241
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
419
589,163
343
475,795
395
540,083
American,
10,484
7
12,531
11,073
5
10,635
Austrian,...
6
15,653
6
15,154
10,716
6
15,600
Chinese,
51
55,797
44
50,874
11
12,711
1
765
Danish,
23
9,770
26
11,462
24
10,366
28
12,696
Dutch,
4
6,118
5
7,496.
1
1,490
5
4,191
French,
33
40,123
27
37,925
25
34,525
30
40,211
German,
155
164,100
165
173,884
136
148,372
178
184,329
Italian,
4
5,830
3
4,414
3
4,497
3
4,497
Japanese,
27
39,796
16
25,799
6
11,140
Norwegian.
28
Ca
20,599
19
20,709
16
15,370
18
19,837
Russian,
Ι
2,785
Spanish,
2
:
1,376
2
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
+
536,901
449
American,
Austrian,.
3
7,355
598,605 10,484
47
61,804
4
8,968
6
15,653
Chinese,
41
51,209
51
55,797
10
129
3,129
6,685
4,588
Danish,
26
11,745
23
9,770
3
1,975
Dutch,
3
8,781
4
6,118
1
2,387
French,
18
30,445
83
40,123
15
9,678
German,
161
161,858
155
164,100
2,242
6
to
Italian,
3
4,497
4
5,830
1
1,333
Japanese,
11
15,508
27
39,796
16
Norwegian,
16
21,432
28
20,599
12
Russian,
1
...
2,785
-33
24,288
833
2,785
Spanish,
3
1,962
3
1,962
Total,........
691
855,511
785
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.