Frank Cui,

 Frank Cui, winner at the the 2011 Chinese Business Figures Awards, speaks about his role with BNZ and how he got to where he is today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kTVy4QGB2Y&feature=player_embedded

Trading places with China

FIONA ROTHERHAM

Last updated 05:00 20/05/2012

MICHAEL BRADLEY/Fairfax NZ

SPECIAL TREATMENT: The high profile of mayors in China means that Kiwi businessmen joining delegations with Auckland's Len Brown and other mayors know they will see doors opened for them.

MAARTEN HOLL/Fairfax NZ

WELLINGTON MAYOR: Celia Wade-Brown.

Bob Lee is on the hunt for New Zealand crayfish and chicken nuggets.
The Chinese businessman already imports a swag of Kiwi crayfish into Guangzhou via Australia and wants to cut out the middleman. He's visiting Auckland next month to hold talks with local crayfish suppliers and also wants to import chicken nuggets through an existing processor or by building his own factory here.
Beyond that, he's interested in importing New Zealand wine which he said, while slugging back another glass, was better quality and lower priced than the French, Italian and Australian wines popular in his home province.
Lee also joked that as a single man he wouldn't mind meeting a wife in Auckland. But when told all Kiwi women were trouble, he laughed uproariously and said he would stick to crayfish.
Although Lee already knew about New Zealand, he may not have made the push to visit and invest here without having access to high-powered businesspeople and officials through the mayoral-led delegation from Auckland.
He was not the only one. There was significant interest at all five investment seminars staged in Guangzhou, Qingdao, Beijing, Ningbo, and Shanghai. That interest extended to deals on Kiwi products to investing in the region's private sector companies and public infrastructure projects being touted by the council such as the city rail loop and potential second harbour crossing. A number of Chinese businessmen are planning reciprocal visits.
The Government has a New Zealand Inc strategy for boosting two-way trade and investment with China but the Crafar farm controversy shows some Kiwis seem to favour more outward trade, less inward investment.
Auckland's next step will be debating in a month or so whether public private partnerships (PPPs) with potential Chinese investors should fund its new infrastructure or whether it should be done with more debt on the council balance sheet and/or infrastucture bonds.
"A decision will need to be made in the next 18 months to two years," Auckland mayor Len Brown says.
Given the huge power and influence provincial mayors have in China, it's obvious a mayoral-led delegation opens doors.
"In China and the whole of Asia political leaders outrank commercial leaders whereas here in New Zealand the opposite is true. You can't do business there if the politics are not sorted out," says Malcolm Johns, CEO of tour bus company InterCity and deputy chair of Tourism New Zealand.
But how do ratepayers measure whether the money spent on these trade delegations is worthwhile? After all, the Auckland Council has two more planned this year – to the Pacific Islands, and Korea and Taiwan. The $100,000 bill for the China delegation covered the mayor, councillor Richard Northey, two mayoral office staffers and two from the council's international relations team, and an interpreter. But it doesn't include the costs of the six staff from the council controlled organisations (CCOs) that also went, or the time and input from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials. Companies paid their own way.

Len Brown says there were some immediate, tangible benefits and a lot of longer-term relationship benefits that will take time to pay off. He points to a Chinese businessman who plans to visit here in July who wants to invest $10 million in New Zealand's clean energy and green tech companies.
"That was an immediate, clear, tangible, financial benefit that specifically came from this trip."
Delegates have all given positive feedback about the well-organised trip and the value of being part of a civic approach rather than just on their own.
Although there are big economic opportunities in China, building sustainable long-term relationships requires two key elements, Brown says. You have to be there as you can't expect the free trade agreement to manifest itself by sitting behind a desk in Auckland; and you have to stay there, with either staff in market or repeat visits to build on the connections made, he says.
Wade-Brown says 100 per cent of respondents to a company survey the council conducted after a trade delegation to sister cities in Japan, China and Hong Kong last year said it had been worthwhile. Given the fragility of the New Zealand economy and Wellington's in the face of central government spending cuts, people understand the need to work on this economic opportunity in China, she says.
Auckland city councillor Richard Northey says businesses have certainly got their eyes open to the potential although other ratepayers may not see it as value for money. "But there are people who don't use libraries and are not enthusiastic about the council being involved in them as well."
It comes back to whether you consider economic development a core council function.
Former local government minister Nick Smith initiated a legislative shakeup touted as getting councils' focus back on roading, rubbish and rates. Their mandate is being changed from considering the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing of communities to providing good quality local infrastructure, public services and regulatory functions at the least possible cost to households and business.
Changes to the Local Government Act on the first four legs of that reform – covering fiscal responsibility, governance and streamlining council reorganisation – will be introduced in a bill shortly.
However it would seem the role of councils in economic development has been largely left untouched. Auckland's economic development strategy includes ambitious growth targets and is focused on boosting international connections, visitor numbers and exports in several key sectors.
Unitec CEO Rick Ede, who went on the Auckland delegation, thinks it's irrefutable China is an important part of New Zealand's future and that council should be leading the way.
"It's absolutely appropriate council takes a proactive approach to the growth and development of business in Auckland. It needs to be strategic – not so much picking winners, as not picking losers."
Wellington City Council's economic development strategy also includes undertaking collaborative activities with international contacts such as sister cities, including five business delegations on and offshore by 2015.
Wade-Brown says providing you have the backing of your local community, councils should be at the heart of boosting economic development in their city. That's why she's leading another delegation of 31 Wellington companies next month to the inaugural China International Fair in Trade Services in Beijing.
The sister city is picking up the tab for the mayor's travel.
The seven-day, three-city trip includes visiting the site of the New Zealand Agricultural Park in Beijing, a proposed joint private sector and council initiative to create a 3.5 to 7 square kilometre New Zealand-style agricultural technology demonstration park that would provide preferential tax and investment policies for New Zealand companies.
An upholstery fabric produced out of New Zealand wool and the straw waste from rice crops in China that would otherwise be burnt is the unlikely result of last year's Wellington delegation.
Start-up The Formary made headlines in 2010 when Starbucks said it would upholster chairs at new stores with WoJo, a fabric the Wellington company wove with 70 per cent New Zealand wool and jute from recycled coffee sacks.
Managing director Bernadette Casey says the need for an alternative way of dealing with the rice straw waste was reinforced on last year's mayoral-led trade delegation that she attended.
But their research and development, funded by Beef and Lamb, would have been thwarted without the help of a high-ranking Chinese official she met on that trip. The company got permission to bring the straw waste into New Zealand but not to take it out of China. One phone call to the official and a 20kg sack of the waste arrived on her Wellington doorstep. They've now produced an upholstery fabric to pitch to Chinese investors in Beijing, and are developing a clothing fabric.
Casey says the company has had a lot of interest, including potential investors, out of China because what they're doing fits the government mandate towards clean tech but the mayoral delegation was crucial in getting them noticed by the right people.
FIVE TIPS ON DOING BUSINESS IN CHINA
Head of institutional banking for ANZ China Grant Knuckey has advice for Kiwi companies on setting up business there:
Get on the ground: You can't do business in China without making repeat visits to the market or having in-market representatives. Guanxi, or connections, are fundamentally important.
Focus: China is a fragmented market, as is Asia generally, and there is a surplus of opportunity. Companies that succeed in China pick a part of the market and what they're very good at and stick to it.
Invest heavily in relationship building: This is a multi-year process and you need to understand the level of investment required. You can walk into a New Zealand company you've never met, armed with a good idea, and get a deal but you can't do that in China. You have to have formed a relationship over a period of time before your good idea will get traction.
Be cautious of JVs: Many joint ventures between foreigners and Chinese companies have failed – as many as eight out of 10. Most are succeeding now as there is a growing level of cross-cultural awareness but they can be problematic due to cultural differences and unshared expectations.
Co-ordination with HQ: Foreign companies see the statistics on China's economic growth and think it will lead to instant success, so managing domestic stakeholders is important.
- © Fairfax NZ News  http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/6952089/Trading-places-with-China

Auckland: Chinese footprints

By Manying Ip

5:30 AM Thursday Aug 26, 2010

As Auckland merges to create a supercity, the Herald looks back at how Auckland has changed over the years. Click here to view the full series.

