In an article commending the action of the Hongkong Government in prohibiting Boycott meetings in the Colony, the "Foochow Echo" states very elenrly the views of those who hold hat Chinese Briti h subjects in China hould openly indicate their adopted ionality by wearing foreign costume. The difficulty is that this would be a very imperfect means of identification, as there are many Chinese students and others who wear foreign dress already, while remaining Chinese subjects The Foochow Echo" ys Hongkong is a British Colony, and the vast majority of Chinese resident there are British subjects. For British subjects the interest of the Boycott is speculative merely; they have no such concern in it as to give them a right to take an active part in the agitation. It is true that th ed by the Hongkong fooling is very strong mong them, and they feel that the black-haired people," even though they may be subjects of the same Ki ug as the "red-haired barbarians," have nothing else in common with them. Thi forms one of the main reasons why desirable that the Chinese who, by nee in Hongkong or the Straits Settlements, become British subjects, should be required in some way to differ entiate themselves from Chinese who remain subjects of the Son of Heaven. That British nationality is regarded as an advantage by the Chinese is sufficiently demonstrated by the notorious fact that many Chinese, having been naturalsedi in Hongkong, send their wives at critical periods to the Colony for a time in lorder that the children may be born British subjects, and (as in this case happens) remain so, although they return to China. These children, when they grow up, are iudistinguishable "from other Chinese, They speak, as their native language, some dialect of Chinese; they live on Chinese food, wear Chinese costume, cultivate a queue, and, as often as not, reside snd own land in' the interior. In a word, they endeavour to enjoy all the advantages of British subjects in China, such as immunity from the control of Chinese officials, and at the same time to evade all the disabilities attaching to the character of foreigner.
Entirely to prevent these abuses is utterly impossible by any means but one. Were it rigidly enforced in colonies where persons of Chinese origin form a part of the population, that. any of them who are, or who become, British subjects should adopt British co.tume (which involves the sactilice of their queues,) the xbuses must cease auto matically.
For Chinese who intend to renin subjects of the Emperor of China, this out ward change, though it has been seriously put forward as " desi: able reform, is not a matter of any moment. But itis of great moment, wd becomes daily more important, that such as become subjects of foreign States should show that they do so with ap honest intention, and not merely with a view to obtaining, in China, an unfair advantage over their fellow Celestials.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.