1048 THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 7TH OCTOBER, 1893.
7. I have the honour to enclose the minutes of the three meetings held and would venture to suggest that these together with the correspondence, including this letter, be printed in the Government Gazette.
8. The issue of reports and warnings at present is conducted as well as it can possibly be done on the basis of the data available, and all the information is issued without delay.
9. The information is not exact; but, such as it is, it is sufficient for intelligent masters of vessels.
10. Seamen have great confidence in my warnings and obey them always implicitly while in and when leaving this harbour.
11. The weather forecasts and storm warnings cannot be improved without cables to South Cape, Anping, Fisher Island, and North Borneo, without meteoro- logical telegrams from Hoihow and places between Haiphong and Cape Saint James, and without the observations being made more accurately in China.
If
12. If the Governinent is prepared to spend large sums of money on cables, instruments, and observers, great improvements will then follow; but possibly it will prefer to leave improvements in telegraph lines in China to the Government of China. The China Coast is warned from this Observatory in case of typhoons. These warnings are based on too few and uncertain observations to be exact. the inhabitants of the Coast Ports want better warnings, and if the Government of Hongkong does not choose to go to additional expense, then they ought to address the Inspector General of Customs, Peking, who might see his way to apportion the cost between the Chinese Government and the various ports. The Colonial Govern- ment would, no doubt, pay a reasonable share.
13. In case there be any point on which the Governor is not convinced that no further inquiry is necessary, then I would most respectfully suggest that His Excellency consider the advisability of consulting scientific authorities in England. I There is no objection to another Committee to consider the subjects as long as act as chairman; but, I submit, that it is not now required.
I have the honour to be,
Sir,
Your most obedient Servant,
W. DOBERCK,
Director.
The Honourable G. T. M. O'BRIEN, C.M.G.,
Colonial Secretary,
&l.
&c.,
&c.
(Captain Miller, Captain Tillet, and Captain Anderson, to Dr. Doberch.)
DEAR SIR,
H. M. DOCKYARD, HONGKONG, 28th September, 1893.
In view of the sentiments expressed in the draft of your proposed letter to the Colonial Secretary which, we presume, expresses your own opinions, we feel it will be impossible for us to act with you in the discussion of a subject our know- ledge of which apparently is held by you in such light estimation.
We have, therefore, no course left but to forward to the Colonial Secretary a letter tendering formally our resignation as members of the Committee on meteorological reports and weather forecasts.
We beg to return herewith the draft you so kindly forwarded, on which we had already inserted some notes and remarks before our final decision was arrived
at.
Dr. DOBERCK.
We remain,
Your obedient Servants,
A. W. MILLER, Master Attendant, H. M. Dockyard.
A. TILLETT,
Marine Superintendent, Canadian Pacific Railway Co.
G. C. ANDERSON, Marine Surveyor and Superintendent, Indo-China Steam Navigation Co., Limited.