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Crowds gather under lanterns at the Chinese Lantern Festival in Auckland's Albert Park. Photo / Paul Estcourt

By the turn of the 20th Century Auckland had its own "Chinatown".
In several narrow, steep streets near the city centre - Grey's Ave, lower Wakefield St, Hobson St and Victoria St - Chinese families had established small businesses such as fruit shops, grocery stores and hand laundries where they worked long hours and usually lived upstairs or at the back.
The houses were inexpensive and the area was not far from the railway station and the wharf. These few streets were the social centre of a Chinese community. The headquarters of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang/Guomindang), the Chee Kung Tong (better known as Chinese Freemasons), and also the New Zealand Chinese Association's Auckland Branch were all in Grey's Ave.
It was also the location of a couple of illegal gambling houses which were subjected to periodic police raids.
Early in the 20th century the community consisted of only 296 men, and 28 females, though Chinese had been in Auckland for a full generation. Migrants such as Chan Dar-Chee had arrived in the late 1860s. Customs officials mistook his given name, Chee, to be his surname and he and his descendants became known as the "Ah Chee" family.

They survived and prospered in an intensively anti-Chinese era. All Chinese immigrants had to pay a £100 poll tax and faced a test of one hundred English words picked at random at the port of entry.
Unusually, Chan Dar-Chee had been able to bring his wife, Madame Joong, with him to New Zealand. She was a Christian, well-educated and could read and write English. Their two sons, William and Clement, were born
in Auckland, in 1889 and 1892. With few Chinese women in the country a Chinese birth was a rarity. The New Zealand Observer featured a photograph of "Willie Ah Chee, Aged 7 years" on its front page (July 1, 1898).
The family lived in Parnell, and used Carlaw Park as a market garden.
They had a greengrocers in what was known as Little Queen St, and a depot in Stanley St.
By 1880, Ah Chee & Co had opened a fruit shop at 13 Queen St, opposite to the Central Post Office and another at the corner of Queen and Quay Streets, opposite the ferry building.
The company became a vegetable supplier to shipping lines and Auckland's hotels. It also exported two valuable commodities to China, rabbit fur and an edible tree fungus - mu'er - that grew in abundance in Taranaki and other parts of the North Island.
The two boys went to Auckland Grammar and became keen boxers and skilful racing car drivers. In business they frequently entertained associates and local dignitaries at lavish parties.
During the first three decades of the 20th century, Ah Chee & Co owned at least seven shops in Central Auckland.
Clement Ah Chee had two children: Betty June (born 1922) and Thomas Henry (born 1928). Betty grew up to marry Ken Choy and they owned the Great Eastern Supermarket. Thomas Henry, better known as Tommy Ah Chee, would make his name as the founder of Foodtown and the Georgie Pie chain.
Very few Chinese were as successful as the Ah Chees. Service industries such as laundry, market- gardening and grocery stores involved long working hours and intensive labour but comparatively modest capital outlay.
Most importantly, they were not in direct competition with European New Zealanders. By the 1900s, the Chinese ran market gardens in Western Springs, Panmure, Mangere and Avondale. The area of market gardens
below Great North Rd and Surrey Crescent was known as Chinaman's Hill until the late 1990s.
Thomas Wong Doo lived there, collecting unchlorinated water from Western Springs with a pole and buckets for his prolific and extensive gardens. He had arrived in Auckland in the 1890s aged 16. Like most of his countrymen, he became an itinerant vegetable vendor until he accumulated enough capital to run a Chinese grocery-cum-dried food
store in Victoria Street.
Later Thomas Doo & Co had a linen and fabric store in Hobson St where well-known Chinese grocery supply stores Wah Lee and Seoung Yuen, remain today.
Grocers like Thomas Doo & Co, and Wah-Lee were never just stores. They were community motels, banks and post offices all rolled into one.
There were always visitors in the stores. Many stayed around either waiting for boats to go back to China, or for work after their arrival. Many other people dropped in from the small towns when they came to Auckland to get Chinese supplies.
The attic was used to store rice and dried fungus, but frequently four or five people, even whole families, lived there. Visitors to the Doo stores spoke fondly of the hospitality. Customers could pick up their mail and news from home. The Doos had Hong Kong newspapers which were shared, and customers trusted them to send remittances home.
New Zealand customs officials also frequently called upon the Doos as interpreters. Since there were very few Chinese women in Auckland the Doo women shared out their brew of Chinese herbal medicines to help
fight the 1918 influenza epidemic.
The family's philanthropic work earned the good will of the community, which helped their business considerably. Chinese merchant families
known to New Zealand authorities were also rewarded with generous
import licensing quotas.
Besides grocery and general merchandise, the Doos started the Golden Dragon cafe (1930-1969) in Grey's Ave and in 1940 a stately family home consisting of eight spacious bedrooms on the first floor was built at the corner of Hobson and Cook Sts.
The Thomas Doo Building housed five sons and their wives as well as the patriarch and matriarch. The family shop was on the ground floor, and there were spare rooms used as dormitories and hostels for visitors.
In time the Doos became known as Auckland's firecracker suppliers and did roaring business every Guy Fawkes Day. In the 1950s, when the third
generation Doo sons staged a big public fireworks show in Western Springs, probably few recalled that their great-grandfather used to fetch water for his market gardens from the same spot.
Manying Ip is professor of Asian Studies at the University of Auckland.
By Manying Ip

Dream getaway lodge open for business

By Wayne Thompson

 

Luxurious Pakiri Point Lodge, which overlooks stunning Pakiri Beach in Rodney, was the subject of a long-running planning battle. Photo / Supplied

A luxury lodge has finally opened in Pakiri after a storm of protest over its prominent position on the cliff top overlooking the iconic beach.
The house, which is understood to have cost more than $5 million to build, drew objections from the public and the Auckland Regional Council which had spent $20 million buying the surrounding land for a new park.
The ARC claimed the house would spoil iconic views of the park.
However, Rodney District Council planning commissioners disagreed, saying the house was in an approved rural-residential subdivision, was appropriately designed and that landscaping and bush planting would avoid significant adverse affects.
After five years in the making and the battle through the resource management process, the house is now finished. It has six bedrooms, covers 600 sq m and sits among 4ha of young bush.
Its chiselled limestone pillars were chosen to harmonise with the white sands of the 24km-long wilderness beach below.
The lodge is owned and operated by catering supremo Rae Ah Chee and Fruitworld director Billy Chong and his wife Evelyn.

