On the 23rd January, the Chief Justice sat in Court and Application
heard an application from Mr. Edward H. Pollard to be ofMr.
PollardE. H.
admitted to practise as an attorney in terms of Ordinance No, to be d an
admitte
6 of 1845, section 11 of which authorized the Court to admit fit attorney
persons to practise for three months in case of " obvious neces- of the
Court.
sity. " The motion was made by the Attorney- General , Mr. Ordinance
Sterling, but was opposed by Mr. William D'E. Parker, whose No. 6 of
objections , after being duly considered , were deemed insufficient 1845, s. 11 .
Mr. William
or invalid, and Mr. Pollard was accordingly admitted . Mr. D'E . Parker
Pollard , it will be recollected , was appointed clerk to acting opposes the
admission.
Chief Justice Campbell , on the resignation of Mr. Trotter, con- Mr. Pollard
sequent upon the suspension of Chief Justice Hulme. Mr. is admitted .
Pollard had subsequently appeared in the records as being under
articles to Mr. Norcott D'E. Parker, whose office he had pro-
bably joined on the return to duty of Chief Justice Hulme,
Reproduced in section 20 of Ordinance No. 12 of 1873. See also antè Chap. III. § II., p. 71.
See List of Proctors , Attorneys, &c.. App. infrà.
See antè Chap. VIII. § 1., p. 171.
276 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG .
Ch . XII § I. The Act 12 and 13 Vict. c . 96 , which provided for the prosecu-
-
1850. tion and trial in Her Majesty's Colonies of offences committed
Act 12 and
13 Vict.. within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty, was published in the
c. 96. Colony on the 7th February. The first Criminal Sessions of the
February year opened on the 15th February ; most of the cases being of the
Criminal
Sessions; ordinary class. One of them was against Thomas Steele , for-
conviction
of Steele. merly in the Police Force, for stabbing. Mr. Parker had been
engaged on behalf of the prisoner, but was too unwell to attend ,
and as there happened to be no other attorney present in Court ,
the prisoner, at the suggestion of the Chief Justice, allowed the
Mr. Moresby, case to go on. While the second witness was being examined ,
on applica
tion, is Mr. Moresby, recently arrived in the Colony, applied for permis-
permited to sion to appear on behalf of the prisoner, which was at once
defend him.
granted. The prisoner was convicted and sentenced to twelve
His escape months ' imprisonment with hard labour. It will be seen later
from gaol.
on that, in May of this year, he escaped from prison .
The rendi- On the 20th March, the Legislature passed an important
tion of
Chinese enactment relative to the rendition of Chinese criminals . By
criminals. the treaties between Great Britain and China, provision had been
made for the rendition for trial to officers of their own country
of such subjects of China as had committed crimes and offences
Ordinance against their own Government. * Ordinance No. 2 of 1850 was ,
No. 2 of
1850. therefore, passed " to provide for the more effective carrying out
of the treaties between Great Britain and China in so far as
related to Chinese subjects within the Colony of Hongkong."
Mr. Hold- Mr. Charles Gordon Holdforth, the Assistaut Magistrate,
forth,
Assistant proceeded on leave on sick certificate on the 1st April , Mr.
Magistrate, W. H. Mitchell, Justice of the Peace, being gazetted to officiate
goes on as Assistant Police Magistrate and Sheriff, as well as Provost-
leave.
Mr. W. H. Marshal , Coroner, and Marshal of the Vice- Admiralty Court,
Mitchell acts during the absence of Mr. Holdforth, whose first position in the
in the
different Service was that of Coroner in October, 1845. † Mr. Holdforth's
capacities. appointments as Assistant Magistrate and Sheriff had never been
gazetted . At all events no successor had ever been gazetted
to Mr. Hillier when confirmed as Chief Magistrate, so that
Mr. Holdforth's different offices had always been considered
Mr. Hold- to be acting ones Many were the adverse criticisms passed
forth's
occasionally upon this officer having especial reference to his
dishonesty.
dishonesty, but the records do not show that any notice was
* See the question of handing over of Chinese to their own authoritics by the local Gov.
ernment touched upon, antè Chap. 111. § 111. , p. 92, and Chap. XI., pp. 257, 260.
† Ante Chap. 111. § 11., p. 89.
See his appointment as Deputy Sheriff , antè Chap. III. § 111., p. 92, and his appoint.
ment as acting Assistant Magistrate noticed, antè Chap. 111. § III., p. 97, and Chap. v. §
II., p. 130.
$ See antè Chap. VII., p. 150, and Chap. X. , p. 209.
MR. HOLDFORTH AND HIS AUCTIONEER , MR. DUDDELL . 277
ever taken of the strictures passed on him. This circumstance Ch . XII
- § I.
may have given a stimulus to his efforts to turn his opportu- 1850.
nities to the best account. In this he was understood to have
been singularly successful, insomuch that his present " absence
on sick certificate " had been long anticipated and was but the
prelude to his final retirement, in the meanwhile enabling him
to draw the emoluments of office till his leave was up. What
arrangement he may have made with his successor was not
known, nor, added a report in regard to current stories about
him , had he communicated the secret by which a man " may
live well and lay up an ample fortune in three years from two
offices, the salary of the one being £ 500 and of the other £ 200 ."
Before his appointment to these, Mr. Holdforth, who arrived forth Mr. Hold-
as
here as an adventurer from Sydney, was a junior clerk on a an adven-
small salary in the Chief Magistrate's Office at the time it was turer from
presided over by Major Caine, who had been the making of his Sydney.
protégé and enabled him to bear up against charges which, if
not true, were certainly libellous, but which had neither been
publicly contradicted nor investigated .
