"A CHINESE COLONY.”

Otago Witness, Issue 3886, 4 September 1928, Page 69

"A CHINESE COLONY.”

DISQUIETING POSITION. (From Opr Own Correspondent.) SYDNEY, August 23. When Captain H. Miles, of the Shell Oil Company, upon his return from a visit to North Australia, said, “ Only two businesses remain in Darwin that are not run by Chinese,” he outlined a position that has come as a violent shock to many Australians who find it hard to visualise this little sun-stricken town which is fast becoming wholly lellow. “ It is already like a Chinese colony,” said Captain Miles, and went on to explain that one of the businesses he referred to was that conducted by a powerful "ency unlikely to fan into the hands of the Chinese, while the other was a general business which had been conducted by two brothers for over 20 years. The 1 rothers did not expect to survive the competition of the Chinese very long, unfortunately. The Chinese price cutting was very severe, and was intended to destroy all white competition if possible. To date, apparently this Oriental method of peaceful penetration had been extremely successful. This statement by a disinterested traveller coming on top of the allegations of the member of the House of Representatives for the Northern Territory (Mr H. G. Nelson, M.H.R.) is very disquieting. Mr Nelson said he had positive proofs that Chinese were being smuggled into Australia, particularly Northern Australia, and that Customs officers were implicated in the delivery of this “ human contraband.” The Minister for Home and Territories, Sir Neville Howse, replying to these charges, stated that he had implicit trust in the officials of the Customs Department. It remains true, however, that a few’ years ago investigations were made into the genuineness, or otherwise, of birth certificates of young Chinese arriving in Darwin from China, invariably male children, led to the discovery that some of the certificates were faked,. Children who were certified as having been born in Darwin and taken to China in infancy were found to have been born in China and “ farmed,” as it were, on to Australia.

It is significant that at the Darwin State School 67 per cent, of the scholars are Chinese or coloured. They compare very favourably in intelligence with the European children, too. Last vear a coveted scholarship which entitles” the lucky, and brilliant, pupil to three years’ free tuition at a Queensland secondary college was won by a Chinese lad. Ihis little yellow' chap was the son of a cook on the Katherine River. At the time this incident was regarded as curious rather than significant, but, perhaps, it is a straw showing which way the wind is blowing at Darwin. Important in relation to these facts is the opinion of Mr C. Urice Conigrave, ex-chief clerk, Administrator’s office, Darwin. Mr Conigrave said, “As a northerner of 15 years’ residence I realise that the Chinese make excellent, law-abiding citizens. But the fact cannot be overlooked that in Darwin nowadays nearly all of the white establishments have been closed in the face of the Chinese competition. The general business of the town is now almost entirely in the hands of the Chinese.” It is recognised that North Australia is more . suitable for the Chinese than the white man and the “ chink ” in his penetration has had a good deal of assistance from those who most greatly dislike his presence. Strikes and almost impossible labour conditions have hamstrung the progress of Darwin and have given the Chinese every opportunity to gain a strong • foothold in business and in a variety of skilled and unskilled occupations. It certainly would appear that the expensive ideal of keeping tropical Australian white is slowly dissloving into disillusionment. There are those who are now saying, “ We told you so.” They are the people who have said from the very first that it would be impossible for white men to make the north progress, and they urged, and still urge, that some system of indenture of Asiatic labour, with sufficient safeguards to prevent a yellow tide engulfing the south, should be instituted. Most Australians, however, would rather see the North languish than have Australia partitioned; one half yellow, one half white. And thev will fight bitterly, if needs be, for the White Australia policy whatever the ultimate cost may be.