334
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 13TH APRIL, 1895.
The general export trade was as follows, to places other than China and adjacent countries:—-
Vessels with cargo. Vessels in ballast, Cargo shipped.
Bunker Cal.
Tons
Tons
Tons
Tons
British,.... Foreign,
681,378
99,445
528,172
51,675
339,879
77,243
271,102
39,502
Total, ......1,021,257
176,688
799,274
91,177
To places in and adjacent to China the exports were-
Vessels with cargo. Tons
Vessels in bullast.
Cargo shipped.
Bunker Coal.
Tons
Tons
Tons
British,..... Foreign,
.2,934,937
172,784
474,962
162,842
784,673
145,697
324,352
99,436
Total,.....3,719,610
318,481
799,314
262,278
Comparing tonnage of the above with 1893, we get as follows:-
Import tonnage,
From places other than China, &c.,...........
•
From China and adjacent countries,
Total Decrease,..
Export tonnage.
To places other than China, &c.,
To China and adjacent places,
Decrease.
.
10,014
..
23,189
33,203
Increase.
Decrease.
100,490
67,016
Nett Decrease,...
33,474
JUNKS.
Increase.
7. Compared with the average of the past three years, the foreign junk trade shows an increase of 167,724 tons and a decrease of 69 vessels, the increased size of all the newer craft has already been noted. The local trade for the same period has decreased 187,774 tons with 4,966 vessels.
8. The foreign junk trade for 1894 shows a decrease from the previous year of 1,336 vessels and 5,883 tons, doubtless more or less directly due to the Plague.
9. The decrease in the local trade for 1894 below 1893, of 1,408 vessels with 27,892 tons, is the result also of the Plague, and partly of the decrease in work on the Praya Reclamation.
TRADE.
10. 4,132 steamers, 93 sailing vessels and 23,023 junks arrived during the year, giving a daily average of 75 vessels arriving as against 90 the previous year. For European constructed vessels the average daily entries would be 11.57 as against in 1893, 11.97. Of the steamers 71.9% were British, and 33 were River craft, all of which latter were also British.
11. The trade of the Colony in 1894 was influenced by two special and memorable events, viz., the Plague and the War.
It is difficult, if not impossible, yet to apportion the respective "spheres of influence" of these two events, for some time they ran concurrently, though perhaps with contrary results. There can, however, be no doubt as to which influence made itself most felt.
The port was proclaimed infected with bubonic plague on 10th May, and the shipping returns. for that quarter showed a decrease in arrivals of 51 European vessels and 251 junks. It was not, however, until later that the full effect on shipping was made apparent, and the September quarter showed an additional falling off of 375 European vessels and 1,824 junks. During this quarter both influences were at work, and, until the 12th September, our shipping trade remained under a ban. With the raising of the quarantine blockade," however, things began to improve, and at the end of December we had reduced our deficit in arrivals for the year to 306 European vessels and 1,336 junks.
6
336
THE HONGKONG GO-ERNMENT GAZETTE, 13тir APRIL, 1895.
Trade of the Port of Hongkong for the Year ending 31st December, 1894:-
TONS.
No. of ships.
Dis-
charged.
Shipped. In Transit.
Bunker Coal Shipped.
Total.
Registered
Tonnage.
PASSENGERS
CARRIED.
British,
Foreign,
5,293
1.679,945
909.356
939.569
2.430
945,665 |† 595,454
580,275
River Steamers (British)..
2,729
120,675
Total.
Junks in Foreign Trade,
Total
8,452
22,740,28,
93,778 1,598,588
194,313 | 3,723,183 | 4,503,069 138,938 2,210,332 | 2,690,786 20.204 234.657 3,275,327 | 1,041,958
248,880
93,868
1,469,844 300,455
6,168,172
10,462,182
1,384,706
45,861
437,307 † 818,911
51.313
3,183,592
2,417.499
1,469,814
Junks in Local Trade,
Grand Total,
8,478
90.964
9.597
1,256,218 353,155 | 7,424,390 13,051,306 100.561 297,364
| 3,482,124
220,948
1,605,654
10,893
62,791
3,274,556 | 2,427,096 | 1,460,844
853,455 7,524,951 14,248,670 | 1,616,547
*
7,495 tons Kerosine, 2,900 tons Rice.
9,248 tons † 19,941 tons
Kerosine, 1,800 tons Rice, 185 tons Gunpowder, 1,000 Rifles, 1,000 Bayonets, and 2,000,000 Cartridges. Kerosine.
14. Following up the attempt which was made in my last report to gauge the trade of the Colony by means of Import and Export Returns, I am enabled by means of somewhat elaborate statistics, compiled by the Assistant Harbour Master, to give more complete returns for 1894. As before stated these do not profess absolute correctness, and they are obtained through the courtesy of the agents and masters.
In Returns Nos. I and II, and V and VI will be found, in addition to the customary information as to registered tonnage, &c., the amount of cargo reported as "shipped," "discharged," and "in transit" to and from each country with which trade relations exist, and I hope that the information will be valued in proportion to the amount of time and trouble expended in its compilation.