The appointment of Mr. Mitchell, the editor of The Hongkong
Register, as Mr. Holdforth's successor, was also very strongly criti-
cized, and afforded a very edifying commentary on the laudatory
tone towards the Government, " its measures, and its men, Mr. W. H.
which had been assumed by the paper in question under Mr. editor Mitchell
of as
Mitchell's editorship , and which contrasted so strongly with the The Hong-
virtuous invectives against sycophancy and place-hunting which Register.
ong
used to characterize him when he exhibited himselfas an amateur His claims
writer. It was not known what other claims he had upon the for mentGovern-
Government, but it was certain that amongst its servants , indi- employ
criticized.
viduals much better qualified could have been found and a con-
siderable saving effected thereby.
On the 5th April, the Chief Justice sitting in Admiralty heard Mr. Hold-
the case of Syme and others against the barque Louisa , order- forth and the
auctioneer.
ing the re- sale of the ship owing to the auctioneer, Mr. Duddell, Mr. Duddell .
"having committed an error by knocking the vessel down to The barque
Louisa.
himself." Mr. Duddell was the auctioneer employed by Mr.
Holdforth, the Marshal, and his summary dismissal of the
previous ' Sheriff's Auctioneer, ' Mr. Markwick , in October, 1847 ,
to employ Mr. Duddell, it will be remembered , formed the sub-
ject of public comment, * and the present case -one of a long line Grave
suspicions of
of similar ones, -gave rise to grave suspicions ofcollusion between collusion.
the Sheriff and his auctioneer. At the hearing, Mr. Duddell Mr. Duddell
admits
buying the
admitted that the vessel had been knocked down to himself, on
which ground, irrespective of all others , the Chief Justice ordered vessel.
Re-sale
the re- sale of the ship . This case was unfavourably commented ordered by
#
Antè Chap. VII. , pp. 150, 151 .
278 HISTORY OF THE LAWS, ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
Ch. XII § 1. upon in the press. From the report, the inference drawn was
-
1850. that there had been collusion between Mr. Holdforth and the
ChiefJustice. auctioneer to let the vessel be knocked down to one or the other
ofthem , or that the auctioneer knocked her down to himselfat a
price lower than what it was probable other parties would have
Mr. Hold-
forth had given for her. Since the sitting of the Court, Mr. Holdforth
left the had left the Colony, and whether he bid for the vessel in the
Colony.
way of buying her in as Marshal ( which would have been illegal ) ,
or whether he bid for her as a matter of private speculation-
either of which was blameable in his position - could not be
His unenvi- ascertained . That individual had gained for himself an un-
able
notoriety. enviable notoriety in the Colony, and his refusing to take notice
of charges brought against him by the press which , if not true ,
were libellous to a degree, bore the charges out against him, at
all events in the colouring given to the present case. In the
Custom of result, however, the auctioneer had to pay the piper .
auctioneers Relying
bidding on the custom which had obtained of auctioneers bidding at
at their
own sales. their own sales , and imagining and declaring himself to be the
Mr. Duddell bidder before the fall of the hammer, Mr. Duddell had saddled
is saddled himself with smart money to the extent of $ 300, and repairs
with costs.
upon the vessel to the extent of $ 107 , besides the law expenses
upon the case which amounted to no trifle, -a lesson which
he doubtless did not forget when next called upon to act as
Higher
at the price Auctioneer to the Marshal of the Vice- Admiralty Court. The
second vessel at the second auction fetched $ 1,750 , i.e., $400 above the
auction
of the sum she had previously been sold for ! But Mr. Holdforth
vessel. had now sailed away from the Colony, on what he no doubt
considered his " well-earned leave."
Mr. Hold-
forth's mal- Although this was not the only one of his mal- practices that had
practices come to light after his departure, yet the local authorities allowed
reviewed.
him to remain on leave and draw pay for twelve months, although
it was well known that he would never return to the Colony to
face the charges which awaited him on his return . Major Caine,
who was said to have been ' his friend and supporter, ' and
against whom some serious allegations were made at the time
in reference to Holdforth's affairs, not unnaturally came in for a
share of public blame. Mr Holdforth, it was alleged, had cometo
Hongkong having eluded justice in Australia for horse - stealing,
and, on his departure on leave from the Colony for San Francisco,
actually hid himself in the vessel in which he took his depar
ture, * in dread of the Police being sent to arrest him. This
This vessel was said to have been either partially or eutirely laden by him. The
records show that when in California he got into trouble over mercantile transactions.
In one instance he was arrested on " an order founded on an affidavit of one Cumlong.
that Holdforth had received certain goods, the property of Cumlong, shipped from
China to California, and that he had sold the same and retained the proceeds." Alta
California, 17th July, 1851. - China Mail, 30th October, 1851 .
THE POLICE FORCE DISCUSSED. 279
was another instance showing the neglect of the authorities in Ch, XII § I.
not thoroughly scrutinizing the characters of those persons ask 1850.
ing for employment in the early days, and whose previous career of
Neglect
the
had been spent in Australia. On Mr. Holdforth's ' resignation,' authorities.
Mr. Mitchell was gazetted as confirmed in his place on the 8th tion
On resigna
of Mr.
July, 1851. Holdforth,
The constitution of the Police Force again came under consi- Mr. Mitchell
is confirmed.
deration, perhaps not unreasonably so. The ' stuff ' of which Constitution
it was composed was described as of the ' most wretched quality ' of Police
Force again
The poor wages they received were said to be greatly the cause discussed .
of the complaints ; for, with the wages offered , it was impossible Poor wages.
to make the force an attractive one. The European Constable
got only $ 15 a month, " very far below what the humblest in
the Colony required, " so that, in the case of steady men, they
only accepted the position in the hope of something better
turning up. But to this class, unfortunately, the chief objection
was the readiness with which they yielded to the temptation
offered by the many public houses about, and many of the
deaths among the European Constabulary were ascribed to Deaths
among
their excessive indulgence in ardent spirits, a great por- European
tion of which. sold by the low tavern-keepers, was of the Constabu
most abominable and deleterious description . Manila-men lary.
