The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-10-06
COOLIES return
0PULENT TO CHINA
Slaves Repatriatcd From Rand
Indulge in Grapl1oplloncs and
Diamond Rings.
CONCEAL, THEIR MONEY
Motor Cycles, Bicycles and
Watches Galore Among Their
Visible Effects.
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HONG KONG. oct. 8

Il / a v
The steamer Hellopois, with 1866 Chit
nese Slaves from the Rand. sailed from
Durbnn for China on July .. During the
voyage / have learned some interesting
facts ABOUT the Slaves" many of whom
were being rcpatriated. under the impc-
rial governments concession. and ut the
cost of the :tish taxpayers, before their
contracts had expired.
These men have, or are supposed to
have. no means of paying for their own
passage. AM inclined to think that the
coiiecssionis much abused. Several of
them have money either secreted about
their persons or In the safokeepng of
friends. Ono man was recently caught III
the act of trying to conceal 500 in u
water spout In the Durham compound
An expedlcnt often resorted to is to pro-
cure u draft on enc of the banks in Cliina
before tic application for repatriation Is
lntt!c. a.
Coolies are Cautious.
I l,;,Se tried Ito gain some Information
regarding the uinount OF money saved by
coolies during their indenture. but 1t Is
Impossible to strike Il definite average
We carry With us on the Ilcllopolis Labor
importation Agency drafts to the amount
of 100000, but that does not by any
means represent tile total wealth OF orr
coolies. assnone Of the money OF the Can
tonese Is included III that figure. They.
with MANY of the nortllerners. prefer to
conceal their worldly all about their per-
SONS. .llis they do entirely at their own
risk, rs tile agency makes adequate pro-
vision for the taking OF deposits and
tcr, the, gums intact to the own
ers on arrival In China.
Cantonese reported the other day
that he had been robbed OF $3.50. but was
unable toindicnte the thief. x northcrner
on another occasion reported that at
tempts We're being mnde to get Mt his
hard-earned savings. Ifc had fifty sover-
seigns sewn up in small bundles in his
clothing. Is.
Much ingenuity Is often shown III the
selection @of places Of concealment.
know Of one Instance where a coolie had
800 sewn lip fiji the soles of his boots,
swhilesanother had a similar amount i'm
sbedded In soap. have repeatedly seen
bank drafts for sl00slnd $50 being handled
by Chinese on deck, and these. of course.
are quite apart from the sum of 10000
already mentioned.
A Saving Race.
1t seems that 30 to 10 per cent. of the
Slaves save consistently during their in
denttire. workman can earn III the
mines from $40 to s25 per month. but can
only reach the latter figure by skilful
spieccwork. An average worker could save
$3.50 in three years.
The coolies, in addition to hard cash,
possess worldly goods OF no mean value.
Ono man is actually the proud possessor
of n motor cycle. and several others have
bicycles. There are watches on board In
quantity. and a coolie with some CONNER
icial Instinct may occasionally be seen
with as many as twenty In his belt. the
idea being to retail them at a profit in
his own country.
There are any number OF gold watch
chains silver watch chains, cigarette
cases. travelling trunks, and so on. One
schinaman showed me the other day a
lovely diamond ring, and presented tho
recelpta f9r. sI25 which he had received
from setlse Il TohA rnesburg jeweler from
.whonlahe had made the purchase. AM
other had Il magnificent gramophonc.
while still another was carrying back an
iron betlstead.
As for food, each coolie on board re-
ceives Il half pound meat, three-quarters
of a pound vegetables, one and one-half
pounds of rice and unlimited tea. Con-
3densed milk, cream, beef extract, brandy,
sherry and arrowrOot are given at the
medical officers discretion.
8