1937-03-02 — Page 18

THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH, TUESDAY, MARCH 2, 1987.

Watson's

YE OLDE

ENGLISH LAVENDER WATER

A delicately fragrant bouquet of the finest Mitcham Lavender

Possessing all the distinguishing and surpassing qualities of this fina English porfume.

the ideal choice for general and sickroom usa

STARRING The Spotlight

Cara

of 1937

Exciting Smart Now STUDEBAKERS

Impressively Magnificent Now Style... New Economy... New Roominess... New Lug. gage Space..

... New Safety ... New Engineering... New Value,

In handsome actinic green globe sprinkler bottles

SEE THEM

·

$1.25, $2.50 & $4.50

TRY THEM

ONE NIGHT ON THE SPANISH FRONT

A. S. Watson & Co., Limited.

ESTD: 1841.

TEL, 2001G.

NOW ON SALE

"H.M.V." and

"REX"

RECORDS FOR FEBRUARY

All the Popular Artists Featured

"

are

by "H.M.V." and

Latest Recordings

GET BEHIND THE WHEEL AND THRILL TO THE BRILLIANT NEW STUDE- BAKER PERFORMANCE,

Hongkong Hotel Garage

Phone 27778-9

Stubbs Rd.

WE

called it the white house, though it - was

really a cluster of houses

and farms. In the centre was the National Guard building, with a yard beyond leading to three small houses; on the left was a large farm with stables and cowsheds beyond. Both residence, 111 Robinson Road, 10 were joined by a long wall.

DEATH

IU KU-UN-On March 1, ut his

Ku-un, After £1 short liners. Aged 59.

The

Hongkong Telegraplı.

Tuesday, Manch 2, 1937.

THE MUI-TSAI PROBLEM

Perhaps the most important consequence of the visit of the

Fifty yards away on the right was a small brick building and next to it a fort. Behind the farm, loomed the two towers of the University of Madrid- Fascist stronghold. Facing it was a hen-house-and the hens

By Esmond Romilly

Winston Churchill's nephew, who is back from fighting urth the International Brigade. Three years ago, aged 15, he disappeared from Wellington College, reappeared in London, edited a students' anti-war magazine called "Out of Bounds," was then sent to Bedale's co-educational school. Last year he sudden- ly gave up a job in London. Was next heard of in Spain

[

We spent the rest of the day were still there though this is consolidating our positions, dig- our precarious outpost.

ging ourselves in.

retaken twice before.

grenade settled all four of them. But on our right things had not gone so well. The Red fort was ideally built for defence, and enemy machine-gung had taken a heavy toll of the attackers.

Too weak to hold the stables while the National Guard house and fort were still unoccupied, we retired in the evening, taking our dead with us. All night the. enemy kept up an incessant bombardment of the farm and raked it with machine-guns from their positions on the right. So we did not miss much.

The next day was quiet, but the day after we attacked again. Having attained the wall with- a dash for the cover of a cow. out many losses we had orders. shed. We then had the task of to make a line to the extreme advancing from shed to shed to left. For a start five of us had the end of the farm, while to dash out with spades and dig another section did the same ourselves in behind trees. All, night the enemy raked the thing opposite us. The first

It was a miracle we get to our road behind us with machine door was bolted. gun fire, but we were well pro-

trees with bullets whistling all tected and suffered no casualties. the butts of our

As we crashed it down with round us. Once there, I found rifles bullets the spade too heavy to use, and A patrol of theirs, consisting of whistled over our heads. We tore up the earth with my hands, four men, was spotted by our hurled in four hand grenades. while the bullets thudded into snipers in the henhouse and Advancing in this way, we came the trees in front.