Excessive
were not considered suitable for many reasons ; they were drinking
of bad
unsettled in disposition , which prevented them remaining for liquor.
any length of time in one employ, besides which they were Manila
dangerous men when under the influence of liquor, and much men as
Policemen.
addicted to gambling, in which disputes frequently occurred
ending in fighting and bloodshed, Natives of Madras also were Natives of
Madras.
not thought suitable, but one class whom the Chinese , it was con-
sidered, held in greater respect was the " obedient , submissive ,
courageous , and not addicted to drink " Malay, but such a body The Malay.
of good, serviceable men would have required something more than
the pay offered , which was $6.50 per month. It is not known
where this information was obtained from, in regard to the good
qualities here given to the Malay. After many years' residence The author's
in the Straits Settlements, the author regrets to differ with the experience
opinion expressed as to the Malay as a Policeman . As a rule, Malay as a
Policeman.
he is indolent and given to lying, and not the best class enlist
generally, for the better Malay is proud and thinks the calling
of a Constable derogatory to himself. The discipline does not
suit him either, and although he manages to ingratiate himself
with the Chinaman, as a rule there is not much love lost between
them , and the one great objection to the Malay here would be
that he would never remain in a place like Hongkong.*
The author little thought that in the course of his reading he would have found
himself corroborated in his views of the Malay as a Policeman. An attempt made in 1857
to enlist Malays in Singapore for the Hongkong Police Force proved abortive. See infrà,
Chap. XVIII.
280 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
Ch. XII § I. Early this month was published " A Digest and Index of all the
1850. Ordinances of the Hongkong Government to the close of 1849 , "
--
Mr. Tarrant's the first book of the kind , -by Mr. William Tarrant, who has
index to the
Ordinances been before alluded to in this work and whose ill- treatment by the
of Hongkong. Government had gained him the sympathy of the public. The
Dedicated work was dedicated , by special permission, to the Chief Justice,
to the Chief
Justice . and was favourably reported upon by Mr Sterling, the Attorney-
Mr. Tarrant's General. If the Chief Justice had the slightest suspicion
case and his that Mr. Tarrant had been guilty of the offence put to his
treatment.
charge, there is not the slightest doubt that he would never have
consented to his name being attached to anything in connexion
with Mr. Tarrant, whose case undoubtedly added another stain
to the administration of Sir John Davis through Major Caine
He becomes in this particular instance. The work was a much - wanted one
proprietor and was well received , doing Mr. Tarrant great credit. In
and
The editor
Friendof regard to the latter, it may here be recorded that in June, 1850 ,
ofChina. he purchased and edited the local newspaper called The Friend
of China and Hongkong Gazette.
Land. The Committee appointed last year to inquire into the tenure
Report of
Committee. of land in the Colony* made their report in a joint letter dated
the 18th May, 1850. The Committee on this occasion repre-
sented the difficulty, which then already existed , of disposing of
Inability of landed property in consequence of the inability of lessees to
lessees to
transfer a transfer a sub-division of their lots . In many cases several
sub-division houses were built upon one lot, and it was considered convenient
of their lots. for the owner to dispose of a portion or portions of it, which ,
The report under the prevailing system, he was unable to effect. The Com-
of the mittee then recommended that such sales and transfers be per-
Committee.
mitted , and fresh titles granted by Government, stating that
the restrictions then felt would thus be removed, and an enhanced
value be given to property in the Colony.
The China Pending the publication of this report, The China Mail news-
Mail upon the paper published a further articlef in its issue of the 13th June,
subject.
1850 , as follows :-
" The report of the Committee on the tenure of Crown lands in this Colony
is understood to be at length in the hands of Government, and will probably
be sent Home as soon as His Excellency the Governor returns from the
north. In the meantime there are many reasons which render it desirable
that it should be printed for general information. It will be remembered by
many that the report of the Land Committee of 13th January, 1844, was not
open to the parties affected by it until it was published by order of the Parlia-
mentary Committee at the end of 1847 , and that it was then found to have
been concocted with great disregard to the impartiality that ought to actuate
the proceedings of such a body. The same thing is not apprehended in the
present instance, but as it appears to be generally known that the three mem-
* Antè Chap. XI ., p. 266.
For previous article, see antè Chap. XI., p. 266,
See Chap. I., p. 36.
MR. STERLING ON THE DIVISION OF LAND LOTS . 281
bers of the Committee, who may be said to represent the Crown, differ in Ch. XII
---- § I.
opinion from the two members who are supposed to represent the community, 1850.
publication only becomes the more necessary that the community might be
enabled to supply information and offer suggestions that may have escaped
the notice of their representatives.
It has been often said by our officials that the holders of land purchased it
with their eyes open, and that in consequence they have no right now to
complain. This would be very true if the remark applied to a chest of opium,
or a bale of cotton, or any article of consumption ; but it is a manifest fallacy
when applied to the annual rental of land for a term of seventy-five years.
It would, however, be no difficult matter to prove that the community had not
their eyes open, for instance, at the land sale of January, 1844 ; they were
not open to the 13th clause of the Supplementary Treaty, nor to the Regis-
tration Ordinance, nor to any of the after measures of the land sellers , so
distasteful to the Chinese, nor to the establishment of monopolies, a mode of
raising revenue which all writers agree to be most grievous and destructive
to commercial prosperity. No Englishman could have calculated at the sale
on such conduct from his own Government, as that trade, the advancement of
which is the object of so much solicitude in his own country, should be thus
stunted and trampled on in one of its colonies.