Mr Ah Chee said yesterday that he was enthusiastic about providing "a quality experience" for up to 10 guests after 40 years of catering at huge venues including Eden Park.
He said Pakiri Point Lodge was tastefully decorated and furnished in a "fusion of quality".
It won a gold award for the Auckland region "House of the Year" - for homes over $1 million.
A finalist for the national award, it also collected regional awards in the sustainability and best kitchen categories of the Registered Master Builders' competition.
Mr Ah Chee said dozens of Rodney-based tradesmen had worked on the two-year project and he hoped that, as business grew, up to six residents would be employed running the lodge. Its location, with its commanding view over the beach and the ocean, was a point of difference to many other luxury lodges in Rodney.
"It's a 70-minute drive from Auckland and 20 minutes by helicopter over stunning water scenery," he said.
The lodge's website says ensuite rooms are priced from $550 to $650 per couple per night, including breakfast.
Mr Ah Chee said the lodge would compete for guests from overseas but he had also had inquiries from Aucklanders planning a wedding anniversary or birthday. Other luxury lodges in Rodney District have nightly rates from $300 to $695.
By Wayne Thompson |http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10609938

Lodge found in breach of resource consent

By Wayne Thompson

4:00 AM Saturday Apr 10, 2010

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Pakiri Point Lodge borders a regional park in Rodney, north of Auckland. Photo / Supplied

Opponents of a luxury lodge built overlooking Pakiri Beach have succeeded in a complaint to the Ombudsmen's Office about its resource consent.
In a decision, Ombudsman Beverley Wakem found Rodney District Council had allowed retaining-wall piles to be sunk in an area that a resource consent had reserved for planting bush.
"The council unreasonably allowed work to be carried out in the covenanted area in breach of conditions of the resource consent that was granted by the Environment Court."
Staff failed to verify the positions of the pile wall were up to 3m into the covenanted area and also whether the wall had in fact been approved.
"I recommend the council review its processes, particularly between the departments involved in this case, in order to ensure that similar errors do not occur in the future."
The Ombudsman said she was considering having the council record the breach on the property's Land Information Memorandum.
Usually, it is the Environment Court that rules whether an activity complies with the Resource Management Act.

The complaint was made in November 2008 by residents Hilary and Tony Russell, Christine Baines, Simon Reeves, Edward Melton and Mana Sinclair.
Mr Reeves, a lawyer, said the piles were in contempt of the Environment Court ruling.
Mrs Russell said the lodge was a contentious issue because of its size, bulk and scale bordering a regional park, which was bought with $20 million of ratepayers' money.
The council failed to do its job to ensure all rules were complied with, she said.
The Ombudsman had let the council off lightly and Northland MP and Associate Local Government Minister John Carter would be asked to conduct a full investigation.
Pakiri Point Lodge opened for guests in November after a five-year battle through the resource management process.
Co-owner Rae Ah Chee said both its lawyer and the council said the lodge did not breach resource consent. The Ombudsman's conclusion was wrong.
"We object to anything on the LIM."
Council spokesman Lloyd Barton said the 14 piles were a retaining wall below ground level, which had no adverse effects.
By Wayne Thompson http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10637400

Host with the most in Pakiri

SIZE: Land 4.8125ha, house 590sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: CV $4.85 million. Tender closes March 23.

INSPECT: By appointment.

ON THE WEB: harcourts.co.nz/MJ5572

CONTACT: Nicky Rhodes, Harcourts, ph 486 8205 or 021 378 283.

FEATURES: Luxury lodge constructed from block, cedar and stone on the cliff of Pakiri Beach. Main lodge is single-level, with all bedrooms enjoying superb sea views. Owners' quarters upstairs. Several living areas throughout the home, as well as conference room and basement wine cellar - all with lift access. Property has riparian access to beach and is surrounded by reserve.

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Pakiri Pt Lodge. Photo / Supplied

Promoting New Zealand wine and food to overseas guests is one of the real kicks that Rae Ah Chee gets from being involved in Pakiri Point Lodge. And the lodge provides the perfect setting to introduce foreigners to the delights of New Zealand, with its awe-inspiring views along Pakiri beach and out to sea.
Rae, who has a background in catering, developed the lodge with business partners Bill and Evelyn Chong. It was his solution to the retirement dilemma, because he didn't want to stop working altogether.
They bought the prime headland site looking north up Pakiri Beach, with riparian rights, in 2004 after farmland was subdivided for development. After a tough resource and building consent process, construction on the lodge began in 2007 and it opened in 2009.
Building in such a prominent position, the trio was at pains to blend the lodge with its environment, hence the choice of Te Kuiti limestone and cedar as the main construction materials, with a copper-coloured aluminium roof.
"We used 150 tonnes of the limestone and we've used it very naturally; it came up in boulders and it was then broken down and put together randomly," says Rae. "The colours of the building work with the sea, sand and sky, and the grassy hills."

Architect Peter Chibnall came up with an award-winning design that maximises the views from the five guest rooms, which are all on the ground floor. The central part of the lodge comprises the kitchen, living and dining areas, with the eastern wing of the building containing three bedrooms and the western arm, two bedrooms - all with their own bathrooms and patios. Gabled roofs with large overhangs emphasise the lodge feel, but also provide protection from the elements on the decks.
With four 25,000-litre water tanks on site, Rae always encourages guests to use their baths. The water is triple-filtered for purity, while grey water is used to irrigate plants in the extensive landscaping around the lodge.
The views aren't the only breathtaking feature: inside the entrance, guests are greeted with a glass floor that looks down into a luxuriously appointed basement wine cellar.
There is also a conservatory near the front door before you move through to the open-plan living and dining rooms that flows out to a deck overlooking the beach.
A day room next to the kitchen is sometimes used for breakfast and there is a "night room" adjoining the main lounge and dining area that has a TV and stereo.
Upstairs is a collectibles room packed with memorabilia that fans of James Bond would enjoy, and from there you can move on to a small gym and the library, which has a fireplace and a covered, glass-balustraded deck that Rae reckons has the best views. To the rear of this level are the owners' quarters and an office.
Limestone work around the fireplaces and in the odd interior column, teamed with Australian gum floors, give the lodge a simple but elegant feel aimed at putting guests at ease.
"We're not a formal place," says Rae. "We want people to relax and unwind."
When Rae decided he wanted to spend more time with family, the Chongs decided to sell up, too, so the business is now for sale, offering someone an enviable lifestyle.
By Graham Hepburn  http://www.nzherald.co.nz/property/news/article.cfm?c_id=8&objectid=10713133 5:30 AM Saturday Mar 19, 2011

Unearthed - first supermarket

Archaeologists have unearthed remains in Auckland's Carlaw Park of the house of a Chinese market-gardener believed to be an ancestor of Foodtown supermarkets co-founder Tom Ah Chee.
"You could say we are standing in Auckland's first Foodtown," archeological consultant Hans Bader said yesterday, at the site he is excavating for developers of the former league ground.
A man called Ah Chee is recorded on Government land registry records as having leased the site in 1882, and a map drawn 14 years later shows several buildings, including what is believed to be his original home.
Tom Ah Chee, who died in 2000 aged 72, built the first Foodtown supermarket in 1958 with business partners Norm Kent and John Brown.
Dr Bader and his team have unearthed a brick courtyard and fireplace on the site of the house, and have assembled what he says is potentially the largest collection of Chinese ceramic remains found in Auckland from the late 19th century.
These include fragments of vases and crockery, bearing what National MP Pansy Wong said was "very old-style Chinese writing".

