CHINESE “SMUGGLERS.”

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3315, 20 October 1919, Page 5

CHINESE “SMUGGLERS.”

sQv"Em3i'GNs ‘IN BAGGAGE‘

QUEERSCENE AT MELBOURNE. ‘

SYDNEY‘, Oct. .8

The law today says that only twenty sovereigns may be taken ogt of Australia and they musf’ be taken openly. The sovereign is worth up to 30/ in the East to-day——and so the Chinese try to smuggle them away.Thére was a queer scene on 3. Melbourne Wharf this week, just before the steamer Eastern left for China with 100 honlew‘éra'-_b’ound Chinesev among

her passengers. The Chinese carried tlggir luggage very carefully down to the wharf, houis before the boat was to sail, piled it there and sat on guard. The Customs detectives, always suspicious of the Chinese, decided to have an extra careful inspection. A group of them gathered_befol'c the mountain of luggage and the Chinese. sfirred uneasily. ‘An official opened a bag andnoticed .-a small’ * mirror. It seemed heavy. “Undo the back” sfiid the inspector. .’l~‘h"e Chinese owner protested earnestly. The back was ripped open and 34 sovereigns were found there gummed to "pieces of paper. .-Kim saw was arrested. T . .

A cube box puzzled the detectives. They could not get at the inside of it. They forced off the lid ‘There imbecided in a most . ingenuious fashion in the woodwork, were 105 sovereigns. Chin Lin was arested. _ An aged Chinaman who clung affec—tionately to a bag of raisins -aroused : attention. A detective thrust a specu- ‘ lative hand’ among the raisins and the old man shrieked. Eleven sovereigns were found. ~Ah Chow was arrested. The detectives examined curiousiy ar: alarfmcloék, fihich ‘_.WaS ticking in- go 'na¢en'tlyi'-- t“‘Whaifor,. Ib~l-eak clock,”.f said... the .ngonised_ownei:. \ They._to_o_k;f'. the back off; nine more sovereigns. Looey Poo was arrested- 'l“’ ..-.—'l‘.hen one of the distressed onlook--ers, a Shanghai man, threw up his hands, shrieked, and ran towards the gates. He was pursued and brought gack. “VVhy should he 1-un?-?«(’.' the officials.’ They. ;eiiamined":}l;ixvl_lf» care. fully. Inside the leather lini-ng‘of his hat they found 25 sovereigns. _ Ling. Sing Was" arrested. _ ‘T U ‘ A detective picked up ‘a photograph ' from among some‘clothing_ The own—_ er gave gt sort of jump. So"they cut open the back of the photograph. Two more sovereigns, and Ah Chee was arrested. , The Eastern sailed eventually, but. nearly a. dozen Chinese and more than 200 sovereigns, booked to China", stayed behind in custody.