The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-09-20
C0CLH-CAFCHING.


The Pal MnA Gasstts Of July Slst gives
the following description Of the waY Coolie-
kidnapping in done in China, the fscts Of
which are taken from . paper entitled .
Correct Statement of the Pract,cs Of Kid
mapping and Decoyiag, recently presented
to the Governor of Hong Kong BY Q depu-
tat;cr q influential Chinese residents
When foreign vessel arrives in search
ok laborerA we are told, IN agreement is
entered into with contractor or coolie-
catcher, a the epithst used by the deputa-
tion il significantly translated, who en-
cages to supply the required number on .
certain day. I'm each district and village
the coolie-catcher to whom IN assigned the
task of providing q fixed portion OF the
emigrants. II the appointed day passes
without the oolie-catcher having supplied
the corrrct number Of coolies, the foreigner
nso = k6ad noQliazaafskse A pa4 him
tks money for fhe ckkfts u sthe Skips tIis
expenses Of the rice and food. and what
ever money he may have received in ad-
vance for them, az well a. interest on each
item of expense. Then the head coolie-
catcher comes down ON his subordinate to
make him amend for the amount, just as
the hammer strikes the chisel, and the
chisel repeats the blow on the wood. He
presses him very hard, and perhaps it
comes to involving the security, and causes
the coolie-catcher to overturn his house
hold and dissipate his pstrimoRy. to sell
his wife and children, and even then to
make up any further deficiency.
"Such being the consequences of failure
to fulfill his contract, it will readily be
believed that the coolie-catcher is not very
scrupulous in regard to the measures he
adopts to induce laborers to emigrate.
Sometimes, we are told he practices decep-
ton /; sometimes he administers a stupefy-
ing drug, and sometimes he has recourse to
actual violence. Suppose the coolie-
catcher has got hold of man of some intel
hgence, who understands the foreign and
Chinese language and writing After he
has kidnapped him he shuts him up in .
separate house by himself 30 that he may
not be able to see any person. When he
takes him to Macea he confines him on
one of the islands, and procures another
man to 90 to the Office and assume his
name Before he effects an exchange, he
waits either till the coolies go down to the
ship, or the ship puts out to sea when
this intelligent man sees amy other person,
he assuredly acquaints him with the man
ner Of his capture. The coolie-catcher.
on the other hand, tells people a story
after this fashion This man has already
cheated me out of my money he was
asked several times before the authorities
if lac was willing to go, and he consented.
Now he has spent all his money and is
therefore unwilling to 60" When he gets
on board the ship, the coolie-catcher's right
hand men take up the story. The conse-
quence is that a third person looking on
cannot distinguish which to believe and
which to disbelieve.
The measures Of deception and violence
are supported by the Wholesale bribery of
officials. Aid where by accident an Off
Ger is anxious to protect the kidnapped, it
often happens, we are told, he is unable to
understand their complaint, owing to the
fact that almost every village has sepa-
sss .s.saasi1sls. tu, and no interpreter can be
ound with SsHoSls Zoe Of q sufficient
umber of them