At the first land sale under Sir Henry Pottinger, and probably at others,
a copy of the lease was read as the conditions of sale. In terms of that
lease, the tenant holds his land, " together with all easements, profits, commo-
dities, and appurtenances whatsoever." There are certain reservations to the
Crown in case of the land being required for public purposes ; all mines,
minerals, and quarries of stone, marl, clay, chalk, brick-earth, gravel,
sand, stone and stones, are also reserved, with the further condition that the
ground rents shall be paid clear of all taxes, charges, and impositions what-
soever. It would therefore appear that the alienation of profits, by the sale
of monopolies " giving to oue or a few individuals the sole privilege of buy-
ing, selling, making, working, or using of anything," is, besides being contrary
to the law of England, a direct violation, on the part of Government, of the
only covenant in the lease that is in favour of landholders .
If the proprietor of a street, after he had let most of his shops on lease,
were, by way of getting more revenue, to put a toll at each end, at which
to tax the customers of his tenants, the consequence would be that he would
not only depreciate the value of his shops to his tenants, but also of his own
unlet shops, and people would naturally turn to the untaxed thoroughfares,
to which the trade of the other would also be removed , and it would not readily
return to the first street even if the barriers were taken away. Suppose it
was afterwards found that the barriers had been erected illegally, contrary
both to lease and law, would not an action for compensation lie against the
proprietor for all damages sustained ?
Such then is the situation of the Crown tenants of Hongkong in relation
to their Government-they have a claim for injuries sustained by the opera-
tion of monopolies for the past, and a reduction of rents for the future. This
would be the case were the matter between two individuals, and there can
be no difference of principle when the case is between private individuals and
the Crown." The opinion
of the
Upon the subject of the inability of the Crown lessees to Attorney-
General, Mr.
divide their lots into portions, the Governor , Mr. Bonham, Sterling,
took the opinion of the Attorney - General, Mr. Sterling , who upon the
inability of
gave his opinion in August , 1850 , as follows : - Crown
lessees to
"The Crown lessee unless prohibited by his lease may make sub-leases ; divide their
this being so, house property is similarly circumstanced here as in all towns lots in
in England. portions.
282 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG,
Ch . XII § I. " If in any case the Crown be willing to adopt the under-tenant as its
immediate lessee it can do so (supposing there be no liens or encumbrances
1850.
attaching to the head lease), in its own discretion, by accepting a surrender
in writing of the head lease, and then granting two leases of the original lot
as apportioned by the two tenants, but in doing so or in any other way in-
terfering with the title created by the first lease, the danger will arise of
interfering with the securities and remedies of unregistered encumbrances or
creditors having or about to obtain executions.”
(Signed) PAUL STERLING.
August, 1850.
Mr. Bonham then wrote to the Secretary of State upon the
subject ( despatch of the 29th August, 1850 ) in which he stated
that, in his opinion , it would be well that parties should be al-
lowed to dispose of portions of their properties, as recommended
by the Committee ; but thought the concession might be open to
much abuse in cases where any party, having a house erected
on a large lot of ground, might be desirous of getting rid of a
part of the ground to a man of straw, because it was useless to
himself, while the individual to whom it was sold, having no
property in the Colony, might quit it, leaving the Government
without any means of enforcing its just claim .
First A Criminal Sessions of the Supreme Court was held on Mon-
Criminal
Sessions day, Tuesday, and Wednesday, the 15th, 16th, and 17th June,
after under the presidency of Chief Justice Hulme. Twenty- four
abolition
of Vice- cases were set down for trial, including cases of piracy. The
Admiralty abolition of the Vice- Admiralty Court by a recent Act of Par-
Court.
Act 12 and liament ( Act 12 and 13 Vict., c. 96 ) had nominally added to
13 Vict.,
the labour of the Court, though in point of fact both the Court
c. 96.
and Jurors were saved a great deal of labour. The Court of
The jury Admiralty required a Grand and Common Jury of at least
saved
considerable twenty-four, and to provide a double set of jurors, the Sheriff had
labour. to summon nearly every eligible person on the island. In the
No Grand Criminal Court there was no Grand Jury ; the Common Jury
Jury. only numbered six. Consequently for each Sessions from fifteen
to eighteen Jurors sufficed , and for the future the duty would
be comparatively light.
Court held The Court was now held in the large upper room , the one
in large
upper room still in use to this day. It accommodated as now a large num-
for
Thefirst
accotime.
m- ber of people, and the middle portion was railed off and fitted
modation. up with benches. Members of the press were privileged with
chairs at a table inside the bar where it still is, and a hope was
The Press
reporters. expressed that " they would testify their regard for the atten-
tion shown for their accommodation by appearing there in the
ordinary garb of gentlemen . "
CHINESE OATHS . 283
One important case tried at this Sessions, was that of the ch. XII § I.
pirates captured by H.M. Sloop Reynard. Ofthe fourteen men 1830.
brought up for trial, three were found guilty of murder and Pirates
captured
piracy, and sentenced to death ; nine were sentenced to trans- by H.M.S.
portation for life -the heaviest punishment in the power of the Three
yard.
Judge to inflict, and two were able to prove to the satisfaction sentenced
of the Jury that they had been prisoners in the hands of the to death and
nine
pirates and were, of course , acquitted . transported.
