HONGKONG
309
Minimum
Mean temperature
Mean maximum
81.2
Mean minimum
56.0 54.5 58.9
66.7
73,5
Maximum
79.2 79.0
82.1
88.0
01.5
Minimum
32.0
40.3 45.9
55.0
01.1
The following table shows the fifteen years' means of the annual and monthly values of the principal meteorological elements, taken from the Observatory Report for 1898:-
Bar. Mean pressure. Maximum
Jan. Feb. March April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Year.
....30.159 30.132 30.055 · 29,958 29,863 29.764 29.738 29.755 29.824 29.982 30.103 30.181 29.959 .30.367 30.390 30.308 30.158 30.045 29.880 29.882 29.851 29.984 30.157 30.311 30.444 30.444 .29.686 29.421 29.552 29.570 29.447 29.284 28.762 29.088 28.876 29.089 29.575 29,757 28.762 59.7 57.7 62.2 69.9 76.6 80.7 81.6 81.0 80.4 76.2 69.2 62.4 71.5 64.1 61.7 66.4 74.5
86.2 86.0 85.3 80.7 74.3 07.5 76.1 78.0 77.3 76.6 72.5 85.3 94.0 92.9 94.0 72.1 71.6
85.2
77.4
58.3 67.9
93.6
93.8 85.6
81.9 94.0
69.2
65.6
00.8
50.0
40.7
32,0
Mean daily range.
8.1
7.2
7.4
7.7
7.7
7.8 8.2
8.7
8.7
8.3
9.0
9.2
8.2
Mean humidity.
74
79
84
85
83
83
83
83
77
71
65
64
78
Mean rain
1.545
2.091
2.991
5.980 13.159 16.496 14.210 13.482
8.833
5.794
1 302
0985 86.867
Maximum in 24 hours.. 3.920
2.185
3,580
5.210 20.495 12.030 13.480
6.555
5.855
10.100
5 875
1.70 20.495
Mean max. in 24 hours 0.688
0.710
1.160
2.256 4.844 4.438 3.973
3.257
2.951
2 743
0.843
0.522 8.646
Maximum in 1 hour
0.510
0.525
1.570
2420
3.400
2.550 3.480
2.140
1720
1.650
1,620 0,500 3.480
Mean max in 1 hour
0.188
0.249
0.484
1.018
1.406
1.369
1.333
1.187
1.004
0.702
Hours of rain
65
94
87
88
Wind direction..
.E15°N E14oN
Wind velocity mean
Maximum
E8°N 14.4 15.0 165
14.0 46 53 49 46 136.7 77.7 79.5 110.7
E2°N
Hours of sunshine
73 67 44 S33oE E15oN E21oN E20°N
90 12.2 14.7 13.8 12.7
89 85 49 63 108 200.1 214.5 196,2 189.7 1907.4
Hongkong is a free port, and there is no complete official return of the imports and exports compiled, but the value of its trade is estimated at about £50,000,000 per annum. During the year 1898 the following tonnage entered and cleared :-
94
96 79 E11°8 $39°E 843°E
13.5 12.5 11.2
42
48 108 152.1 155.4 197.6
0.285 26
0.165
2.116
34
838
E27°N
E3°S
13.4
66
197.2
TRADE.
NATIONALITY
ENTERED
Vessels, Tons.
CLEARED Vessels. Tons.
NATIONALITY
ENTERED
CLEARED
Vessels. Tons.
Vessels. Tons.
American
113
86,798
118
92,736
German
746
898,012
740
891,563
Austrian
25
66,159
20
66,236
Hawaiian
7
13,855
7
13,855
Belgian
1
2,174
2,174
Italian
14
19,780
14
19,789
British
3,734
4,302,837
Chinese
213
202,835
3,722 211
4,342,811
Japanese
240
502,618
241
502,837
260,832
Norwegian
207
190,611
203
187,232
Chinese Junks.. 29,466
1,814,281
29,740
1,812,473
Russian
2
3,898
2
3,898
Danish
69
43,427
68
43,024
Siamese
1
309
309
Dutch.
6
French
8,839 158 176,341
8
150
8,839 175.455
Spanish
3
1,200
1,301
A total of 19,069 vessels of 7,292,911 tons entered, and 18,216 vessels of 7,268,337 tons cleared with cargoes. There also entered in ballast 15,936 vessels, of 1,161,072 tons, and cleared 16,773 vessels of 1,157,167 tons.
The trade chiefly consists in opium, cotton, sugar, salt, flour, oil, cotton and woollen goods, cotton yarn, matches, metals, earthenware, amber, ivory, sandalwood, betel, vegetables, granite, &c., &c. There is an extensive Chinese passenger trade, now chiefly restricted, however, to the Straits Settlements, Netherlands India, Borneo, the Philippines, Siam, and Indo-China.
Hongkong possesses unrivalled steam communication. The P. & O. S. N. Co. and the M. M. Co. convey the European mail weekly, the Norddeutscher Lloyd Co. maintain a regular fortnightly mail service between Bremen and Hongkong, the P. M. S. S. Co., O. & O. S. S. Co. and the Toyo Kisen Kaisha maintain a mail service with San Francisco, the Canadian Pacific Railway Co. a regular mail service with Vancouver, B.C., a regular line has been established by the Northern Pacific S. S. Co. to Tacoma, and Oregon, Portland; the Eastern and Australian S. S. Co. and the China Navigation Co. keep up a frequent but rather irregular service with the Australian Colonies, and the Nippon Yusen Kaisha maintains services to Europe, India, Australia, and the United States (Seattle). In addition to all these, several great lines of merchant steamers run between ports in Great Britain and Hongkong, of which the China Mutual S. S. Co., Ocean S. S. Co. and the Glen, Warrack, Mogul, Ben, Union, and Shell lines are the most conspicuous. The Austrian Lloyd's steamers also ply from Trieste to Hong- kong, those of the Hamburg-Amerika line from Hamburg, and the Navigazione Generale Italiana Company's steamers run monthly from Genoa. There is frequent but irregular steam communication between Java and Hongkong. Between the ports on the east coast of China, Formosa and Hongkong the steamers of the Douglas S. S. Co. ply regularly twice a week, and those of the Osaka Shosen Kaisha weekly, and there is constant steam communication with Hoihow, Manila, Saigon, Haiphong, Tourane, Bangkok, Borneo, &c. With Shanghai, Tientsin, and the ports of Japan there is frequent communication by steamers of the Indo-China, China Navigation, and other lines, in addition to the English and French and German mail steamers, which leave weekly. Between Hongkong, Macao, and Canton there is a daily steam service, and tri weekly steamers as far as Wuchow on the West River.