Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-09-10
A MONGOL SENSATION.
The Founders of a New Society In San
Francisco Threatened with Death.
San Francisco Chronicle

ped up which will illustrate the unders
workings of the Chinese secret socie>
ties-a novelty which will command
itself TO the attention of Minister
DENLY and form an additional item
in his budget of Chinese stutisuics. 1t
is generally known that besides the
Chinese Six companies there is Sec
ret organization in the Monaghan
quarter known as the Highbinders
society. Like each of the Six compan>
ies,1t is composed of clans or clubs
numbering dozen IN all. The objects
pursued by this influential association
are principally the assassination CIR
putting out of the way of any Ce>
lestlal for whose head a sufficient
price has been paid by other Mongol-
ian societies. The sum is graduated
from $500 to SO, 900, according to the
arrangement effected. as to whether it
shall be complete job or merely an
attempt repeated once, twice, etc. The
Highbinders also terrorize and levy
a weekly tax on the gambling houses
and houses of prostitution, being
equally ready to act as friends or foes,
according to the monetary relations
which they entertain with the latter.
OF all the various subordinate clubs,
perhaps the most ifuential is the Suey
On club, whose headquarters are 10.
Gated on the corner of Jackson and
Dupont streets. Like other similar
branches of the Highbinders guild, it
contains president, secretary, and
an under secretary, and has three
hundred members on its roll. Two
of the members who had only been
connected with this secret organizes
ton for six months, when they were
initiated into the inner and darker
secrets of the organization, recently
resolved to sever their connection
with it as soon as possible and estab~
lish society of their own on g milder
and less aggressive basis.
According about three weeks ago,
All Shing and An Look intimated to
the secretary of their club that they
wished to cease their membership and
start a new society. The secretary
under the idea that this new associa-
ton was to form a branch of the
HIghbinders guild, readily assented
to their proposition thas he should
lend them the book of regulations and
rules of the Suey On, the urns, bronze
jars for incense, metal boats for iba-
tons, crockeryware for banquet and
even some of the minor josses belong
Tag to the club, so that the initiation
of the new branch might be celebrate
ed with as great pOmp and splGndor
as possible. But the secretary's idea
was not the idea of All Look and All
Shing. On the contrary. they cons
trary, they contemplated establishing
an association whIch should be altos
gether peaceful, a mutual benefit pro
tectlon society, which should have
naught to do with the assassin's pom
lard Or the midnight murder. Accord
ingly the new society was launched
and called Wing Shing Kung Shooe
Its headquarters were established in a
room rented at No. 1,0O9 Stockton
street, the abode of the well known
Dr.. Lee Ping Nom, who rejoices in
the Caucas an patronymic of Canton.
Recruits rapidly poured In from the
Suey On club. A constitution was
drafted, a precis of the rules and regu-
lations of which may be given as fol-
lows: Each member was required to
subscribe an initiation fee of of $40.
The charter roll members bound them
selves to assist their sick members by
providing board, lodging, doctors at
tendance, and drugs during their i'll
ness. If, however, it was found that
any member was either supernatural
ed or too i'll to be cured, provision
was made for a regular levy on each
member of the club pro rata to his
means, TO secure a sum sufficient to
take the invalid or the aged one back
to the fowery kingdom. Each memb
er on death was entitled to his funeral
expenses, which are taken out of the
general fund, and if he left wife and
children to support for them, which
was raised by an extra ordinary levy
of SIS or upward per capita, according
to circumstances. It was also ar
ranged that if any member left for
China all his contributions would be
refunded, as he would then have no
further claim on the society. The
monthly contribution was to be 81 a
member.
These regulations were almost en-
tirely copied from those of the High
binders guide, and will give q fair
idea of the rules by which the various
clans and organizations in the Chinese
colonies are guided. The projectors of
the new association being, however,
of peaceful disposition, or "pure
heart, as the Chinese term ii, ia no
wise intended that it should have any
connection with the association from
which it had seeded. So, after BAN
quoting, and worshiping right royal
~, the members considered that they
had initiated their club with sufficient
eclat, and returned their regalia, ETC.,
to their former comrades. But things
were not destined to go altogether
smoothly with them. Finding that
they were to have no stock in the new
club, and that it was not destined to
be an ofshoot of the parent stem. the
Infatuated HighbInders on last We'd
nesday made a rush for the headquar-
tiers of the new society, tore down the
placard, Wing Shang Kung Shooe,