Another important case was a prosecution for perjury, the First
tion
first ever tried in the Colony, -an offence though of frequent prosecu
for perjury
occurrence never prosecuted before, possibly in a great measure in Hongkong.
from want of harmony in the working of the different tri-
bunals ; so that a witness, who had sworn one thing before
the Chief Magistrate, was permitted with perfect impunity to
swear the very reverse before the Chief Justice, having evi-
dently been tampered with in the meanwhile. The evil had Opinion
prevalent
been increasing because the opinion prevailed among the Chi- print
among
nese that the offence was not a punishable one by our laws. offence
Chinesenot
that
There could be no doubt of the prisoner's guilt, but a good deal punishable.
depended upon whether it amounted to perjury, for, according to
the testimony of Mr. Hillier, the Chief Magistrate, -a very com- Thenytesti-
mo of
petent authority in such matters at this stage of his career, -when Mr. Hillier.
questioned by one of the Jury, it would appear that the oath,
although the usual one administered to Chinese in the law
Courts, was really no oath at all. The following was the sub- Oath no oath
at all.
stance of Mr. Hillier's evidence upon the point : " He was in
his Court on the 12th February last when a case was brought
before him in which the present prisoner charged another man
with highway robbery and in giving his evidence said ' he never
saw defendant before, had had no dealings with him, and owed
him no money.' The man had been sworn by burning paper, How Chinese
were sworn
the manner in which Chinese are sworn in Hongkong. An affir- in
eHong-
mative or negative given to a question in this way would affect kong.
The prisoner
his decision, but as regards his opinion of its efficacy in making had been
a Chinese speak the truth, witness thought it was of no effi- sworn by
'burning
cacy at all." Whence came the absurd custom of giving Chi- paper."
nese witnesses a slip of paper to burn before entering the Efficacy
such oathof
.
witness -box cannot be discovered, but it is believed that no
of
Chinaman or foreigner conversant with Chinese customs ever arginof
considered it of any efficacy whatever.
In this part of China, it was believed by some that there was Ceremony of
but one ceremony binding, and under which many natives cutting a cock's off
would speak the truth, or at all events be less likely to preva- head as part
of an oath.
ricate. It is recorded in one case that a prisoner, when asked if
he had any questions to put to the witness , replied that it would
be of no use as the man felt under no obligation to speak the
284 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
Ch. XII § I. truth , and therefore begged that he should be re- examined after
1850. going through the ceremony of cutting off a cock's head ; but the
by presiding Judge seemed to consider the demand unreasonable
the Court
to depart and refused to depart from the usual routine of the Court,
from usual
routine. though the Court seems afterwards at least to have sanctioned
Qath by in certain cases this mode of swearing according to native cus-
cutting off tom, as will be seen hereafter. *
cock's head!
recorded.
Chief In pronouncing sentence in the present case, the Chief Jus-
Justice's
sentence . tice stated that, though he believed this was not the first offence
Although of the sort that had been committed, it was the first that had
first trial been brought to trial ; and he would therefore visit it with a
for perjury ,
not first severe sentence which he trusted would operate as a warning
offence. to others, and he accordingly sentenced the prisoner to two
The sentence. years ' imprisonment with hard labour.
Practice
heretofore It would appear that it was not the practice of the Court up
of not to this period to require witnesses to leave the Court to await
requiring their turn while the cases in which they were interested were
witnesses
to leave being heard, for a suggestion was made in the course of this Ses-
the Court.
sions by one of the Jury that the witnesses should be ordered
out of Court, while the trial was going on. The suggestion was
acted upon, and, as was remarked , would probably be so again
should a juryman or , what was unlikely, a prisoner require it ;
but why, was it asked, was it not made an absolute rule of
Rule in Court as in Scotland , where witnesses were not only excluded,
Scotland.
but must be locked up in a separate room, the omission of this
being a good objection to their evidence being received . This
would do more to secure the ends of justice than a rigid
adherence to forms or inflicting " the utmost rigour of the law "
when a conviction was obtained.
Interpreter On the 16th April, the Government advertized for a person
for Malay,
Hindustani, competent to interpret in the Malayan, Hindustani, and Portu-
and Portu- guese languages, and on the 26th it was notified that the duties
guese
advertized of the Census and Registration Office would be conducted by
for.
Duties of Mr. May, Superintendent of Police, from the 1st May.
Census and
Registration The Governor and Mrs. Bonham left for the northern con-
Officer
performed sulates on the 27th April, Major - General Staveley, C.B. , Lieut-
From the very carliest days in the Straits Settlements, this custom has been adhered
to. Natives of whatever class who have asked for the privilege of being allowed to take
an oath, according to the belief of their own sect, have seldom been refused it, especially
when consented to by the other side. This is so much the case, that recently when re-
enacting the law of Evidence in the Straits, [ Straits Ordinance No. 5 of1890, 88. 8, 9 ] pro-
vision was made giving authority of law to the principle. The following is one of the
instances referred to : -April 13 , 1883. Lim Guan Teet v. Yew Boh Neo and Anor,
Action on a Promissory Note. Ford, J. " By consent of both parties, if plaintiff goes to
swear according to Chinese custom by cutting off head of a cock, and burning joss sticks
before the temple in Pitt Street, he shall have verdict, if plaintiff refuses to do so, there
will be verdict for defendants.” Kyshe's Rep . S.S., Vol. 1., [ Jud. Hist. ] p. xxxv.
CONVICTS STEELE AND NEWTON ESCAPE FROM GAOL. 285
enant-Governor, administering the Government during the ch . XII § I.
Governor's absence . It was understood that the state of Mrs. 1850.
Bonham's health afforded too good a reason for the trip, and the by Mr. May,
Superin
diplomatic and ornamental staff which Mr. Bonham took with tendent
him portended also some affairs of State. The Governor did not of Police.
