The Kulangsu Council wil, imagine, be looked on with high' approval by' Lady Simon. and. others. For at the moment it has Just taken the delicate Mu. Tsai (lave gle) Question in hand—or Pinu, os they are called in Amoy, The registration been made compulsory of all such aris in every household who are not closely related (0 the family by birth aer marriage. All owners of such thirls who are, not in possession of Togci certificates wilt be liable to prosecution, after the end of this year.
'When 1 called at the Municipal otices, they were turning. up in swarms to register. T did not hear hat any such measures had been oF were being enforced in the Chinese elly' of Amoy, here has been in existence on Kulangsu for some time " refuge for slave girls, founded by s philanthropic Chinese, "Teas over 100 inmates who have run away tromn their owners and for whom husbands ake found as soon possible. As the keeping of slave tirls is nominally forbidden by Chi-hose law the owners have no redress. Unfortunately, funds have run very Jow and the poor girls are in rather a bad way, though the wife of H.M. Consul and other charitable ladies are doing their best to help them.
When, in the innocence of my heart, T expressed surprise that with 33 miliionaites on the island such an excellent institution should be short, of funds, I received the interesting reply that quite a number of the girls had "run away from the households of these same gentlemen, who were therefore about the last people Ukely to support the refuge Their Beneficient Slavery I have no intention of entering into this still much debated question, but will only mention two points made by 0 foreigner who has first hand Knowledge of the Mo Tsai question, In his opinion about 20 per cent. of the girls were really badly treated, bul the remaining 80 per cent, were prelably much dotter off than they had ever been in their own families. before they were sold, where they. were mostly half-starved, ill-treated Bondages. Ho iso believed that In recent times there had been a great general improvement in the treatment of the slave girls, less due to the efieaey of the laws of China—which are, in fact, very Taxly enforced—hah {0 the general education of pu Hie opinion on the subject, 'The Japanese, as I have said, are represented on' the Council, but 1 lunferstand that they take no interest in it, except in immediate Japanese questions. The Formosan "trouble~ makers are handed. over to the Japanese police of whom there are fallogether 100 -on Kulangsu and in Amoy city, but what happens to them ailerwards nobody ever knows. The whole Japanese question which is sucha nightmare to the inhabitants of Fukien Chinese and foreigners like, Twill leave for a separate colimms en December 16 ad 23—others Previous articles appeared in these Nuausous Japanese friends of New Germany. in Tokyo. have collected 'Y, 200,000 for the building of a home in Tokyo which will bear the name of "Withelm Self Home" in commem~ oration of the late German Ambassador to Japan. German members Of this association are now looking for a sullable location for the pro-Jected building, which is to have meeting rooms, a library and club
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.