Pieces of European crockery have been found, and hoes and a digging fork likely to have been used in the original Mr Ah Chee's adjoining gardens at the southeastern end of Carlaw Park.
After Mr Ah Chee moved to Parnell, the site, which previously supported an 1840s-era flour mill, remained a food-bowl for Aucklanders until being turned into the home of Auckland rugby league in 1919.
Dr Bader said the gardens were surrounded by New Zealand's most heavily-industrialised area of the time, its neighbours including a foundry, sheepyards and a rope-making factory.
Auckland Rugby League has retained half the Carlaw Park site for a retirement village and has sold the other half, where the historical remains have been found, for a mixed-use development of offices, shops and a hotel and car-parking building.
Although the Ah Chee building remnants would have to be removed, they would be thoroughly catalogued for reports required by the Historical Places Trust as a condition of modifying an archeological site.
Mrs Wong said she hoped Auckland Chinese could offer more information about the site, and she would try to contact descendants of Mr Ah Chee, who may even have photographs of his house.
Visit the site open days, October 13 and 14
By Mathew Dearnaley 5:00 AM Saturday Oct 6, 2007 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10468273

CHINESE AT LAW.

SECRET TONG  INVOLVED. PROCEEDS OP AN ESTATE. MONEY FOR WIDOW IN CHINA. 'kn aileemtion of irregular dealing Wt h trust money was involved in a claim for £3 11/5 made by John W- Walsh, agent, of Hamilton, against Wah Lee a Chinese merchant, of Auckland which came before Justice Mr. Anderson re Dickson the defendant. 'In opening. Mr. Anderson said that plaintiff had for many years done business  the Chinese of the China the influenza epidemic of 1920 £ vsited in hospital a market gardener of Hamilton, one How Chee. who asked m if, in the event of How thees death, would realise on How Chees estate S forward the proceeds to How Chee s Sow and son in China. How Chee died, and plaintiff look ...hand Hie realisation of his estate, consisting of a market garden property partnership ™i,h Wang Hai. There was great difficulty in realisation, ami the services of a Chinese society, really a sort of Masonic Society of Chinese, was enlisted. Both How Chee and Wang Hai having been members of the Order. Eventually ,in October. 1920. the estate was realised on and plaintiff gave his cheque for £102.5 16/10. of which £033 11/-". was the late How Chee's share, and was to be E cnt to the widow in China. On account 0 f the disturbed condition of China at that time it was decided to send tho cash through the firm of Wah Lee which had representatives in China. Wah Lee undertook the commission, and received the money. Later plaintiff heard that the widow had not received the cash. end made inquiries from Wah Lee who said £150 had been sent to the widow and an amount to a Chinese in New Zealand named Bak Sliding. He protested about this and. after visiting China and learning from the widow that £150 was all she had received, he took the present action as trustee in the estate of How Chee. John W. Walsh gave evidence to the above effect. In reply to Mr. Dickson, witness stated that all that he personally got out of the transaction was £5O, which went to his firm as commission. He understood that Bak Sheung was a nephew of How Chee. but could not say that he was How dice's nearest nextof-kin in New Zealand. So far as witness knew. Wang Hai was a nephew as well as partner of How Chee. The proceeds of the estate were to go to the j widow and son of How Chee, not to the widow and nearest kin in Xew Zealand. The money was not handed to the Chinese Masonic Society and passed by, the society Wah Lee as banker in j trust for' the widow in China and j nearest kin in New Zealand. j To Mr. Anderson, witness said it was I not till 1923 that he discovered the j money had not been sent to the widow. A Nonsuit Point. j Mr. Dickson raised as nonsuit points i that plaintiff had no letters of adminis- j tration, and that he had no rights as! trustee. If defendant paid the money to plaintiff, said counsel, and plaintiff happened to lose it before paying it tv the widow, then the widow could come i on defendant for the money again. His Honor remarked that the position appeared to him that Wah Leehad undertaken a contract, which plaintiff; was entitled to hold him to. However,' he would reserve the nonsuit points. Mr. Dickson stated that his client's case was that the money had been obtained, through the Masonic Society, by Bak .Sheung. Counsel held that as Bak .Sheung probably had no money, the plaintiff had taken action against Wah Lee as a man of substance. Wong Hai stated in evidence that he received his share of the partnership estate from Wah Lee Dang Yen, partner in the firm of Wah Lee said he was present at the meeting in October. 1020. called by Wong Bak Sheung. Witness said he thought £1025 was handed to Kuk Yen, his brother. He forgot whether it was so or not. The money was placed with his brother to give to Wong Bak Sheung, to send to China. The firm of Wah Lee acted ts bankers. Wong Bak Sheung deposed that Wong Hai was not as near a relative of deceased as he (witnessl was. At the meeting referred to above Walsh wrote cheque and handed it to witness. Wit- Bess called to Kuk Yen. who was to nay the debts of deceased and send the rest to the widow- and son in China. In addition to the £150, witness had sent other iums to China, viz., £30. and £.50. The widow had acknowledged £150, said Mr. Anderson. Had Spent the Money. Witness thought deceased's' son was coming to New Zealand, and he held back some of the money on that account. I He thought there would be about £200 left, but he did not know where it was. Witness said he had not got the money now—he had spent it. If the money had been spent, it was the widow's loss, said Mr. .lustice Stringer. The question was, who paid over the money in the first place, and who wa sresponsible for its distribution Mr. Dickson stated that Kuk Yen, the man alleged to have received the money, was too unwell to attend the Court. His Honor adjourned the case till 9 a.m. on Monday. His Honor said that he could not apeak definitely till he had heard Kuk Yen's evidence, but, assuming that the joint realisation of the partner's property was handed to Wah Lee to pay out Wong Hai's share and send the money to the widow, it was not a question of Walsh being executor at all. It was a case of principal and agent. If established on fact, it seemed that tho action was well founded. Decision would be reserved till the other evidence had been heard. Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 284, 29 November 1924, Page 13

WANTED, Experienced Culmuey Brlck» layer; others need not apply Ah Chee 11, Queen-st. Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 310, 29 December 1908, Page 2

NORMAL SCHOOL. The prizes for the best-kept plots m front of the Normal School, Wellesley-street,were presented by Mr L. J. Bagnall, Chairman of the Education Board, yesterday afternoon, in the presence of a large gathering of parents. A display of physical drill and club-swinging was given, and a number of songs were contributed. The prizes were awarded by Professor A. P. W. Thomas as follow:—L. McCarthy L F. Larsen 2, G. Simpson 3, K. Stock 4. B. Palmer 5, D. Brown 6, M. Hamon 7, E. Pinder S, L. Williams 9,Arthur Ah Chee 10. The prizes for club-swinging were won by Janet Barclay and Florence Lip Guey. Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 297, 20 December 1906, Page 6

We ARE CASH BUYERS OF

GOOD SUN-DRIED FUNGUS. Best Price Given.Ah Chee Box 753, Auckland. Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 177, 28 July 1919, Page 2

 SHIPWRIGHTS, SETTLERS, and JL Bushmen, etc.—Old Copper, Brass. Zinc, Tea Lead, Fungus, Beeswax, Shark Fins, and Horseshoes Bought, and the Best Price given, by  Ah Chee Queon-street and Mechanics ßay, Auckland. Auckland Star, Volume XXII, Issue 60, 12 March 1891, Page 8