These houses---already partly ablaze from intensive artillery Mui-Tsai Commission to Hong bombardment-were our objec- kong is that ita voluminous re-tive. They had been taken and port places on record, for all 'REX”— Call and Hear their

interested to sec, a disinterested and unbiassed survey of the The Thaelmann battalion whole system of Chinese went into action at dawn, ad- domestic service. In particular,vancing in single file down a annihilated. It serves to illustrate the ex-road that was under intermit treme difficulties of reform here tent machine-gun fire. By nine ed. Four of our tanks moved The next morning we attack-

in Hongkong, by reason of our

fierce battle was down the road and we advanced, geographical link with China, raging on our right from the stopping every ten yards to send

flourishes, despite its supposed silence.

machine-guns were dragged into abolition. Well-meaning but

A patrol of six men-in which position and we could see them misinformed people, both inside I was included was sent for- take a heavy toll of the Moorish the House of Commons and outward to investigate. We reach marksmen opposite. Their fir side, will no longer be able to ed the fort, expecting every ing ceased and we advanced to make absurd and sweeping al- moment to be our last, and the wall with bayonets fixed. legations of official connivance in entered. There was an ecrie

The section I was with made

o'clock,

& CO., LTD. were the mui-tsal system still Red fort there was complete

S. MOUTRIE & CO., LTD.

York. Building

BY APPOINTMENT

Lincoln

Bennell

Style

Chater Road

HATS

Quality

Perfection

ARE ONLY OBTAINED BY TRADITIONS BUILT UP IN 'LINCOLN BENNETT'S' FACTORIES BY GENERATIONS OF EXPERIENCE GIVING THAT SKILL AND KNOW- LEDGE NECESSARY FOR THE SATISFACTION OF INDIVIDUAL NEEDS

SOLE AGENTS:-

MEN'S WEAR DEPT.

It was our

We were

shelling the place. Their range own artillery,

a

trench over

mortars. Our

¿

across some 40 dead and wound- ed Moora before we reached our objective.

Opposite, from the back of the farm, we could hear the crack the of the enemy's rifles and rat-tat-tat of their machine

From our new positions wegung as they swept us with fire. could see clusters of the enemy. One of us was killed outright,. round a bend of the road. They but within an hour the rest of seemed to be in disorder and us had dug ourselves in to some when we opened fire retreated kind of cover. More men joiried.. rapidly. Suddenly one of our us, and we wore able ourselves. men dropped dead a few to pick off many of the enemy.. snipers were still holding out in Finally we advanced, at the an upper storey. One hand- same time as our forces made ап assault on the National. Guard building.

Mentality of War Babies

a system of child slavery, with-silence, broken suddenly by a out running the risk of having splintering crash; their charges exposed as being covered with dust and bricks fell contrary to the facts. So far as all round us. this Colony is concerned, the mui-taal system has long since been abolished: mui-tsal in exis- was all too accurate, so we re- tence when the abolition law was turned to report. Returning, passed are kept under observa- we encountered withering what extent, if any, did the War tion by the process of registra-burst of fire which took one fatal

T affect infants born during the tion; it is an offence to bring casualty.

period of hostilitlen? The question new ones into the Colony. Actu-

has been raised afresh by comments Jally, of course, there is a con- What had happened was that made by the East Riding Coroner.

stant inflow of mul-tsai from our bombardment had made

Recording a verdict of "Suleide China, and it is this circumstance them take up positions outside while

of unsound mind," Mr. . which makes

the fort, and we had walked Holtby observed, "I do not think that extremely difficult to wipe out the system right through their lines and the young people of to-day--those

out again! entirely here. Such recommen- datons ns are made in the: majority report are largely in dissenting Commissioner, Miss the nature of strengthening the Picton-Turbervill, emphasises. existing laws for dealing with Hence her plea, which appears the problem. This will involve well based, that all girl servants a larger personnel in the inspec-under the age of twelve years

it

torate, which certainly appears who are not in the control of to be necessary if a real grip is their parents, should come un-

to be kept on the evil. Other der the notice of the authorities.

that were born or brought up during the wor yeurs-have, to put it vulgarly, the "guts" which the young

people and 50 or 60 years ago.

A well-known Glasgow doctor who work at the time of the War-in had a large experience of maternity addition to his own practice he was colleagues who were on active looking after those of two of his vice and who has been able to keep brought into the world during that time, states that, in his opinion, the babies has been much exaggrated, Panel Experience

in touch with many of the 'Infants he

concerned, was such as to cause me a moment's anxiety.

