question. I propose to take up these points one by one and to deal with each of them, although not in the order in which they are set out in your telegram; but before doing so, I desire to state very definitely that the abolition of the mui-tsai system is the settled and declared policy of this Government. Our difficulty is to ensure that this policy is made effective in practice. This difficulty is due to the fact that Hong Kong, geographically speaking, forms part of the Kwangtung province, in which the system is still prevalent, and that Hong Kong cannot effectively abolish the mui-tsai system unless and until the authorities of the Kwangtung province do likewise.

2. It is desirable that I should explain in the first instance what the mui-tsai system really was according to Chinese custom and law as it stood prior to the reforms" which followed the revolution. When a girl was bought in China as a mui-tsai, the following obligations on the part of the purchaser arose :—

(a) The mui-tsai was to be considered as a member of the family. The word mui-tsai translated literally into English is "little sister", a polite term for ser- vant girls. This name in itself shows that the mui-tsai was expected to be treated properly and, as a matter of fact, she occupied a better position in the family than did a paid servant.

(b) The master or mistress was responsible for the care of her person, food, clothing and for medical attendance in the case of illness.