SCANDINAVIAN DINING ROOMS'

CUSTOMS STREET EAST.—Ah  Chee having taken over the Business lately carried on by Lum Yut & Co., respectfully invites the working men and others who so liberally patronised the lato firm to still continue doing the same. All meals 6d. Ah Chee Customs Street Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 234, 5 October 1886, Page 3

WANTED. 2 Young Men to dig a garden, Apply Ah Chee Queen-street Wharf Auckland Star, Volume XXII, Issue 303, 22 December 1891, Page 8

CHINESE WAREHOUSE,

Wakefield-street. Ah Chee & CO., Grocers. Fruiterers & Having opened at tha abovo address with a new. supply of Groceries. &c, beg to solicit the patronago of the residents of Auckland. A. C. Co. have on hand a New and Well-assorted Stock o£ Chinese Goods at tho Lowest Possible Price! for Cash only. Note the adddress: Ah Chee & CO.. Wakefield street (opposite Globe Hotel.) Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 69, 23 March 1887, Page 5

TEMPERANCE BOARDING HOUSE,

 WYNDHAM AND ALBERT STREETS, AUCKLAND. Having purchased the Goodwill of the above well   known Boarding-house, I beg to inform the public that good Board and Lodging can be had for 13s per week.; Beds, 9d; all Meals, 6d.  Ah Chee Proprietor. Auckland Star, Volume XIX, Issue 32, 8 February 1888, Page 1

MARRIAGES

.AH CHEE-RAIN SEE.-At the Registrar's Office, Auckland, on January 21,1886 Ah Chee market gardener. Mechanics Bay, to Rain See, daughter ofAh Cheong, farmer, Canton, China.
Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 25, 30 January 1886, Page 5

MOTORISTS FINED

. For failing to produce a motor-driver's license the following were lined 20/ and costs 7/ each:—A. Berran, Dr. Holmden. J. Laxon. Albert Murray. Thomas O'Halloran. Miss Oliver. Y. O'Loughlin, Sydney Bhillipson. (.'eorge Rumble, William Stevenson, frank Stewart, E. P. Titchener, Dan Tye. On similar charges Harry Ah Chee William Gray and B. J. llarbutt were fined 10/ and costs, while W. K. Kay and John Graham were ordered to pay costs. 7/. For leaving his car unattended, Thomas 11. Daly was lined 10/ on each of two charges, and Ceo. B. Hosking 20/. while Joseph Taylor had to pay 20/ and costs for driving a vehicle after being ordered to hare it repaired. Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 195, 19 August 1925, Page 8

AUCKLAND AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION.

MOTOR CAR RACES. To be Held at MURIWAI B E A C H, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1922.

The Folowing Nominations have been received:— TOURING CAR HANDICAP.-H. Butcher, Essex Ah Chee,  "Hudson"- G L Taylor.- '"Oakland": Dr. H. D. Mackenzie.' Mat W. S. Miller, "Chandler"; J. B King, "Sunbeam." FORD CAR RACE—J. F. Lambert, J X Stewart Universal Motor Co., Ltd., John Andrew and Son. N.Z. MOTOR CUP—E. C. Johnston. "Hudson" L Schneldeman; "Pierre Arrow"; V. S. Miller, "Chandler"; Pullan Armitage and Co 'Fiat J A. Messenger. Vauxhall"; S. Craig, "Packard"; Camp bell Motor Co.. "Chevrolet"; W Ah Chee"Cadillac"; Gillett .Motors, Ltd., "Hudson.
One nomination deferred until Wednesday, the 15th inst
TAXI DRIVERS  CHAMPIONSHIP—L Adams. "Hudson R. A Lister "Lexington"; M. S. Ramsay, "Hudson""' K Ramsay, "Hudson"; C. E. Johnston "Hudson" SPRINT RACE "Hudson"; W. Ah Chee "Cadilac"; Universal Motor Co., Ltd., "Ford"; S. Craig, "Packard" l Campbell Motor Co., "Chevrolet'" e r." nd C W MuS the One nomination deferred to Wdnesday  Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 37, 14 February 1922, Page 12

THE RUSH, FROM THE RACES. Just about thirty motorists who had passed through a "police trap" on the new North Road on the day of the recent Avondale -races came up on a charge of driving at a. speed dangerous to the public. The time Recorded by- "the policemen in plain clothes who worked the trap ranged from 24 miles to 42 miles per hour. Fines of 10/ and 7/ costs were imposed 'on Ed-ward G. Braasev, Joseph Rninmer, Jno. Redmayne; and of 20/ and; 7/ costs on Joseph McC. Wilson. Georgo Paykel, Alexr. W. Jonassen, Charles Nelson, Victor Casey, Henry Maddaford, Walter-Bayliss. Clement Ah Chee, whose speed had been up to 42 miles, was fined £2 and 7/ costs. Charges against other defendants are proceeding. Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 243, 11 October 1916, Page 2

MA CHUCK. CHINESE GAME EXPLAINED.

THE GAMBLING CHARGES
Yesterday afternoon the hearing of thr charges of keeping a common gaming holier at 49. Hobson .Street, and° being found in a common house preferred against Wong Doo, was proceeded wit!] at the Police Court. There were 21 other Chinese charged with having I'ceii found in a common gaming house.
'•Mh Chuck," as explained by Mr. L. P. Leary. one of the counsel for the defence i~ a game alayed by four players. There are 136 pieces, four pieces of which are of the same kind, making altogether :<4 varieties. There are what might be described as three suits, runninjr from one to nine. The remaining seven am not suits, but four of them represent the four winds of heaven. The other three are honours" the white, green, and red. The object of the game ia to fill the hand with either runs of throe or sets of three or four of the fame kind. The player who by lot is decided to be the player in the East first draws his pieces from a square of seventeen in the side. The remainder draw in rotation until they get a hand of 1. Then the player "on" the East draws an odd one, which he either puts into hie hand or discards into the centre of the square, which is known as "Tho Sacred Valley/ This can be picked'up by any of the other players to make three or four, or by the next player to make a run. If it survives both of these fates, it becomes "dead." and lies on the table merely as an index as to what had not been collected.
The pieces are picked up by the players in rotation to improve their hands, and whilst the ostensible object of the pame is to make a full hand, the true object is to block th» other man from declaring his hand before you have gathered a strong hand yourself.
The explanation of a jrood deal of skill in the game, says Mr. Leary, lies in the scoring, because various 'hands score more than others, and therefore it pays to hold up the other man from scorina hy refusing to discard what you haye until your hand is a sufficiently strong one to disclose it and rake in a "substan tial stake. An expert player can, fiTfer tyro or three discards, tell to a nicety what the other three players are collecting, and sometimes hold back his diecards to prevent any other player getting in a position to declare his hanl This leads to a deadlock, and the game must be played again. The full game consists of each player getting his tally for one hand, and this means skilled players sometimes take as long as nine hours to work out.
Clement Ah Chee gave evidence tllat lie had played hiug gow at Hongkong., but not for money, and he had seen no petting o n this same. He considered it tc be a game of skill. Wong Doo stated that the premises *t 49, Hobson Street, were intended as a club far the mutual help of members. Mr. Shack Horn had said there was to be no gambling at the club, so about three weeks ago witness took away the dominot-5 and a set of ma chuck. The games seized at the time of the raid did not belong to liini or to the club, and he did not know that play was going on until he was summoned to the club on July IC, when he wont to discuss with Shack Horn the rule prohibiting games. The premises at 4!>, Hobson Street, were for a club, not a gaming house. In future all gambling -would be forbidden at the club.
t nder cross-examination by Chief Detective Mellveney, Wong Doo denied that he got more benefit from the club than anyone else did. He was only a member.
After further argument and evidence had been heard, Mr. Poynton, S.M., inspected the premises at' 49. Hobson Street. L-ater he announced that he would give a written decision on Friday. Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 180, 1 August 1922, Page 7

FOOTBALL IN CHINA

TEAM MAY VISIT NEW ZEALAND
AMATEUR GAME. WELL DEVELOPED.

