872
HONGKONG HOUSE PROPERTY.
(Daily Press, 6th June.) After Thursday's debate at the Legislative Council, there should be fewer persons maligning our local Government, Wearing the halo as a result of that afternoon's manifestation of its exceeding great good- ness, it should soon perceive the population particularly those members of the popula- tion who are unhappy enough to own real estate, worshipping it with clasped hands and on bended knees. The phrase "paternal ---Government" has often been on the tongues
of men; now
see what it means. Saddled with more public work than it can afford to pay for, embarrassed by hard times and a recent large curtailment of its revenue, the Government of this Colony comes undismayed to the front as philanthropist. It proposed to do good to the owners of house property by stealth, and on Thursday we were enabled to watch it
We
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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND a deserved testimonial; for we cannot accept the official opinion that such opposition is the result of ignorance. "They do not understand it." It is not easy to under stand, true, how the owners are to benefit and yet be compensated; how the Govern- | ment is to bear the most of the cost, and yet levy a special improvement rate; but we fancy those who are opposing the new clause have some idea of what they are about,
SHANGHAI.
Daily Press, 8th Juge.)
Court trouble at Shanghai, in which the On top of the recrudescence of the Mixed
maintaining that a prisoner is guilty till his Chinese magistrate continues recalcitrant, nnocence be proved, and that unless there be a foreign complainant or defendant, foreigners ought not to interfere, there blush "to find it fawe." It was some time comes now an unexpected development of before its real goodness could be recognised; the boundary dispute. We reported a day indeed, there are still a few property owners
or two ago how Chinese police belonging to who cling to their unhappy suspicions and Paoshan district had attacked a Municipal doubts. Even the Hon. Mr. STEWART, who policeman and wounded him, on a road went to the Council full of reverence for the which both sides claim to be within their undivided authority of the Crown and for exclusive jurisdiction. A sequal to that the Crown Colony system of administration, was that two of the native officers were was unable to find sufficient faith for the arrested by the Municipal Police for pa- gospel of the Government's goodness as trolling within the limits of the Settlement. expounded by the Hon. Colonial Secretary. This made a great commotion in Chinese Just as we say, when we hear a fat Bishop circles, the rural Chinese, encouraged, it is preaching the blessedness of poverty and to be feared, by anti-foreign officials, resent- meekness, that it is curious he should not ing every alleged encroachment of foreign try his own prescription, so the Hon. Mr law and order. The Taotai who is known STEWART, concerning the Government's to have instigated the Paoshan police to proposal in section 1548 of the Public insist upon their control and authority Health Ordinance, said it was very over the rond in question is called curious that if property
Wore WUANG JUI-KAI, and this official pre- really to be benefited so greatly they tending a fear that the people might rise had not been making such improvements in riot if bis two policemen were de without waiting for the Government. Just as the Bishop always has in such case, so the Hon. Colonial Secretary had an
Owners
answer and an explanation. The property owners did not understand, he said. Lest there be others who do not understand, let us try to put the scheme in simple words. When the Government finds a block of dark houses, houses not sufficiently well- lighted, it proposes to make every third building in such block a one-storey shop, leaving the gap above so that windows may be put in the gable ends of the two adjoining buildings. It does the necessary demolition at its own cost, and furthermore it compensates the owner to an extent to be settled by arbitration. According to the Hon. Colonial Secretary, all that the owners have to pay is "the cost of repairs, making the houses habitable, and inserting windows, etc." Perhaps also of rebuilding such houses as tumble during the process, but that was not mentioned. Another thing that the Hon. Colonial Secretary did not emphasise was the second paragraph of the new clause, in which there is provision for the imposi. tion of "a special improvement rate upon the owners of such of the adjoining houses as are in the opinion of the Governor-in- Council benefited by such works." His calculations were that the two adjoining houses would now accommodate more people than the original three, so that the new one story shop, representing the ham of the Sanitary Reform sandwich, would be cumshaw to the owner. "The far larger part of the cost of the resumption and demolition would fall upon the ratepayers." Yet, according to Sir HENRY BERKELEY, all property owners are opposing it. We must get out a few halos for them, too; the ratepayers can do no less than pay for such
[June 18, 1908
STRIKE LAW.
