Whampoa and taken up by the China Merchants S. N. Co., which sent one of their steamers, Hochung (October 20, 1879), to Honolulu with a large number of emigrants, and endeavoured, through Captain C. C. Moreno, to negotiate a treaty between China and Hawaii. The only emigration that Sir John sanctioned was emigration to Demerara (December 23, 1878) and subsequently to Antigua. Emigration to the Australian Colonies the Governor was specially averse to and he discouraged it (in 1881) in a manner which caused strained relations between Sir John and the Harbour Master's Department. The reason was that the labouring classes of several Australian Colonies began (since 1878) to agitate for the total exclusion of Chinese labourers and artisans. In this connection, Sir John took special credit to himself for having stopped what he called deportation of criminals to Australia (November 22, 1879). It appears that for several years the practice had obtained in Hongkong of allowing Chinese prisoners under sentence of deportation to elect the country, China or otherwise, to which they wished to go, and in case any one preferred to go to Australia, he was allowed to do so, the Police seeing him on board, to make sure that he left the Colony. Thus it happened that in several cases men left the Gaol to emigrate to Australia, and this was the practice Sir John stopped. A few years later, there was a debate in Council (August 23, 1881) which brought out the difference of opinion that separated the community from the Governor on the question of emigration, as on almost every other subject. The Hon. F. B. Johnson drew attention to the unrestricted right which persons of any nationality in Hongkong had, to go to another country, and stated that Chinese profited greatly by their sojourn in foreign countries, that trade follows wherever they go, and that Hongkong benefits largely from the passenger traffic and from the trade which that traffic gives rise to. On the other hand Sir John declared that Chinese emigration was not desired by foreign countries and that the Chinese Government was opposed to it because it took the bone and sinew out of the country. However, in spite of Sir John's opposition to Chinese emigration,