AUCKLAND, .This Day. There ia a prospect of a team of Chinese Rugby footballers from Hong Kong touring the Dominion next season. Efforts are now being made-to arrange for the team to play a series of games in both New Zealand and Australia. The project is more or less "in the air" at present, but it is stated that an emissary from New Zealand ia in Sydney negotiating with the New, South Wales Rugby League authorities with the object of arranging the tour. As far as can be ascertained, no basis has been established for carrying out the tour in New Zealand, but if the negotiations with the New South Wales authorities axe satisfactorily concluded, no doubt details of the scheme will be submitted to the New Zealand League.
In the discussion on the proposal, Mr Clement Ah Chee who recently returned from a visit to China, stated that he understood the arrangements for the tour were now being made. The team would play under League rules. Asked to express an opinion as to the standard of football in China, Mr.Ah Chee said the teams he saw in Hong Kong played a fast game, very similar, he thought, to that of the Australian League players. The players, were mostly students and young fellows engaged in office work and associated with >the V.M.C.A. The Rugby footballer of Hong Jtong, he added, had already demonstrated their prowess on foreign fields. One team had successfully toured California, and another had visited the Straits Settlement and played a series of matches. Both these teams had been so successful that' the football authorities of Hong Kong were anxious to match their champions against the players of the British Dominions, who were recognised as the best exponents of a worthy code. He did not think there would be much difficulty in arranging the tour.
The Chinese players would, Mr Ah Chee thought, compare favourably with the New Zealand footballers in phjsique. Some of the backs he had seen playing were perhaps a shade on the light side, but they were fast and tricky, and had cultivated the passing game to a high standard. Football in Hong Kong was purely on an amateur basis,S*and was played as a recreation, and not as .a business.' The young men who played the game were of good standing, and belonged to an advanced school of Chinese who had assimilated the most progressive ideas of western civilisation. Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 87, 10 October 1922, Page 8

DAIRY PRODUCE
JAPAN'S POSITION.
NO MARKET FOR DOMINIQN.
Japan offers no prospects for New Zealand dairy products because she is now an exporter of butter and milk and her Government has embarked on a comprehensive programme of developing- the dairying industry by means of subsidies and other assistance, according to MrClement Ah Chee,  an Aucklander now resident in Hongkong, in a letter to the "Herald." Mr Ah Chee points out that the first substantial shipment of butter from Japan has arrived in London. Small quantities of a few tons have been received in Tooley Street during the last 12 months, but these have been samples rather than commercial consignments. The recent shipment of 50 tons marked the first serious attempt by the Japanese to market butter in the United Kingdom and it was expected that if the shipment was favourably received it would be followed by others.
GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE.
"From 1925 the Japanese Government has been giving continuous assistance to the dairy industry,, which has responded with an ever-increasing output," stated Mr Ah Chee "Japanese agricultural students have been sent abroad to study farming methods in other countries whose systems they have adopted. Onequarter of the expense involved in the importation of foreign-bred cattle is met by the Government, which has also been lending free of charge the breeds kept at its livestock experimental station."
Mr Ah Chee adds that an example of the development of the Japanese dairying industry is provided by the growth of condensed milk production. Japan was a substantial importer of condensed jnilk for many years, but since 1931 she has been an exporter of this commodity. Also the butter produced in Hokkaido and Koiwai has increased in quantity and improved in quality until it has driven imported butters off the market.
Referring to the export of wool to Japan, Mr Ah Chee states that Sir Henry Gullett, chairman of the Australian tariffs commission, recently discussed with the Japanese Consul in Melbourne, Tokio's new counterproposals in respect to the lately revised Australian tariffs, and stated after the interview that Japan was a poor customer to Australia in every product except wool.
WOOLLEN INDUSTRY
The expenditure of a large sum, most of which will be used to encourage sheep-breeding in Manchukuo, to meet Japan's ever-growing demand for wool, has been decided upon by the Nippon Woollen Industry Society, according to Mr Ah Chee. Definite plans for the utilisation of the funds are being discussed by Mr Sakoi Tsurmi, managing director of the society, with Government officials and the South Manchuria Railway Company. The society was established in 1934 with a capital of 2,000,000 yen, half of which was subscribed by the Government, 300,000 yen by the South Manchuria Railway, and the remainder by the woollen industrialists. Ellesmere Guardian, Volume LVII, Issue 55, 17 July 1936, Page 8

RAID ON CHINESE,

POLICE COURT PROCEEDINGS, CHARGES OF GAMING. A table on trestles, covered wibh a grey blanket, a number of dominoes, I a tin foox, two dice and an enamel mug were produced as exhibits in the Police Court this morning, when, following on fche recent raid on premises occupied by Chinese at 40, Hobson Street, Wong Doo (50), and Wong Sun were charged with being the keepers of a common gaming house, Ah Heong (46) and Lee Ohew (45), with having assisted in the keeping of same, and charges of having been found in a common gaming house were preferred against Loo Au (25), Hung (32), Ah Soo (2S), Wun (22),Ah Wah (57), Shi (30), Wing Kong (18), Wong Shium (24), Jimmy Gee (20), Chen Jong (30),Ah Hong (22),Ah So (21), Wong Yee (42), Mong (20),Ah Kit (55), Wong Fong (24), Ohan Fun (29), Wong Chung (23). All the Chinese concerned were  present in Court. Chief-Detective Mcllveney prosecuted, and Messrs. L. Lean- and R. P. Towle appeared for the accused. The charge agaist Wong Doo was proceeded with first. The Chief-Detective said that it would i he shown Wong Doo, Wong Yee, and Wong Sun had entered into an agreement for the purchase of the premises situate at 40, Hobson Street, in December last. On the ground floor of these i premises, which the police had keptj' under observation, there was a fairly i large room facing Hobson Street, whidh on the night of July 1C was occupied by seven or eight Chinese, who were apparently attending a prayer meeting.' i conducted hv Shack Horn. At the rear I

of the kitchen was a smaller room containing two tables. Therp were two or three windows in the room, the lower portions of which were composed of stained glass, and the upper panes appeared to have been whitewashed at one time. On bhe second storey was a room fronting Hobson Street, behind which were several bedrooms. The owners of the premises, so far as could be gathered, did not slleep there. The evidence would show that the premises were generally conducted by Chow, -who described himself as a cook. These premises were kept under observation by Detective Meiklejohn and Constable Doel. At 5.15 p.m. on July 16, he (tne Chief Detective) and other police raided the premises by virtue of a eearc-h warrant. Gaming was going on in the room on. the ground floor and also in the room on the second floor. The game of "Haing Grow" was being played downstairs and "Ma Chuck" wag being played upstairs.

