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with fire fighting experience should, if possible, be appointed at a salary of £700 to £900. Until this can be arranged, the present conditions should continue, save that it should be clearly understood that at a fire the Superintendent must be in entire control of the fire-fighting. With regard to this latter officer's salary, no recommenda- tions are made except that his increments should be fixed hereafter at £20 annually.
Equipment.
3. (a) Generally the Committee are satisfied with the present Equipment, but they consider that a fully qualified European mechanical engineer should be engaged to look after the valuable machinery and equipment of the Fire Brigade.
(6) Hongkong and Kowloon should be regarded as entirely separate districts. It should however be kept in mind, if and when provision of a trans-harbour vehicular Ferry is being considered, that in cases of urgency, it might be desirable to bring appliances from one side to the other.
(c) The No. 2 Fire Float should at present be retained, but the possibility of acquir- ing a Motor Float in the place of this should be kept in view.
(d) The No. 1 Tender in Hongkong and the No. 2 Pump in Kowloon should be replaced at once, and two A. J. S. Machines, with the usual first-aid and fire appliances, should forthwith be supplied for use on the Peak.
(e) When the increase of station accommodation becomes an accomplished fact, it is considered absolutely necessary that each Main Station should house at least two appliances and each Sub-station at least one.
Construction.
4. The question of Construction, which includes not only the erection of Stations, but the provision and control of Mains, and the system of fire installations in private buildings, was considered by a technical sub-committee consisting of the Hon. Director of Public Works, the Hon. Mr. H. W. Bird, and Major Wyncoll. Their report is so detailed and informative that the Committee think it advisable to include it in full as Enclosure 1 to the general report, and recommend that it should be used as a basis for consideration when work of this description is actually taken in hand.
(a) The following broad principles, which clearly emerge, should however be stressed. The increase in the European personnel will only be effective if it provides an officer or officers with ample time, not only to inspect and test from time to time all private" installations, but also to devote attention to the staffs thereof, (where they are in any measure permanent), in efficient operating. This officer should also be available for the inspection of the actual installation of fire fighting appliances.
CC
(6) In view of the fact that buildings erected previously to the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance cannot at present legally be controlled in this respect, the utmost care should be taken to consider this question of private installations in all its bearings in connection with any future Legislation. That is to say, the report of the "Construction" sub-committee and the report of the "Legislation" sub-committee, hereinafter given, should be read together for future guidance.
Generally the London County Council regulations should, as far as possible, be made to refer to all large new buildings in Hongkong and Kowloon, even to large Chinese Stores, where a considerable number of the Staff sleep on the premises. It is not considered economically practicable that they should be made to apply to Chinese tenement houses, but in these every effort should be made to encourage the erection of concrete staircases rather than the present wooden ones which are a serious source of danger in case of fire.
(c) All Ship-building yards and Oil Installations should be required to have private fire-fighting systems, and the regulations existing for the construction of Oil Installations should be strictly carried out.
(d) The immediate erection of a Main Station and Headquarters in Kowloon at the junction of Prince Edward Road and Coronation Road is recommended.
If this is not