Governor
return to the Colony till the 18th July, when he re-assumed leaves for
duties. northern
consulates.
The three Chinese who were condemned to death for piracy at Major-
General
the last Criminal Sessions were hanged at West Point on the morn- Staveley
ing of the 1st May. They seemed perfectly cool and resigned until acts.
Cause of Mr.
placed upon the scaffold, when, in consequence of some gross Bonham's
carelessness, the bolt was found to be either rusty or twisted, so tour.
that it would not draw, and the poor wretches were kept standing Convicted
pirates
for more than twenty minutes with the ropes round their necks. hanged at
West Point.
During this trying time two of them fainted and had to be sup, Disgraceful
ported on the scaffold , the third calling out " be quick, be quick, " scene at the
until, every other plan having been tried in vain, the gaoler went execution.
off to the naval stores and returned with two hammers , by
means of which, after a deal of labour, the bolt was forced from
its socket and the platform fell. With whom the blame rested, Theauthor-
ities blamed.
the authorities were best able to judge, but certainly such neglect,
it was remarked , ought not to be overlooked , more especially
as a similar incident occurred at the execution of the six men
referred to in June , 1849. *The mishap was attributed to the old Old and
rickety state
and rickety state of the gallows , and fears were entertained by ticket
the spectators that it would be dragged to pieces by the hang- gallows.
man in his desperate though unsuccessful efforts to draw the bolt.
During the absence of the Governor, as stated above, the Prisoners
Lieutenant- Governor, Major- General Staveley, C.B., by procla- pardoned
on Queen's
mation dated the 23rd May, granted a free pardon to no less than Birthday.
eighteen prisoners, sixteen of whom had been sentenced by the
criminal tribunal and two by Courts- martial. The occasion
fixed for this act of grace was the Queen's Birthday, and it was
hoped that a custom originally, it was thought, introduced into
the Colony by Mr. Johnston, the Secretary to the Plenipoten-
tiary, would be kept up as a means of tempering the severity
and mistakes, not always inexcusable, of our criminal proce-
dure. The next day, the 24th, two European convicts , named European
convicts
Steele and Newton, who had not been included in the above Steele and
proclamation, escaped from gaol by means of a bamboo placed Newton
escape.
against the wall. They were both , some hours after, re-captured
dead drunk in the town. Steele was the publican who was form- They are
erly in the Police, and had been sentenced to twelve months' re- captured
dead drunk.
imprisonment in February last for assault with stabbing,† and
Newton was the mate of the Gallant sentenced in November,
* Antè Chap. XI., p. 241.
† Antè p. 276,
286 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
**
Ch. XII § 1. 1849 , to twelve months for larceny on the high seas." They, as
1850. well as another prisoner named McIlroy, who had assisted them
They and in effecting their escape, were committed for trial at the July
a fellow-
prisoner, Sessions. When information of their escape reached the Police
Mcllroy, it would appear that every means possible was used in order to
who had
aided effect their re-capture, the harbour and boats being searched
them, are lest the men should get away.
committed
for trial. In his zeal to arrest these men, a Police Sergeant named de
Zeal of the
Police before Silva , imagining that the men might be on board a Chinese boat
the arrest
of the which he saw sailing away, hailed it, but, finding no attention
escaped paid to him, he fired a shot through the sails killing the owner,
convicts.
A Police à Chinaman. At the Coroner's inquest the next day, the Jury
Sergeant returned a verdict of " accidental death ;" but this undue preci-
shoots a
Chinaman. pitancy and want of caution does not appear to have met with
Verdict of any other redress than the ordinary strictures of the press. It
accidental
death. may be added that the deceased's two sons were with him in
Strictures the boat at the time .†
of the Press.
Mr. Caldwell Mr. Caldwell, the Assistant Superintendent of Police , now came
rewarded.
in for a share of public praise. It was with pleasure that the
public had heard that he was about to be rewarded for his arduous
services. He had received the further appointment of paid
He is
appointed Interpreter to the Supreme and Chief Magistrate's Courts, which
interpreter added £ 150 per annum more to his salary, and which made up his
to the
Supreme income as Assistant Superintendent of Police, Joint - Assessor of
and Chief
Magistrate's Police Rates, and Interpreter, to about £ 600 per annum. On the
Courts. representation of the Governor to Lord Grey, setting forth the
His income
in the other important services rendered by Mr. Caldwell throughout the recent
positions. expeditions for the suppression of piracy, the Secretary of State
On the addressed the Lords of the Admiralty in his favour, and they
representa-
tion of the were pleased to order that Mr. Caldwell be held entitled to head-
Governor
to Lord money after the rank of a lieutenant . This yielded him some
Grey, he is £ 600. Though it is not wished to disturb the ashes of the
allowed
head- dead, it is impossible at this stage to pass over Mr. Caldwell's
money for conduct as a responsible police officer in regard to the confidence
suppression he had placed in the pirate and informer Too Apo , as reported
of piracy.
Mr. Cald- in January, 1848 , notwithstanding the reason he had for sus-
well's
conduct pecting that this miscreant was taking advantage of the ' credit '
in the past given him . The facts were so palpable that one hardly knows,
concerning
Too Apo. having regard to the consequences that ensued, how to qualify the
behaviour of such an officer under the circumstances. However,
the facts are recorded and one can draw one's own inferences,
and Mr. Caldwell probably was not the only one to blame.
Comparison In June, a Singapore newspaper alluded to the superior
drawn
between mode of conducting the civil business of the Supreme Court
* Antè Chap. XI., p. 262.
See the previous case of shooting at Chinese in the harbour -antè Chap. x., p. 209 .
See antè Chap. IX., pp. 189-192, and references there given .
