QUEENSLAND BLACK LABOUR.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12414, 25 July 1902, Page 5

QUEENSLAND BLACK LABOUR.

BISHOP STRETCH AND THE

KANAKAS

Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright,

SYDNEY, July 24. (Received July 24, at 10.35 a.m.) Bishop Stretch, of Newcastle, recently visited Northern Queensland. He writes m his parish paper in reference to the black labour in Queensland that the Federal Government, with that rare courage which marks truly great men, had fastened upon the most harmless and unprotected for their special fury. The Chinese were there, and also thousands of Japanese, but it is the kanaka who must go. These last seem .singularly inoffensive, and they work hard at work no white man should be asked to undertake. They are law-abiding, and upend their money whore they earn it. These men, many of whom haft* wives and families, who really are good-living people, an enlightened Government insists upon deporting to heathen islands, where the chances are they will bn murdered by their still heathen countrymen. A more curious or cowardly proceeding it is hard to imagine, '-'and I trust," he says, " that in some way Australia may he spared this scandal. If not, a white Australia will have to blush n pretty high-coloured red for very shame. It is curious that no plans for deporting the Chinese and Japanese are put forward, hut it is not hard to see the reason. When we wisli to play the bully we naturally choose the smallest bov."