Not one of the bobles was lost. Not one of the mothers developed a tem- perature. Many of the 1914-18 Infants at whose birth I was present, I have watched growing up. Many of them are now on my panel.

Here they fought their way from room to room, and, as, the: scattered remnants of the Moors. retreated from the yard at the back, they were an easy target. for our rifles.

By six o'clock only the redi fort was in their hands. The houses beyond the National If the clrcumstances in which they Guard building were No Man's were barn make 1914-18 children Land. That night we occupied. compare so unfavourably, S alleged, with children born in pre- the former, and all the next day

Wor years, how does it happen that as well. Every piece of furni- so few of my 18, 19, 20, and 21- years-old panel patients have occa-

ture was covered with blood sion to consult me, and that the aver- and the signs of violent struggle age age of the big majority of the and the stairs were stacked. see in a profesional capacity is round younger patients on my list whom I

with the bodies of the dead. about 277

Changed Times

that War-time children have not view of the Red fort, was con- People who are Inclined to hold The corner on the right, in the guts which young people had 50 tinually under fire. During the how different are post-War from pre-

sensible proposals are that there It is beyond dispute that the alleged effect of the War on War-time or 60 years ago," are apt to forget day we dug holes and strengthen-

of

War social conditions. Very few, one ed our positions at night wo might almost put it, none of us, but have been affected by the change, kept up a continual vigil, Four

of us lay behind sandbags facing Our War babies have grown up under the new condtions. It is fair the right-hand corner. ..a to compare them, to their disadvan- sudden movement ahead and we tuge, with the children and young blazed away. folks of half-n-century p?

should be greater publicity, in absence of any provision the form of posters and pamph-requiring régistration of lets, acquainting girl servants adopted daughters does leave We hear all sárta of fantastle stories of their real status in law; the a loophole

+ which makes (he observea) of children, bom be- payment of the sorvants' wages | evasion

the law rela- tween 1914 and 1018 being excitable, highly-strung, lacking self-control, direct to the Secretary for tively easy. Miss Picton- and this, that, and the next thing. Chinese Affairs, on their behalf; Tubervill's main proposa: would

This is supposed to be due to the certainly be of value in keeping strain under which and the Introduction of women track of those who, whilst they were living at the time they were across a boy or a girl with peculiari victim, an old donkey that had their mothers Here and there we may come The next morning we saw our on the Committee of the Po might not be numerous, are born. Bear in mind there was a ties which may be the result of the Leung Kuk, an institution con-exploited under existing condi- specially tragic element in many of War-time strain from which his or taken a walk in the wrong cerned with the protection of tions. Whatever the final out those births many of the mothers her mother was suffering at the time direction.

were widows; many weren't even they were born. But such cases are women and children. Withoutcome of the recommendations | wives.

the rare exception, not the common question, the law as it at present put forward in the majority and

rule.

Inside the house----undamaged exists has made a distinct im- minority reports, the document women if, as their hour of travail ap- No one could have blamed these pression on the evil, and if still as a whole can be described as a proached, they had, in popular phrase, end of this war-time baby mentality" modern radio sot. With trench It is more than time there was on through some miracle-was a more rigidly enforced, will oven-model piece of work, character-gone all to pieces." And yet, in ali twaddle. It is hanging like a mill mortars occasionally falling in tion of the system in Hongkong, part of the investigators to deal day), I do not recall a single one in judleing employers against them B.B.C. announcer tell us about. years (once I had seven on a Sun were bom in the War years, and pre-. the yard outside, we heard, the But the process is necessarily fairly with all interests in a which the condition of the mother, so when they apply for a job.; a slow one, a point which the problem of immense complexity, for as the state of her nerves was

8.R. the abdication of the King.

LANE, CRAWFORD, LTD. tualty result in the total aboli-ised by an obvious antioty on fine the cages I had, during these four alone round the reck of those who