(Daily Press, June 9th.) There are at last some signs that the public in England is beginning to recognit ibat the legislation which the Liberal Party thought fit to introduce with respect to Trade Unions has gone beyond the bounds which can be considered safe by even the most advanced upholders of the rights of the working man to protect himself by means of such combinations. At the time when the last act on the subject was passed, exempting Trade Unions from liability for damages resulting from what is euphemisti- cally termed "peaceful picketing" during any strike grave doubt was felt by many→ and especially by those who knew what
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practically to withdraw one special class. peaceful" picketing meant, whether the Legislature had not gone so far as from the operation of laws which applied to all others, and thus to perpetrate a piece of "class" legislation of a decidedly dangerous tendency. Very shortly after the act was passed, some forcible illustrations of what this moral persuasion amounted to came before the public; but very little notice was taken of them at the time. doubt due to a reluctance on the part of all political parties to oppose the views of the labour party whose influence in respect to
This was no
Elections has now become so serious that few leaders are disposed to incur opposition from this quarter unless absolutely com pelled to do so.
Incidents have however
arisen which have made it apparent that if the right of striking is to be recognised, it is essential that it should be at least restrained within certain definite limits. The threats of strikes upon some of the railways at home, and the more recent trouble brought about in India by the Telegraph Employés, have caused men to reflect still more upon the enormous power tained in foreign custody, jobtained their which may be put into action by the leaders release on his distinct official undertaking of strikes, and to question whether some
that they would present themselves for trial at the Mixed Court when called upon. He principle cannot be arrived at which will preserve to working men a right to resort made this promise to the British Consul- to the time honoured plan of combining to General, and the two men in custody refuse further work unless higher wages are were allowed to go. When their case was paid, but at the same time prevent this very to have been called, it was ascertained that strong power being abused by unscrupulous they had not been brought to the Court,
or uncompromising persons. It is not easy and more than that, information was to hand to declare what this principle should be so that they were not coming. The Taotai did far as the working men are themselves con- not consider that his promise was in any cerned, it is open to question how far the way binding, and he intimated that the majority are justified in coercing the matter was to be arranged diplomatically.minority in cases where a certain number He appears to be right in so far that only are willing to work but are prevented from diplomacy can now adjust matters. The doing so by the power of the Union. There British Consul-General is not likely to
ean hardly be a question that at times submit tamely to
considerable injustice has been done to confidence. The Taotai's trickery is a individuals in this respect-but on the direct insult to the Municipality and to whole the feeling has been that this is a Great Britain, and if allowed to pass, it matter which purely affects the men them- would undoubtedly damage foreign prestige selves, and that it may consequently be left in the district, where it cannot conveniently with safety to them to settle it upon a afford to suffer more than it has done. The fair and common sense basis. With a few two prisoners, who should have been tried notable exceptions, this seems to have by a Chinese Magistrate and foreign been the case, and on the whole assessor, were released on the distinct under the Unions have not apparently been standing that they would submit to the unduly oppressive to the working men jurisdiction of the Mixed Court, and this themselves though there is practically-little tribunal they must now be made to face, or
to prevent the powers which they exercise incalculable otherwise irreparable and
being at times pressed to extreme lengths. damage will be done to the Settlement. Upon this point, it will always be difficult Already the rural Chinese, a notoriously to obtain anything like accurate informs- anti-foreign lot, must be drawing false tion, as grave pressure can, of course, be conclusions from the fact of their release. easily brought to bear upon any workmen This flagrant case will probably strengthen who may venture to complain outside of the the foreign demand for the extension of the working of a Union, though they may have boundaries, and it is to be hoped that in joined it only with reluctance or even future the usual arrangement, hitherto under persuasion amounting in reality to neglected at Shanghai, will be made for a
compulsion. neutral strip, so that such collisions will be impossible again,
such
8 breach
of
Upon one point, however, there is a unanimity of opinion, which it is to be
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