February 25, 1899.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
THE CHINESE RACE AND THE AP-| since the date of the Norman conquest,
PROACHING COLLAPSE OF
|
since when no foreign yoke has been impos- ed upon Eugland, China has twice had to accept foreign dynasties who established themselves by conquest.
151
Philpott, J. A. Guttieres, J. D. H. S. dom Remedios, F. J. V. Jorge, and C. L. Gorham,
The Hon. H. E. Pollock, Acting Attorney. General (instructed by Mr. H. L. Dennys, Crown Solicitor), appeared for the prosecution. He said prisoner in this case was charged with an offence under section 22 of Ordinance 4 of
THE HONGKONG AND SHANGHAI 1865, which read as follows: Whosover shall
BANK.
unlawfully and maliciously administer to or cause to be administered to or taken by any other thing, with intent to injure or aggieve or annoy person any poison or other destructive or noxious such person, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour.. Prisoner was a cook in the employ of Mrs. Wagner, who lived at Beryl, in Kowloon. He thought he was first employed as cook by Mrs. Wagner on the 1st of January of this year. It gardener for Mr. Holmes, who lived next door seemed that it was the custom of Lo Fung, ⠀ to Mrs. Wagner, to go into the next house to have his meals. Lo Fung would tell the jury that on the 10th of January last, about half- past seven in the morning, he was cooking. vegetables in the coolie kitchen in Mrs. Wagner's house, when prisoner came up to. him with a jar containing lard in his hand. Prisoner poured this lard into the pan in which Lo Fung was cooking the vegetables, saying at the same time "I give you this for you to cook your vegetables." Prisoner then took the jar away, but before doing so Lo Fung offered to wash it for him. Prisoner, however, said he did not want that. Shortly afterwards Lo Fung and five others sat down to their meal. After eating their meal five of them subsequently entirely unconscious. They re- who had eaten the vegetables became giddy and
mained unconscious for some considerable time Nor-for some hours, becau e when they recovered consciousuess they were in the Government Civil Hospital, where they remained until the next day. Two of them were rather badly would tell the jury that in his opinion the drug stopefied. Mr. Browne, Government Analyst,
THE GOVERNMENT.
(Daily Press, 23rd February.) In his remarks upon Mr. GRANVILLE SHARP's lecture delivered at the City Hall on Monday afternoon Colonel EVATT said he did not
agree with the lecturer's pessimistic views about China; the fact
(Daily Press 20th February.) that she existed at all was a sign that she The meeting of the shareholders of the could not be so worthless as some people Hongkong and Shanghai Bank on Saturday would have them believe; she still gov- passed off, as was to be expected in face of erued an enorinous part of the world; her the splendid results shown in the report, provinces were still keeping together; she most satisfactorily. While the directors had seen every Power that existed in this and the staff generally well deserve the world rise; there was not a Power which vote of thanks accorded to them, it is to existe 1 but was of mushroom growth beside Mr. THOMAS JACKSON, the Chief Manager, her; he had not the slightest fear himself that the Bank chiefly owes for China's future. But was not the Colonel magnificent position, and the announcement its present confusing the Chinese race with its political that Mr. JACKSON had consented to con- organisation? Mr. SHARP in the course of tinue in his present responsible post for a his lecture had paid a high tribute to further term of years naturally afforded the the many excellencies of the Chinese shareholders much gratification. The au- - race, his deprecatory references be-nouncement that it was intended to con- ing directed solely against the Govern- tinue the sound policy of adding to ment. The latter is domed, but no One the reserve fund--which now stands at can doubt that the Chinese as a race will $10,000,000, the amount of the capital, and always continue to play a prominent part at a much larger amount if regard be had in the world. The extreme measures to the writing down that has been done-was adopted in America and Australia to pre- also received with satisfaction. Indeed the vent Chinese immigration indicate the whole of the Chairman's speech, in so far as estimation in which the danger of Chinese it dealt exclusively with the affairs of the competition is held in those countries, and Bank, calls only for congratulation and in Oriental countries where no restrictions affords no room for adverse criticism. are placed upon them Chinese take the most in Mr. BELL-IRVING's remarks on the prominent position in trade and industry. political situation was there much to take But while the Chinese race is sound exception to, except perhaps that they did enough in its units, collectively it appears not go quite far enough. He expressed the to have lost the art of government and opinion that China will find herself forced to be incapable of resisting political more and more to allow foreign capital and aggression. The Rev, J. MACGOWAN, in enterprise to undertake the task of develop
