106
13. Maintenance of Praya Wall and Piers.-Little has been done to the Praya Wall and Piers in the City as the construction of the New Praya Wall will, in the course of a few years, necessitate their removal.
14. A contract was entered into in September for the construction of a new pier at Yaumati having an area of 4,410 square feet; the old one being severely damaged by the gale in July last. This work is progressing satisfactorily.
15. The length of Praya Wall existing in Hongkong and Kowloon is 8 miles and the number of Public Piers is 19. The total expenditure under this heading includes $709.84 spent on the new pier at Yaumati.
16. Maintenance of Lighthouses.—The Lighthouses, three in number, have required no extensive repairs.
17. Maintenance of the Disinfector.-It is satisfactory to record that the Disinfector has seldom been required during the past year. The expenditure under this heading includes the cost of the watchman.
18. Dredging Foreshores.-During the past year 37,713 cubic yards of material have been removed from the Harbour at a cost of $10,614.19 including the cost of maintenance of one Priestman's dredger.
19. Miscellaneous Works. With the exception of the repair of the sea wall and roadway along the south side of Causeway Bay, no works of any importance requiring special remark have been carried out under this heading.
20. Maintenance of Roads and Bridges in Victoria.-The total length of streets and roads in the City is about 35 miles, about 24 miles of which have been re-made and the remainder kept in repair. The roads and streets particularly in the central portion of the City have been much cut up by the laying of new sewers and water pipes and until such operations are complete it is practically throwing money away to attempt to maintain them in such a condition as would, under ordinary circumstances, be considered satisfactory. During the latter part of the year in such portions of the City as the operations of the Water and Drainage Department were practically completed, the roads and streets have been taken in hand many of which are now in a satisfactory state of repair.
21. The Bridges have all been maintained in a satisfactory condition except the Praya Bridge over the Bowrington Canal which is now undergoing reconstruction and will be referred to under the heading "Extraordinary Public Works."
22. Maintenance of Roads and Bridges out of Victoria.-The roads outside the City have received a good deal of attention during the past year and extensive repairs have been carried out in many instances specially to those from Little Hongkong to Stanley, Stanley to Shaukiwan, Tytam Tuk to Tytam Reservoir, and from Tytam Gap to Cape D'Aguilar.
23. The general repair of the roads in the Hill District is now in hand.
24. During the gale of July last a portion of the sea wall on the Shaukiwan Road, some 100 lineal yards in length, was carried away and with it a part of the road. A new wall has been built and the road repaired.
25. A new road 500 lineal yards in length has been constructed from Shankiwan to A-Kung- Ngam.
26. The existing Bridges have been kept in a thorough state of repair. There are, however, three bridges on the Stanley Road, viz.: two in Deep Water Bay and one at Tsinshuiwan which were destroyed some years ago and never reinstated. I am of opinion that now that this road has been put in a good state of repair and is becoming more used these bridges should be reinstated; the reconstruc- tion of which I propose to deal with in a separate report.
27. The total length of roads outside the City is about 50 miles including the Aberdeen and Shaukiwan Carriage Roads.
28. The Maintenance of Roads and Bridges in Kowloon.—The Roads at Tsimshatsui, Yaumati and Hung Hom have been extensively repaired.
29. Six hundred (600) lineal yards of new roads are in course of construction and are now nearly completed. Fifteen hundred and fifty (1,550) lineal yards of new roads have been completed, the most important of which is the road along the southern shore from Tsimshatsui to Hung Hom providing means of communication by jinricksha between Tsimshatsui Pier and Hung Hom, a distance of about two miles.
30. Ten hundred and twenty (1,020) lineal yards of streets at Hung Hom have been kerbed and channelled and the footways concreted.
31. The total length of roads and streets in Tsimshatsui, Yaumati and Hung Hom is about 9 miles.