THE YELLOW AGONY.

Mt Benger Mail, Volume 17, Issue 850, 29 August 1896, Page 3

THE YELLOW AGONY.

[Fboji the Sx&bb Pakuamemaiiy Rkepbxbb ] WELLINGTON, August 20. In moving in the Council yesterday the second reading of the Asiatic Restriction Bill, the Minister of Education said he did not intend to repeat the arguments gone over before, but stated that he hoped the Council would accept this Bill as a fair compromise.—Sir G. Whitmore trusted that in committee the definition of "Asiatic" would be altered so as to exempt the Japanese from the operations of the Act. He was pleased to see that British subjects were now exempt, though he looked on the measure as a cowardly one towards the Chinese. He did not think that those who made objections to the Chinese and were continually agitating against them were bona fide. There was nothing to justify the exclusion of Japanese, of whom there were very few in the colony, and he would move to exempt them.—MrShrimski, as before, opposed the Bill, and repeated his arguments as to the decrease of the Chinese in the colony since 1881. There was only about 1 per cent, of the population of Wellington against the Chinese, and it, above all other places, did receive them open-handed. The working classes would yet regret this action, as Europeans had no room to grow vegetables there. Of one thing he was sure—viz., that they would be punished for ejecting the Chinese. A list of Chinese arrivals and departures for each year since 1881 showed that the departures were greater in each year, and the total departures for these years was 1,300 more than the arrivals. He regretted that under the British flag such tyranny was possible. Referring to the taunt that he was actuated by mercenary motives, he stated that his wife had a paddock of six acres, for which she sometimes received £2O a year and sometimes nothing. He knew what persecution was, and he would be a coward and villain were he to subject others to such persecution as he had himself felt in the past. Mr Shrimski, who spoke under great emotion, concluded by saying that he would vote against the Bill at every stage.—Mr M'Lean believed that the Chinese would not increase in numbers in the colony, and the figures showed that they were fast leaving the colony. He could not congratulate the Government on having made any improvement in the Bill, and said that it would be very inconvenient for shipowners.—Mr Williams moved as an amendment that the Bill be read a second time that day six months. He looked on the Bill as a breach of faith towards the Chinese, who had had to throw open their ports to the British. He spoke at some length about the opium tralHc, which had been forced on them. He also alluded to the mission field of China and the duty of New Zealand towards those who were acting as missionaries in the interior of China. He suggested that the poll tax, instead of being paid into the Consolidated Fund, should be used for the purpose of educating some of the Chinese in Wellington for Christian mission work, in which caw he would support the Bill.— Mr Reynolds was certain that the Bill was only intended for electioneering purposes.—Mr Jones, replying to Mr Shrimski's allusions to his own remark as to mercenary motives, said he had not meant that Mr Shriraski was opposing the Bill because he had leased his wife's land to Chinamen, from whom he could squeeze a higher rent than he could get from Europeans.—Mr Ormond said that it was clear now that the original Bill was unconstitutional, and that the Council had done its duty to the colony by throwing it out. This question was used for party purposes, and he thought too much was being made of the few Chinese who are at present in the colony. He would support the second reading, but trusted to see the Bill amended in committee.—Mr Kelly denied that the Imperial Government had forced the opium trade on China. Opium bad been in use there long before, but when Chinese ports were opened it became an ordinary article of commerce from India, where it was largely grown.— Mr Kerr predicted that if the Bill were not passed there would be a thousand Chinamen on the West Coast within a year if a mining boom were started there.—Mr Rigg and Mr Jennings supported the Bill, while Mr Bonar opposed it as illiberal in its restrictions. He quoted statistics to show that not 1 per cent, of the Chinese population was convicted of crime.—Mr Peacock and Mr Bolt continued the debate in favor of the Bill—The Minister of Education, in reply, urged that, though we were not federated I with Australia, this was one of the questions in which all the colonies Bhould act in common, and New Zealand in this respect was behind the times. He denied that the Bill was brought down for political purposes. —On a division Mr Williams's amendment was lost by 19 to 10, the voting being :

Atbs. Messrs Richardson. Baillie, Acland, Barnicoat, Arkwright, Kerr, Kelly, ltigg. .lones, Jenkinson, Beeves, Feklwick, Jennings, Kenny, Ormond, Bolt, Peacock, Montgomery, and Walker. Noe*.— Messrs Reynolds, .Scotland, Swanson, Shriniski, Williams, Taiaroa, Bonar, Stevens, M'Lean, and Holmes.

The second reading was then agreed to.