HC Deb 18 July 1905 vol 149 cc1060-1
DR. MACNAMARA (Camberwell, N.)

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is satisfied that his assurance to the Chinese Minister, of 15th February, 1904 [Cd. 1945], that corporal punishment would not be legally inflicted upon indentured Chinese coolies by any employer or his servant, is being carried out; and whether, in the cases of flogging of coolies reported to the House on Thursday last, he is satisfied that the law of the colony, which prescribes that no sentence of whipping imposed by a magistrate can be carried out till the record has been sent to and the sentence confirmed by the Judge of the Supreme Court, has been also respected.

MR. LYTTELTON

My attention has been drawn to a statement made by the late compound manager of the Croesus Mine, from which it would appear that illegal flogging has taken place on that mine, and I have been also informed by the hon. Member for Morpeth, whose fairness of view I freely acknowledge, that he has been satisfied by a trustworthy correspondent that this statement is correct. The practice is one which must, of course, be put down, and I am in communication with Lord Selborne, who is quite alive to the importance of the matter, with a view to further improvements in supervision. I may mention that the Transvaal Government has recently obtained from the Foreign Office the loan of the services of Mr. Jamieson as superintendent, and his intimate knowledge of the Northern Chinese and of their language will be of great value to the Colonial Government. With regard to the latter part of the Question, I have no reason to suppose that the law is not being adhered to.

DR. MACNAMARA

Do I understand that the Answer to the former part of the Question shows that the Colonial Secretary is not assured that the pledge to the Chinese Minister has been respected?

MR. LYTTELTON

I have answered the Question, and the hon. Gentleman may draw any inference he pleases.

MR. MARKHAM (Nottinghamshire, Mansfield)

Was it not stated at a coroner's inquest recently that the Chinese miners were repeatedly flogged and assaulted, and when complaint was made to the mine manager no notice was taken of it?

MR. LYTTELTON

I have not seen that.