During the year, 8,452 European constructed vessels aggregating 10,469,182 tons, carried 1,384,706
passengers, and 6,168,172 tons, the latter made up as follows:-
"
2,746,285 tons. 1,598,588
1,469,844
353,455
55
**
""
Import cargo,
Export
Transit
>
Bunker coal shipped,
Total,.
.6,168,172
IMPORTS (EXCLUDING RIVER TRADE).
Steamers,.
2,767 measuring 3,491,518 tons.
Sailing vessels,.
imported 2,625,610 tons made up as follows:-
Beans,
93
104,486
"
Total,
.2,860
3,596,004
Bones,
3,995
2,040
Coals,
562,909
Copra,
10
Flour,
60,250
Kerosine,
100,367
Oil,
3,804
Opium,.
2,825
Rattan,
625
Rice,
619,075
Saltpetre,
50
Sandalwood,
1,625
Sapanwood,
1,300
Sugar,
170,499
Tea,
350
Timber,
16,040
Vermecilli,
170
1,545,934
General,
1,079,676
2,625,610
Transit,
1,469,844
Total,
4,095,454
Compared with last year this gives 132 ships less, measuring 61,073 tons carrying 42,280 tons more,
Sid
!
9
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 13TH APRIL, 1895.
335
12. The river steamers, during the second half of the year, show a decrease of 27 entries aggregating 10,036 tons, owing in a great measure to the restriction on this branch of trade unavoidably made by the method adopted of examining all vessels, as far as practicable, arriving from the Canton River and its neighbourhood.
These river steamers, on the other hand, had the benefit of the general exodus of Chinese from Hongkong and their subsequent return, and though the passenger returns were not so good as in the previous year, they yet reached the very respectable total of 941,958 carried. Some of these vessels also minimised their losses by a special mode of retrenchment, as remarkable for its ingenuity as for the small result attained. The "night boats" (which are the only ones which pay light dues and that at very reduced rate) finding that they would not be permitted to enter the harbour until the passengers had been medically inspected, remained in Chinese waters until daylight absolved them by law from paying their small contribution to the revenue of the Colony, the saving thus effected aggregated $1,204.44. The report would not be complete without my mentioning that there was one "night boat" which did not adopt this plan and she was the Chinese owned Tai On.
13. The following tables illustrate the result of the combined influences at work during the year:-
ARRIVALS, 1894.
1ST QUARTER.
2ND QUARTER.
3RD QUARTER.
4TH QUARTER.
FLAG.
No.
Tonnage.
No.
Tonnage.
No.
Tonnage.
No.
Tonnage.
British,
449
598,605
589,163
343
475,795
395
American,
10,484
Austrian,.......................
15,653
Chinese,
51
55,797
Danish,
23
9.770
Dutch,
6,118
French,
33
40,123
German,
155
164,100
Italian,
Japanese,
Norwegian, ***
Russian,
Spanish,
་ ;
5,830
2T
39,796
28
20,599
2,785
: ཾc ི ོ ད
12,531
4
11,073
15,154
4
10,716
50,874
11
12,711
11,462
24
10,366
7,496
1,490
37,925
25
34,525
173,884
136
148,372
3
4,414,
3
4,197
23,799
11,140
20,709
16
15,870
ཤྩ◓ཡ⌘ཎྜ ཿ ུ:
540,083
10,635
15,600
765
12,696
4,191
40,211
184,329
4,497
19,837
1,376
1,172
Total,..
785
969,660
739
950,787
573
736,055
671
834,016
FLAG.
STEAMERS
STEAMERS
1ST QUARTER, 1893. 1ST QUARTER, 1894.
INCREASE.
DECREASE.
No.
Tonnage.. No.
Tonnage.
No.
Tonnage.
No.
Tonnage.
British,
402
586,801
449
598,605
47
61,804
American,
3
7,355
4
10,484
3,129
Austrian,...
4
8,968
6
15,653
2
6,685
Chinese,
41
51,209
Danish,
26
11,745
Dutch,
3
3,731
French,
18
30,445
German,
161
161,838
155
Italian,
3
4,497
ཀླ ུ ཿ 1 ་ །
55,797
10
4,588
28
9,770
1,975
6,118
2.387
40,128
15
9,678
164,100
2,242
6,830
1
1,333
Japanese,
11
15,508
39,796
16
24,288
Norwegian,
16
21,432
20,599
12
833
Russian,
2,785
1
2,785
Spanish,
3
1,962
3
1,962
Total,.
691
855,511
786
969,660
106
118,919
12
4,770
It will be seen from the second of these tables that 1894 opened very favourably, the first quarter showing a nett increase of 94 vessels of 114,149 tons, and thus that, at one time, there might have been expected an increase over last year of three quarters of a million of tons in European constructed vessels, which would almost certainly have brought in its train a corresponding increase in the junk trade. Unfortunately, from causes already referred to, this expectation was not realized.
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