History of China," referring to the ing the great natural resources of the em- fall of the last dynasty, says: "Thus pire. He might have added that she will "amidst bloodshed and disorder the Ming find herself forced more and more either to power vanished before its conqueror. It submit to foreign control in the administra- tion of the empire or to avail herself very largely of foreign assistance. The indications are that she will not willingly avail herself of the latter alternative and that some measure of foreign co: trol will have to be forced upon her. Whether that control shall be exercised by different Powers in different spheres or conjointly at Peking the future must be left to determine; in either case there will be a good deal of disturbance in the political atmosphere. Mr. BELL-IRVING is or opinion that "the "disturbance set up in the political atmos-
his
66
"f
#
喝喜
<<
at first owed its rise to the same unhappy "forces that finally caused it to disappear. We have no pity for the family that has just fallen. It had never proved by its purity or statesmanship that it had a "divine commission to rule the empire. As "the years went by it showed by its reckless and lavish expenditure of the revenues of "the country, and by the licentious habits that turned the palace into a pandemonium, "that it was unfitted for its high position. It fell, as other dynasties did before it, "because of the inherent want of moral
qualities, without which no power will ever phere by the events of which the Far East "be long tolerated by a people like the "during the last eighteen months has been Chinese, who demand so high an ideal in "the theatre shows signs of subsiding," an "their sovereign." History repeats itself, opinion which may be well founded, but as and the Tsing dynasty, like the Ming, is in the summer the typhoon warnings from tottering to its fall by reason of its inherent Manila follow each other in quick succes- want of moral qualities. It was saved by sion, so the subsidence of one disturbance England at the time of the Taiping rebel-in the political atmosphere of China liou, and the subsequent course of events is no guarantee that there is not another has proved how little it was worth the already brewing, saving. It exists now solely by reason of the mutual jealousy of the foreign Powers. Whether the young Emperor in the absence of interference by the Em- press Dowager, might have succeeded in purifying and strengthening the rule of his house can now be only a matter of conjecture, but as he has no issue and receives no support from the Imperial clan his prospects of success could not be con- sidered very bright. Even had he effected the revolution in the administration which his decrees portended the probability is that the rule of his house would have come to an end with his own life. In connection with Colonel Evarr's remark that all other Powera are of mushroom growth beside China the fact may also be recalled that
SUPREME COURT,
18th February.
CRIMINAL SESSIONS,
BEFORE MR. JUSTICE WISE (PUISNE JUDGE).
THE KOWLOON PÕISONING CASE.
Toug Tin, a cook in the employ of Mrs. Wagner, of Kowloon, was charged with ad- ministering a noxious drug-Datura alba-to five servants at Kowloon on the 10th January.
There were 15 counts in the indictment. soner pleaded not guilty to each of them.
Pri-
The jury was composed as follows:-Messrs. W. C. Wilcox (foreman), Shi Ya Mau, R. S.
With
which were found in the jar was Datura alba, which was administered and the remains of
which he said had the effect of making a man giddy and subsequently unconscious. regard to the motive, it appeared that prisoner rad a grudge against Mrs. Wagner's house-boy through the dismissal of a relative of his from Mrs. Wagner's employ.
unanimously found guilty on all the 15 counts, Evidence having been given prisoner was and was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment with hard labour on each count, the sentences running concurrently.
17th February.
IN ORIGINAL JurisdictioN.
Before Sir JOHN CARRINGTON (CHIEF JUSTICE).
CHEONG YAU TO AND OTHERS V, OHOY
CHAN,
In this suit, in which judgment had been reserved, his lordship granted a man- datory injunction for the future proteo- tion of the plaintiffs, the defendant to reduce the cook-house to the level or height of the cook-house on the 9th October, 1890, the in- junction to refer to the strip of land only. He granted nominal damages to the plaintiffs in the sum of $50, which amount had been paid into Court by the defendant. The plaintiffs were allowed the costs of the suit. His Lord. ship ordered the injunction to be suspended for one month from the date of judgment to enable the parties to come to some agreement, exeon. tion for costs not to issue for one month, pending appeal.
At Bangkok, in October last, a man named de Silva was convicted of the abduction of a girl named O'Donoghue and sentenced to seven years' penal servitude. The case, which had uaturally excited much interest at Bangkok, was taken on appeal to the Supreme Court at Singapore, which has decided that the prisoner should not under the circumstances have been convicted. Mr. de Silva was accordingly brought before the Consular Court at Bangkok on the 11th February and informed that he was freo
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.