The Chief Detective then -went on to describe the game of Haing Govt. This, he said, was played with 32 dominoes and t/wo squares of dice. It was played fov six men, one of whom was the banker. The two equares of dice were thrown to determine who would be hanker. Tttie banker changed if lie was beaten by one player. The 321 dominoes were then shuffled and placed in stacks of' five —two being left face upwards. Amongst the dominoes were two, the counting of Tv-nich could be changed -one with two white spots and a red one could be counted either ag 3 or 6. The other had four red spots and two white and couild be counted either as 6 or 3. One square of dice was then tossed by the banker to discover which player would receive a particular stack of the placed dominoes, and the remaining lots were then counted out to other players. Before the square of dice was tossed the players placed the other stacks on the table. Then the I money was paid 'by the banker to the winner. Anyone could bet on the players' chance against the (banker. In the room was an agent who watched the game and received a percentage from the winner—ten per cent, he believed it was in this game. When the money was set and the dominoes stacked, the banker tossed the dice. The dominoes were handed out. each player receiving five. They then set to work with three dominoes to make up either 10, 20, or 30 in numbers. The number arrived at determined whether or not the player would be a winner or loser. He could have a hand of 10—not over that. If the banker had fewer i numbers than all the other players he had to pay out, and if he had to pay out to anyone he lost the bank. If the players had fewer numbers than the banker, they would have to pay out to the banker. Tie game could be played for pounds, shillings or pence. The implements shown to the couTt were seized on the night of the raid.

James Graham, solicitor for the yen dor of the premises to the Chinese pur chasers, said Wong Doo had told him the police raided the place, but said he was not afraid. Wong said to witness, '"Don't you play cards at your house? Europeans play cards for money: we play with dominoes." Detective Meiklejohn gave lengthy evidence regarding his observations of 49, Hobson Street, where he had several times seen Haing Gow being played. In answer to the Chief Detective, witness said Haing Gow was a game of chance. Mr. Leary: I object to that statement iis evidence. I am most emphatically gointr to prove that it is a game of skill. Detective Meiklejohn said tnat Chinese had been hitherto convicted in the court for playing this opaine. .Mr. Poynton: The demonstration given by the police seems to mc to prove it ;i game of chance. (Thy detective had manipulated the dominoes to show tin' Bench how the same was played). Mr. That was a Gilbertian demonstration. 1 have text hooks tv prove that it is a game of skill. Mr Leary then proceeded to that die ga'mo was one of skill.I duped a text hook on "Ma Chuck," writen by a judge of the Supreme Court »t" Hong' Kong, in which it ivas -tated tiiatj vas rapidly becoming the tniiK'«'| I national game of cards, played by old j and j-oung, rich and poor, men and wo- men." This judge had written with tin-1 Idea of popularising the jrame. which played in the European duos and in tiio ward rooms of var«hips, under the namu j of sparrow. The best player he knew. said the judge, was a boy of years,  Mr.cary proceeded to finder and :ir- i range the characters of "Ma Chuck." It will prolmblv take mn Lwo riuy- t.i teach your Worship tlie game."' be "it took me that long to leurn it—but will proceed to do if you allow Mr. Towle contended ttiat flic pre- j mises at Hobson Street were u>ed as a Chinese club, and that tile game* played were of skill. The Court then considered further demontrations of Ham.How and Mah Chuck. Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 177, 28 July 1922, Page 5

A Chinese Row.—An infirm .looking Chinaman named Ah Loung appeared oa a charge of assaulting Wah Sing by striking him on the head with a stick and with breaking six panes of glass, valued' at £2, belonging to the same informant. Mr. Skelton defended, and Sub-Inspector- Gordon prosecuted. The complainant, a laundry-man in Upper Queen-street) said that on the evening of the 17th the- defendant" came to his shop to collect a debt. Wah Sing had no money, and asked him to wait. The defendant received no provocation and struck him heavily on the head with a stick, besides breaking a number of windows. Other witnesses described an argument between the two men, the striking of Wah. Sing by Ah Loung, and the smashing of the windows by the defendant. Mr. Skelton said the accused was suffering from an incurable form of paralysis. He had no money,, and when Wah Sing 'was approached he (the informant) used Dad language, and appeared to be so threatening, that the defendant was exasperated by this, coupled with the fact that he knew he was incurable, and losing controt of himself,struck Wait Sing wita his stick and broke the windows, H_i Worship said he would convict Ah Sing of the assault and order him to come when called upon. He would also have to pay the cost of the broken windows and medical expenses. The interpreteer informed the magistrate that the defendant's fellow country-men in Auckland were going to send him back to his friends in China. Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 205, 28 August 1906, Page 5

CONFIDING CHINESE.

THE VICTIMS OP TRICKSTERS. LOOTED BY WILE AND BY FORGE. AT PANMURE AND POINT CHEVALIER. Two well-dressed and well-groomed men named Cecil Love (271 and George S. Ormiston (30) came before Mr. J. E. Wilson. S.M., yesterday, on tour charges of having obtained money from Chinese by false pretence?, and 'live charges of having stolen money from the dwellings of Chinese. The charges were that they had stolon 1-t from Sing Bung's dwelling at Panmure. £23 from Ah Ling's in the same locality, and sums of i!3O and 50/ from the habitations of Tarn Ark and Fong Ark at Point Chevalier. Tlie false pretences alleged against them were that they represented in one ease, they landed a shipment of rice from Japan, and in other cases that they were representatives of Smceton's. Ltd., and supplying such articles as starch, rice, etc. 'STIFF LUCK* WITHOUT STARCH. Din Lee, a laundryman of .lervois Road, said that on August 4, Love called at liis laundry, said he was representing Smeeton's Ltd., and was selling a pood line of starch at £3 10/ per cwt. Witness agreed to get a hundred-weight, and paid down £3 7/0 in advance, but no star r h had been delivered. There was another man with Love at the time. Law Lee, another laundryman in the same street, gave evidence of having paid 10/ deposit for starch on the same misrepresentation made by the two accused, and having got nothing for his money. Joe Sing, of Albert Street, told a- story oi having been "starched"' in similar style by Ormiston for a £5 deposit. The manager of Pmeeton's, Ltd., F. W. Riach, declared that the accused were absolute strangers to him, and had never been employed by his firm. A LITTLE HALF-TON ORDER. Wah Sung, market gardener of ilangere, stated that both accused called at his place, and stated that they had just landed a shipment of rice from Japan which they were selling at £150 a ton. They said they had a shop in Shortland Street, and would deliver next day any rice he might order. He ordered half a ton of rice at the price mentioned, and paid £10 on account, for which he got a receipt. The rice did not arrive. CHASED BY CHINESE. The evidence as to the theft went to indicate that having spied out the land, in August and early in November, by wile and with a profit of about £1S odd, the accused turned their attention to physical force for further profit. On November 21, said Tarn Art, gardener of Point Chevalier, the accused tried to sell him rice, but he declined to do business, and they left him in the garden, going away in a direction that would lead them past his honse. Half an hour later he went to the house and found that a box in his bedroom had been broken open, and £30 taken. A £20 note was included in the money stolen. Mong Yee, gardener, of Tamaki, said that just before noon on November 25 he noticed a man standing near his house. Witness was a distance away at the time and went to the house, whereon Ormiston accosted him and asked him if he wanted to buy rice. He declined and went into the house where he found Love in one of the rooms. Love asked him if he wanted to buy rice and he declined again. Love then walked out and witness followed him, till Ormiston pulled out a revolver anl pointed it at him. Witness was carrying a knife at the time. He called other Chinese, and a number of them followed the accused for about a mile before they got away. When witness got back to his house he found that £2 in silver had been stolen from a box in his room. A COVERING TRADE NAME. Further evidence showed that on November 21. the accused were seen in the vicinity of Fong Art's house at Panmure, and after their departure 50/ was found to be gone from a box in the house. On November 27 the accused Were seen by Chinese driving from the houses of Ah Ling and Sing Sung at Panmure, while the Chinese were at work in their market gardens, and the Celestials at once went to their habitations to find that £14 had been taken from Sing Sung's place and £23 from Ah Ling's, the money in caen case having, been taken from boxes in the bedrooms. I Detectives De Norville and Lambert were informed, and they traced the horse and gig, and eventually found that accused were purporting to trade as '-'Rogers and Co." with offices in Wellesley Chambers. A visit to their office resiulted in the finding of a I couple of revolvers and ammunition, I while one of the Chinese boxes which j had been stolen bodily was found hidden in a tree at Panmure- When i taxed with the thefts and frauds the accused eventually admitted them. The accused pleaded guilty, and i were committed to the Supreme Court I for sentence. Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 298, 16 December 1919, Page 16