DEATH OF MR . F. SMITH, DEPUTY REGISTRAR, 287
in Hongkong where all cases , irrespective of amount, were tried, Ch. XII § 1.
compared with the former place where the people were left to a 1850.
Commissioner of the Court of Requests, who was not a profes- trial of
civil cases
sional nor a highly paid official. The remark passed here was, in Hong-
that it was very easy to fancy things, " but if Singapore had kong and
Singapore.
had such a ' beauty ' for a Judge as the people here were ac- Commis-
quainted with in 1848 ( allusion being made to Mr. Campbell , sioner of
who, even at this late period, still came under the invectives of Court of
Requests
the public29press ) , his services would have been found dear at not
in Singapore
a
any price.' professional.
On the 14th June, it was notified that Her Majesty the Queen bell
Mr. alluded
Camp
had been pleased to appoint Messrs. David Jardine and Joseph to as a
Frost Edger, elected in December last by the Justices of the ' beauty.'
Appointment
Peace for the purpose, * members of the Legislative Council , M
and they were sworn in accordingly. Jardine and
Edger as
A seat in the Legislative Council is the highest honour which members
of the
can be conferred in a Colony, though it is a fact within the Legislative
author's own knowledge that several times leading mercantile notified.
Council
men in the neighbouring Colony of the Straits Settlements They are
have shown, for some cause or another, their lack ofappreciation sworn in.
of the honour sought to be conferred upon them, by declining the
A seat in
Legisla
it . In the present instance, however, the honour was enhanced tive Council
from the circumstance of the nomination of the two unofficial as an
honour.
members having been left to the unbiased selection of the
Justices of the Peace, themselves leading members of the civil
community. The new members would have but limited power-
that of advice, but the gentlemen now added to the Council were
possessed of qualities which assured one that for the future an Limited
powers of
independent expression of opinion would not be withheld upon the elected
members.
any subject of importance to the community.
Mr. Frederick Smith, Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Death
Mr. F. of
Court, died at Macao , on the 16th June, 1850. He had been smith,
in failing health for some time, and when he left for Macao for a Deputy
Registrar.
change, it was not expected he would ever return . The de- His career.
ceased had been upwards of six years in the public service,
having succeeded Mr. McSwyney upon his resignation of the
Deputy Registrarship, † and was an efficient and zealous officer ,
with an irreproachable character. Out of his small salary he Public
could make no provision for his widow and family, who now liberality
and
mourned his loss . The Lieutenant-Governor, in the absence sympathy
to his family.
of the Governor, and the members of Council, with praiseworthy
liberality, accordingly granted Mrs. Smith £ 100 from the civil
chest, and Messrs. Jardine, Matheson & Co. , on being applied
to for a passage in one of their ships for Mrs. Smith and family,
* Antè Chap. XI ., p. 261 .
† See Chap. III. § II., p. 83.
288 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
Ch. XII § I. presented her with £50 . Messrs. Dent & Co. gave a donation
1850. of £ 30, and there were similar instances of generosity on the
part of other members of the mercantile community, testifying
to the respect in which Mr. Smith had been held.
Office of Consequent upon Mr. Smith's death, the office of Clerk of the
Clerk ofthe
Court and Court was merged with that of Deputy Registrar, and conferred
Deputy upon Mr. William Hastings Alexander, the Clerk of the Court.
Registrar
merged and It was not expected that public interests would be essentially
conferred
upon Mr. benefited by the burdening of one man with the two offices, to
W. H. save a trifle like £ 250 per annum. The Registrar's time at
Alexander.
The time this period , it is recorded , was fully engrossed with intestate's
of the estates and attendance in Court.
Registrar.
Establish- At the time of Mr. Smith's death, the Supreme Court was
ment of the thus constituted : Chief Justice, the Honourable J. W. Hulme ;
Supreme
Court at
Registrar, Robert Dundas Cay ; Deputy Registrar, Frederick
this period. Smith ; Clerk of Court, W. H. Alexander ; Clerk to the Chief
Justice, G. A. Trotter ; Clerk and Chief Usher, J. Smithers ;
Chinese Interpreter, D. R. Caldwell ; Malay and Bengali Inter-
preter, Eugenio L. Lança ; Bailiff, M. Smithers ; Assistant
Bailiff, Mr. Crooke ; Mahomedan Priest , Syed Muckseff.
July The July Criminal Sessions commenced on the 15th of that
Criminal
Sessions. month. There were eleven cases on the calendar. A few
Case of
only of the cases tried call now for special notice . The first of
conspiracy
to sell a these was conspiracy to sell a young girl for purposes of
girl for
prostitution. Three of the parties concerned were indicted , one
purposes
of prostitu of whom was acquitted from defective evidence, and the other
tion. two, a man and a woman, were convicted and sentenced to a
A man and
woman year's imprisonment with hard labour, the principal witness being
convicted
and probably the most culpable of the whole. Next morning, on
sentenced. the assembling of the Court, the jury who had sat on the case
They are were again empanelled , and informed by the Chief Justice , that
found to
be man and as it appeared the prisoners were man and wife, and therefore one
wife and are in the eye of the law, they must be acquitted since it required two
discharged,
two being persons to make a conspiracy. * That the prisoners were guilty
required to a and deserved punishment there could be no doubt, and they now
conspiracy.
escaped by a technicality . What had occurred only the more
confirmed the impression , if not opinion, so openly expressed
English
Criminal before, that the law as administered in the Criminal Court of
Law unsuit Hongkong was, to say the least, not suitable to the great majority
..able.
