THE CHINAMAN AND THE "BUSTED" BANK.

Bruce Herald, Volume XVII, Issue 1757, 11 June 1886, Page 4

THE CHINAMAN AND THE "BUSTED" BANK.

A Melbourne exchange says : — " When the news of the failure of the Commercirtl Bank of Scuth Australia reached the Chinese in camp at Golden Point there was a scene of great excitement, owing to the remembrance of former Bank failures, and every Chinaman — the opulent merchant and the most wretched rag-gatherer — started to inspect his savings, so as to see if any of the notes were in his possession. One Celestial, who earns one and sixpence per day at the latter occupation, hastily ripped a patch from off his nether covering, and from beneath brought out ten £1 notes. He eagerly scanned them, and saw they were on the Commercial Bank of Australia. Thinking this was the ill-fated Bank, he becime frantic, and rushing out of his hut he tore down his pigtail and indulged in various wild antics peculiar to the Oriental, exclaiming — " What for Englisheern^m alle same we poor Chinaman ? Me poor before, me welly poor now." The other Chinamen were as ignorant as he was and could give him no consolation. He then grew melancholy, and going into his hovel fixed a rope to the rafters and arrangnd a slip knot, by which means he resolved to depait to the place where Bank failures are unknown. The Celestial was indulging his last opium smoke, and was then about to finish the business, when luckily Mr Henry Lee Yung, the Chinese interpreter, came along, and, having heard of tbia affair, entered the hut. He then inspected the notes, and pronounced them to be all right. John was incredulous, but finally went to the bank to settle the question. On arriving there the officials laughi.'d at his fear, but the Chinaman wished to bo certain about it, and would not leave the banking institution until he had the notes exchanged for ten sovereigns. The suicide was thus averted and the poor decrepid old rag-gatherer went back to his hut, took down the apparatus that was to have elevated him into the next world, and then, going to the Josshouse, he knelt before Joss, as all good Chinamen are supposed to do, and thmked the heathen god for allowing him to continue his avocation of collecting rags, bones, and bottles for a short time longer."