§ MR. BOTTOMLEY (Hackney, S.)To ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies in what respects the trial of Chinese labourers will in future differ from the past, in view of the fact that they will still be tried by the same official, and that the proceedings will still be conducted in the Chinese language; and whether an English interpreter will be present at all trials.
(Answered by Mr. Churchill.) It is proposed to retain the present system of trial, which gives to the Chinese prisoner the advantage of being tried by a magistrate who understands his language, of being able himself to follow the proceedings, and of being independent of an interpreter. The proceedings will be 773 public, and the presence of an English interpreter will, no doubt, be secure when required.