AN UNCLE'S DUTY.

NZ Truth, Issue 119, 28 September 1907, Page 6

AN UNCLE'S DUTY.

THE CHOW AND THE CHILD. A Haining-Street Romance. A Promise Made to a Dying Woman.

Nearly twelve months ago, or to be proper and precise, on December 19, 1906, there died m a Chinese den m Haining-street, a, young woman named iVioleb King. The unfortunate creature was the consort of a Chinaman named Wong Now. and death, if anything, was due to excessive drinking. The poor, hopeless creature is now m her "-rave, and far be it from "Truth" to say anything of her unholy ending excepting, of course, tnat m her grave, unhallowed ami untended, she has got that peace and repose that would have been denied her m this hard, cold, cruel world. Violet King was unmarried, ' and she left behind her what has been described as a bright and cheerful little boy. whom the mother declared was not the son of a Chinaman, and on her death-bed (she expired m the arms of her brother, George King), she made him promise never to yield the boy over to the Mongol, to keep him clean, to feed and clothe him, and to: ear him m whatever realm of respectability it was possible for the uncle to do. Now, if the uncle's story to "Truth" is to be believed, he did rear that child, not as a tender, hoi-house plant, but fed and clothed and cared for him as a foster-parent m the lowest dregs of civilisation coukl possibly do. King admits that he is not the clean Cat of potatoes, that ho, has been m trouble, that he mi Flit, have been better than he is. Anyhow, there is this much to be said m his favor, three or four vcars have passed since he was last within

THE GRASP OF THE LAW, and since then he has done his best to keep his head above water. The man who has been m trouble once., or more than once, has a very hard row to hoe m this world. Practically he is an Ishmael. All hands are against him, and m selfdefence or m sheer desperation he buck's up against, tine world hard and strong with the inevitable result that he goes under. King, however, seems to have set out to steer a peculiar course of his own. He says the Chows of Haining-strcct, and Wong Now, m .particular, soon after the death, of the unfortunate woman, began to talk big about taking the boy and as King had promised to his sister on her death-bed that such a thing should not be, he resisted the claim, and that claim was fought out before Magistrate McArthur at the Wellington S.M. Court (Friday) morning, with the result that that very humane and considerate law-giver, ordered that neither King nor ' the Haining-strec J - Chows should have the bo", who. from all appearances, has r»o traces of Mongol about him. and. very properly, to "Truth's" way of thinking, the poor unfortuimte little chao Avas sent oft to a home. Now, aspersions have been cast on King's character, admittedly not spotless and pure. It was alleged that he and King accordingly appeals to "Truth" to champion his cause against the vile and wicked machinations of some Mt. Cook policemen, who have busi'-bodied themselves about the child, just as if policemen have not plenty of other things to do than interfere with a white child that is being reared under the

ROOF OF A CHINESE DEN. "Truth" does not want to offer any comment beyond giving a plain statement of the facts', and leave the readers of "Trufh" to decide who is right m the matter. When the child's m other diod from drink, and, having en her death <bed exacted a promise from her ibr other to care for h^r child, of which a Chinaman was not a. father, it is i.n terns tiki?;- to see how faithfully Kjing kept to his word. Fov months find months lie lived m this C'hinep^ den. He cooked the food, he clolhrd iho child, he washed and slushed and house-kept for the Chinamen, and part of the expense he bore out of his own pockets, the savings of a littJe, but hard, work he had dono m Ihe past. For months he lived with the Chinamen, the same Chinamen Avho wanted the 'boy; and never once did he forget his promise. He worked hard for the leprous, ungracious, unthankful yellow fiends, and they never once offered to re-imburse him for his many offices m the house'five child was sent to school, and lived m a Chines© den, carefully fe"l. clothvd, and tended by its loving uncle, who was a sort of house-keeper for the Chows. The. child. "Truth" .said, was described as a bright and cheerful little chap, and what King j wants to know is, bow dare Hi? nolicg of Mfcj Cook dare to say. that

the child was not being reared m a pure and wholesome atmosphere, and , "Truth" can only say how dare they I take a child from under the roof of a Chinese den "and help to send him away to a Home where he will mix with companions of his own age, where he will not have the loving care and attention of a devoted uncle, where everything will be good and wholesome arid where the influence on his young age might tend to send him out on to the world a useful memiber of society., In the -words of the uncle,

IT IS A DAMNABLE SHAME that t'h-3 police should so interfere, and doubtless there are those who will share m his opinion. It is certainly not an everyday occurrence that the police act as they did m this instance, a nd "Truth" can only saythat it is fortunate that such occasions aro only rare, and were they otherwise something else might he said concerning the police. There is, however, one source of satisfaction left to the uncle, and that is that the Chinamen have not got the child. The uncle said he did his duty to 'his nephew by rearing him under the ro 0 f of a Chinese den. The police, m removing; the child, se^em to have been actuated by a mistaken zeal. Why should not any bright, cheerful little fcoy be left m a Chinese den, reared under the watchful eye of an uncle, who washes and cooks and housekeeps for a Chinaman ? In sending that child to a Home, Magistrate Mc-Art-hur seems to have forgotten the expense it involves to the country for his keep, and Dr. McArthur, on the uncle's behalf, is severely censured. All the same, though, it is a very fortunate thine; that the State does provide Homes for waifs, if only for the purpose of cheating a Chinamanout of a child that the yellow brute lias no just claim on. These Homes are very useful m their way.