1010
HONGKONG
naval raid which followed upon the pirates lair in the same month over fifty houses were destroyed and peace reigned for three months until the Norwegian steamer the Solviken was pirated in July. Over $30,000 was taken from the ship and 7 passengers were kidnapped. The following month the Hsin Chi was pirated and on September 1st the Yat Shing which yielded a haul of $13,000. Within three days came the pirating of the Kochow with a booty of nearly $25,000 and the capture of over 100 prisoners. On October 22 the Irene was taken. At the entrance to Bias Bay she was seen by H. M.'s submarine L 4 which was anchored there. The submarine fired a shot across her bows, and in their rage the pirates set fire to the vessel. Follow- ing the piracies of the Kochow and Irene, three gunboats went to Bias Bay and carried out a punitive expedition. A few days before the pirating of the Irene on October 12, there was a daring piracy in the harbour itself. A steam launch the Wo Fat Hing was conveying $24,000 of gold bullion to the Prominent, a Norwegian vessel, when she was pirated. The year 1928 opened with the piracy in January of the San Nam Hoi which was followed in April by the taking of the Hsin Wah which gave a booty of $25,000 and of the Tean in June, a haul of $12,000. After five months peace came the news of the pirating of the Anking in October. This yielded $100,000 and seven prisoners were taken.
In September 1929 came the pirating of the Delhi Maru a novel feature being that the pirates were led by a young and attractive woman. The next piracy to stir the public mind was that of the Hai Ching in December, 1929. The ship was set on fire by the pirates in the course of a long fight with the officers, and the whole bridge was burnt away. There were 14 killed, 35 injured and over 60 persons missing when the vessel was brought into Hongkong.
One of Sir Cecil's first public acts as Governor was the opening of the European Y.M.C.A., Kowloon, in November, 1925. The following year in October he opened the new Fire Station building in Des Voeux Road. The year 1926 was marked by a great storm which followed on a typhoon. There were 20:43 ins. of rain in 9 hours and terrible damage was done.
On account of the troubled state of China two brigades of troops, the 13th and 14th Infantry Brigades were sent to Hongkong early in 1927 and arrived in February. About 1,000 men were billeted in the Peninsula Hotel, Kowloon, which was then nearing completion. These troops were gradually withdrawn as the situation grew less tense and the last left the Colony in October.
In the August of the same year a typhoon, which lasted 12 hours, struck the Colony. The wind attained a maximum velocity of 115 miles per hour. Much damage was done but there was fortunately little loss of life. The P. and O. steamer Rawal- pindi, which was in harbour broke her moorings, but fine seamanship prevented any accident.
The foundation stone of St. Stephen's College, Stanley, which is run as a public school after the English model, was laid in April, 1928, by H.E. the Governor, this marking an important step forward in the educational facilities of the Colony.
A war memorial to the Chinese, who fell in the great war, was unveiled in May and one in honour of the Indians, who gave their lives in the same struggle, was un- veiled in June. The Hongkong Government Radio Service was opened in October, 1928, to which is joined a broadcasting studio, which sends out concerts every evening.
The King
March 1929 was marked by a terrible fire in the central district. Edward Hotel, a large six storey building, caught fire in the early hours of the morn- ing and was completely gutted, with a loss of 13 lives and a number of serious injuries, among them the Governor of Canton, General Chen Ming-shu, who broke his leg.
In the typhoon, which struck the island a glancing blow in August, 1929, the wind force reached a speed of 120 miles per hour, but luckily very little damage was done. In October, 1929, a bill to amend tlie Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance was passed in order to regularise the position of Mui Tsai and as far as possible put an end to this system of domestic slavery.
Sir Cecil Clementi was succeeded as Governor by Sir William Peel, K.B.E., K.C.M.G., in May, 1930.
•