CHINESE GAMING HOUSE.

ACCUSED IN COURT. CHOW GOW GETS GAOL. 36 OTHERS FINED £2. Among the 37 Chinamen who came forward in the Police Court this morning at the orderly's call there were a great variety of types; young, smiling boys, glum-looking old men, merely bored ones, and frankly disgusted ones; tall, short, tubby, and lean ones; shabby men, and some in tailored clothes. All were caught in the big police raid on Sunday night, when Senior-Detective Cummings got fourteen trusty officers together, and burst in upon a roomful of Celestials at 67, Lome Street. Busily engaged in the absorbing pastime of playing illegal games beloved of the Oriental, who has little to do on a Sunday evening and much time to do it in, the gamblers were fairly caught. They lined up down the side of the Police Court this morning to plead guilty, after each had answered to his name—Ahi Low (21), Chung (28), Yuen Sing (38), Ah Wing (30), Ah Fow (60), Ah Geo (40). Ah Wong (35), Ah Yack (40), Ah Jim (58), Wong Sun (20), Ah Git (34), Ah Wah (33), Ah Cheong (30), Lip Guev (37), Wong Yee (43), Sang (25), Ah Mong (24), Ah Hai (25), Ah Shu (20), Kwong Duck (60), Wong Ton (27), Ah Wong (14), No Gsq Tim (25), Ah Yei (22), Wong (35), Ah Bing (20), Jack (28), Low Kwan (24), Ah Long (24). Ali Wing (44), Ah Hen (60), Wong Yin (40), Joe Mcc (53), All Jim (57), Sing (25), and Ah Joe (57). Chow Gow (68) was charged with keeping a common gaming house at 57, Lome Streot, and all the others were charged with being unlawfully on the premises. Mr. Munro entered a plea of guilty ou behall of all the accused. ENGROSSING HAING GOW. For three months, at frequent intervals, Detective Meiklejohu aud Constable Doel had kept the premises at 57, Lome Street, under observation, said Chief-Detective Mcllveney, nnd these officers had ascertained that a large number of Chinese frequented tho house for the purpose of playing illegal games. Fan Tan, Ilaing Gow, and Ma Chuck were the games played. "And 1 am informed,'' added the chief, "that large sums of money passed in tho course of the games." A large quantity of Oriental gaming material was seized, and also a sum of money—about £0. Chow Gow, the keeper of the house, had £59 in his possession when arrested. Others found in the house had various sums ranging from £10 downwards. Chow Gow leased the house at £30 per month. "I need scarcely point out that some of those arrested are very young Chinese, and if this sort of thing continues they will become inveterate gamblers," Baid the Chief-Detective. SOBER AND HARDWORKING. That a breach had been committed was not denied, said Mr. Munro, but there was something to say on behalf of the accused. The keeper of the house was an old man, nnd no previous conviction had been entered against him. All those caught were sober and industrious Chinese, who worked very hard six days of the week, and on Sunday, the only day on which there was nothing to" do. it was only natural that, "being 1 uneducated men, strangers in a strange land, with no entertainment, they should congregate somewhere and indulge in these games. There was no quarrelling or brawling, and they never inveigled any Englishman into their gnmes. Was it not feasible that Englishmen, cut adrift in China, might do the same thing? Without comment, Mr. J. W. Poynton, S.M., sentenced Chow Cow to three months' imprisonment. The others were fined £2 each. Mr. Munro appealed for leniency on behalf of Chow Gow. Could his Worship not make it a fine? "There arc no fines in Ibis Court, for a man carrying on a gaming house. I hive already issued my warning." said "Mr. Poynton, S.M., with an air of finality. Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 134, 7 June 1923, Page 8

Sai Louie Stair case Onehinga

The old Sai Louie shop, Onehinga

Future Dragonz - Revolving Doors, Changing Faces of Aotearoa

Venue: Level 1 Lobby, Owen G Glenn Building, The University of Auckland Business School
Time: Doors open 6:00pm for a 6:30pm start
Entry: FREE for members and non-members
Dress: Smart business

Make way for the new mainstream.

Future Dragonz and The University of Auckland Chinese Alumni Club partner to present an event that explores how young professionals are stamping their mark in Auckland and around the world.

During the first part of the evening we hear from special guest, Mayor Len Brown, and two energetic personalities who share their views on their place in today’s hyper-connected world and how they navigate it to bring their dreams to life.

The second half ushers in the World Café, a discussion format designed to generate and deepen your ideas on the event theme.

With the young Chinese professional demographic booming at an incredible rate, come discover your place in this new world order.

Please join us for drinks and nibbles from 6:00pm. The discussion kicks off from 6:30pm.

Proudly supported by New Zealand Asia Institute.

RSVP by Friday 25 May via Facebook to secure your place.

THE EVENING'S SPEAKERS:

MAYOR LEN BROWN

Len Brown is the first Mayor of the Auckland Council. He believes Auckland can be the most liveable city in the world - a city that delivers a strong economy with fair rates, a clean, healthy and safe environment to live in, better public transport, and strong communities with strong local democracy. Len grew up in Otara and Papatoetoe. Outside politics and family, his interests include gardening, reading and singing.

MONICA MU

Monica Mu came to New Zealand 10 years ago as an international student. After many years working as a community mental health worker, she is now a community advisor at Auckland Council. Passionate about empowering youth, Monica is co-chair for the Leadership and Development Conference (LDC) 2013, an initiative of the New Zealand Chinese Association. A qualified Zumba instructor, she is a sports fanatic and keen traveller.

SAM YIN

Originally from China, Sam Yin is an energetic entrepreneur who links New Zealand and China through his property investment company Hougarden.com. He is a passionate New Zealander who adores this country’s lifestyle and culture. Sam holds business degrees from The University of Auckland Business School and worked in IT project management prior to establishing Hougarden.com. He has a strong interest in photography and soccer.