Chinese of cases brought before it. Was it therefore wonderful that the
neither
* Two were required to constitute a conspiracy, but a different doctrine was pro-
pounded in the now well-known case of Mr. Tarrant, who was indicted as a sole conspira
tor, and had the case been brought to trial this point presumably, if taken, would have
been a fatal objection, but apparently it was contrived to punish him beforehand by sus-
pending him from his office and then effectually preventing his ever being restored by
declaring it abolished. - See antè Chap. VIII. § 1., p. 170, and Chap. XI. , p. 239.
† On this point, see antè Chap. XI., p. 264.
CONVICTED PIRATES SENTENCED TO DEATH . 289
Chinese could neither fathom our justice nor understand our Ch. XII § I.
law ? But another question arising in this matter was, how 1850.
came the indictment to be so framed and why was not the fathom our
justice nor
objection seen to and provided against before the trial ? As was understand
very properly remarked, there were two Police Magistrates and our law.
Legal
an Attorney - General, all well paid and certainly not over- worked , flaws again
and yet, Sessions after Sessions, cases were set down for trial commented
upon.
which, even without the handling of prisoner's counsel , fell to Police
pieces by their own inherent weakness , or through some legal and Magistrate
Mr.
flaw, which, it was said, an attorney's apprentice at Home would Sterling.
be ashamed to have overlooked . Attorney-
General,
The next case was that of Steele , Newton , and a lad named taken to task.
McIlroy, for prison - breaking on the 24th May last. * Steele, it Trial
Steele,of
will be recollected, was the ruffian who got off with twelve months ' Newton,
imprisonment, though a Chinaman for a similar crime was con- and Mellroy
for prison-
demned at the same Sessions to fifteen years' banishment. It breaking.
was a pity that, as he had incurred the penalty of transportation , it
was not inflicted upon Steele as the best means of ridding the
Colony of one especially mauvais sujet. Being, however, a fellow
of determination, he exercised complete control over Newton , a Newton,
man greatly his superior in disposition and education, and who an educated
man.
at his trial addressed the Jury in a speech which was not only
superior to any hired eloquence ever heard in the local Criminal
Court, but which, it was reported, was positively excellent .
He showed pretty clearly that the offence could hardly be Facilities
classed as prison- breaking seeing that the facilities for escape for escape
were so great; that he went out on the Queen's Birthday to great.
Only
have a spree, and did have one in a place where he might • went out '
readily have been and was recognized ; and that, as only a for of prison
a spree
short period of his former sentence had to run, it was not pro-on the
bable he would run so much risk for so little profit, for had he Queen's
Birthday.
intended to leave the Colony, which he might easily have done,
he could have taken his property with him and used it to
facilitate his escape instead of leaving it behind. In fact, it
would appear that he and Steele calculated on being able to slip Newton
and Steele
into, as they had slipped out of, prison, unobserved , and thus enculated on
established a system of exits and entrances whenever they took ' slipping in
as they
a fancy for a " spree " or could induce their keepers to partici- had slipped
pate in same. So the Gaol, which cost so much, and was so out.'
The costly
ill-managed, could not have been so very bad a place after all. Gaol not
Steele was sentenced to three months' additional imprisonment, so bad a
place.
Newton to two , and the boy McIlroy was fined one shilling, Sentence
giving one an idea of the Chief Justice's opinion of the gaol in prisoners.
on the
those days.
Ten Chinese (Chun Ahtsup and others ) were sentenced Ten Chinese
sentenced
to death for piracy with stabbing at this Sessions, to nine to death.
Antè p. 285.
290 HISTORY OF THE LAWS , ETC. , OF HONGKONG.
Ch. XII § I. of whom the Chief Justice stated he could hold out no
1850. hope of mercy. A bundle of clothes lying on the floor of the
Articles of Court House was sworn to by two of the witnesses without
evidence
abstracted examining it or being asked to do so, the bundle outwardly
after trial. presenting every appearance of being the same as had been
sworn to before the Police Magistrate. But after the
trial was over and the bundle given up to the claimants, the
The
Attorney- witnesses discovered that the best articles of apparel had been
General abstracted, and others, old and worn , substituted. The fact was
says he will
speak to subsequently mentioned to the Attorney- General who said he
the Sheriff.
would speak to the Sheriff, but he was requested rather to speak
to the Judge .
Indignant Indignant at the strictures passed upon him by the local
at the
strictures press at this Sessions , Mr. Sterling wrote to a local journal
passed requesting the removal of his name from the list of sub-
upon him,
Mr. Sterling scribers . This seemed childish for a man of Mr. Sterling's
requests standing and ability, for undoubtedly the remarks seemed very
a local
journal to à propos, but human nature is weak and this was but an ex-
remove his
name from ample. " Nothing," added the journal, " will convince us or the
list of public, that the strictures on the mode in which the criminal
subscribers .
Comments. business of the Colony is conducted have been uncalled for."
First In justice to Mr. Sterling, however, it is but right to say that
recorded
unplea- this is the very first time anything unpleasant to him can be
santness traced in the records from the date of his arrival in the Colony.
concerning
Mr. Sterling. On the 24th July, Mr. Gaskell was gazetted Her Majesty's
Mr. Gaskell
gazetted Proctor in Admiralty. He was the oldest resident solicitor in
Proctor in
Admiralty. the Colony. Mr. Wm . D'E . Parker had been gazetted to act
in this capacity for his brother on the departure of the latter in
September, 1849, and why he did not keep the appointment is
not shown .
Hongkong in
the House It was gratifying to find that Hongkong had at last at-
of Commons, tracted the earnest attention of the House of Commons. On
The annual the annual grant for the Colony being proposed on the 22nd
parliament July, the Honourable Francis Scott took occasion to move an
ary vote
discussed . amendment which was supported by independent members of
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