Pickering, William (1840-1907), a British linguist and public servant, became the first head of the Chinese Protectorate in Singapore in 1877. The Chinese Protectorate was an administrative department that the British created to deal with difficulties within the Chinese society in Singapore, which was then a British colony. Pickering was a strong leader and the first British official in Singapore to speak and read Chinese.
Pickering spent much of his time as protector dealing with the coolie (Chinese laborer) trade. Recruiting agents registered poor laborers in mainland China for a free passage to Singapore. Some laborers were tricked or kidnapped. They were transported in overcrowded ships, and many died during the voyage. The coolies who remained healthy were forced to work without pay for a year or more to pay off their passage. Chinese secret criminal societies in Singapore offered coolies protection, but they expected all immigrants to join and demanded complete obedience. These societies also controlled gambling and prostitution.
Under Pickering, the Chinese Protectorate was successful in curbing the abuse of coolies and became a highly respected institution. The government passed the Chinese Immigrants Ordinance and the Crimping Ordinance. These ordinances authorized the protectorate to license recruiting agents and to board and inspect the ships transporting the coolies. Pickering worked to enforce strict regulations to control gambling and to end forced prostitution. The protectorate mediated labor, financial, and domestic disagreements, reducing the power of the secret societies.
Pickering was born on June 9, 1840, in Nottinghamshire, England, and joined the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs Service in 1862. He then worked in various Chinese ports, and he learned to read and speak numerous Chinese dialects. Pickering went to Singapore in 1872 to work as an interpreter. He was attacked in his office in 1887, and his wounds kept him from working continually after this. Pickering died on Jan. 17, 1907, in San Remo, Italy.
