10 HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
23rd January, 1930.
PRESENT:―
HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR (SIR CECIL CLEMENTI, K.C.M.G.).
HIS EXCELLENCY THE GENERAL OFFICER COMMANDING THE TROOPS (MAJOR GENERAL J. W. SANDILANDS, C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O.).
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY (HON. MR. W. T. SOUTHORN, C.M.G.).
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL (HON. SIR JOSEPH KEMP, KT., K.C., C.B.E.).
THE SECRETARY FOR CHINESE AFFAIRS (HON. MR. E. R. HALLIFAX, C.M.G., C.B.E.). THE COLONIAL TREASURER (HON. MR. C. MCI. MESSER, O.B.E.).
HON. MR. H. T. CREASY, C.B.E., (Director of Public Works).
HON. MR. E. D. C. WOLFE, C.MG., (Inspector General of Police).
HON. COMMANDER G. F. HOLE, R.N., (Retired) (Harbour Master).
HON. DR. A. R. WELLINGTON, (Director of Medical and Sanitary Services). HON. SIR HENRY POLLOCK, KT., K.C.
HON. SIR SHOU-SON CHOW, KT.
HON. MR. R. H. KOTEWALL, C.M.G., LL.D.
HON. MR. A. C. HYNES.
HON. MR. J. OWEN HUGHES.
HON. MR. W. E. L. SHENTON.
HON. MR. J. P. BRAGA.
HON. MR. S. W. TS'O, O.B.E., LL.D.
MR. N. L. SMITH, (Deputy Clerk of Councils).
MINUTES.
The minutes of the previous meeting of Council were confirmed.
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 11
PAPERS.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of H.E. The Governor, laid upon the table the following papers:―
Regulation under Section 25 (4) and 42 (2) of the Merchant Shipping Ordinance, 1899, on 2nd January, 1930.
Reports of the Medical and Sanitary Departments for the year 1928.
FINANCE COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of H.E. The Governor, laid upon the table the report of the Finance Committee No. 1 of 14th January, 1930, and moved that it be adopted.
THE COLONIAL TREASURER seconded and this was agreed to.
NEW BY-LAW.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY moved:―
"That the By-law made by the Sanitary Board under section 16 of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, 1903, on the 23rd day of December, 1929, be adopted."
He said: A copy of this By-law is in the hands of every member. It reads as follows:― "By-law No. 8 contained in Schedule B of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, 1903, and published on pages 1569-1572 of volume III of the Ordinances of Hong Kong 1844-1923 under the heading 'Cemeteries' is hereby amended by the deletion of the words 'and the written consent of the next of kin of the person buried' at the end thereof." This amendment has been introduced to avoid the difficulties which might arise should it be impossible to obtain the written consent of the next of kin.
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL seconded and the motion was approved. OPIUM ORDINANCE.
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL moved the second reading of the Bill intituled "An Ordinance to amend further the Opium Ordinance, 1923."
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded and the Bill was read a second time.
Council went into committee to consider the Bill clause by clause. No amendment was made in committee and upon Council resuming,
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL reported that the Bill had passed through committee without amendment and moved the third reading.
12 HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded and the Bill was read a third time and passed.
H.E. THE GOVERNOR'S DEPARTURE.
HON. SIR HENRY POLLOCK.―Sir, Although the community as a whole formally took leave of you yesterday, it is only fitting that some words of farewell, however brief, should be addressed to you in this Council, where you have, at different times, officiated as Clerk of Councils, as Acting Colonial Secretary and as Governor.
This afternoon there is a profound feeling of regret, which is shared by official and unofficial members alike, that this is the last meeting at which you will be present at this Council, over which you have presided for more than four years past with so much tact, courtesy and ability.
In bidding you farewell, we desire to take this opportunity of wishing you happiness and success not only in the post of Governor of the Straits Settlements but also in any further official positions to which His Majesty the King may hereafter be pleased to appoint you.
HON. SIR SHOU-SON CHOW.―Sir, Four years ago, in this very room, I had the honour and privilege of welcoming Your Excellency and Lady Clementi back to Hong Kong, and to-day it is my melancholy duty to bid you farewell. During the four arduous years of your Governorship, events of portentous import have taken place in this Colony as in South China. When you assumed your duties, the political sky was overcast, and the mind of the people was filled with ominous forebodings. But in a comparatively short time you were able to disperse much of the dark cloud that was enveloping us, and to give back to us a bit of smiling sunshine. Immediately upon your arrival you made it your first duty to bring about better relations between Hong Kong and Canton; and by your incomparable knowledge of China and the Chinese, your sympathy for them, your sincerity and statesmanship, you succeeded in this object beyond our highest expectations. It is no exaggeration to say that at no time during the last two decades has the relationship between our great neighbour and Hong Kong been so close and so amicable as it is to-day. The four years of your administration have been beset with difficulties and anxieties, which must have been as great as any that could have befallen a Colonial Governor in recent years; but in spite of this you have been able to complete or initiate many constructive schemes of magnitude, and to introduce several important reforms in the constitution of the Colony.
There are two of your outstanding achievements which have won the everlasting gratitude of the Chinese. One is that you departed from the time-honoured policy of the Government by appointing to the Executive Council a Chinese. This epoch-making innovation afforded the Chinese community profound satisfaction, in that it gave
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 13
them a share in the active government of the Colony for the first time in its history. The other tangible proof of Your Excellency's goodwill towards us is, the appointment of a third Chinese member to the Legislative Council when you obtained the sanction of the Crown to enlarge the unofficial representation by two members. You have, Sir, by example and precept, succeeded in strengthening the bond of friendship that binds together all sections of the community. You have, indeed, been the greatest friend that the Chinese have had among a long line of Governors who have all been our real friends. Just as we hailed with joy your arrival, we now sorrow for your departure. In congratulating Your Excellency upon your promotion, and bidding farewell to you and Lady Clementi, for whom we entertain feelings of the highest respect and esteem, we wish you both happiness and success.
H.E. THE GOVERNOR.―Honourable Members of the Legislative Council: It is with a heavy heart that I rise to address you for the last time in this Chamber, which I have known for thirty years, which contains for me so many memories, and in which so much of the history of Hong Kong has been made. I have served this Council as its Clerk, as acting Colonial Secretary and as Governor. Many of my dearest friends have been associated with me in the work of this Council. The Senior Unofficial Member, Sir Henry Pollock, I have known as long as I have known Hong Kong. The Second Chinese Member, Dr. Kotewall, was my right hand man years ago when we both served in the Colonial Secretary's Office. Among the official members the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, and the Inspector General of Police are brother cadets, who have been friends of mine since my first arrival in Hong Kong, and whose friendship. I hope to retain all my life, wherever I may be. Three others, the Colonial Secretary, the Director of Public Works and the Harbour Master, I first knew and learned to value when we served together in Ceylon; and all four of us were transferred from Ceylon to Hong Kong at about the same time. Indeed there is no one in this Council with whom I am not on terms of personal friendship, and from whom I have not frequently received helpful advice and the kindest consideration. It is painful to break all these ties of affection and to say goodbye. Half my life, and that the better half, I leave behind me in Hong Kong.
But, gentlemen, I do not wish to dwell unduly on personal matters in the last words I say to this Council. I will rather speak of the public work which we have done together and of what the future may hold for Hong Kong. At the outset, I would remind you that the constitution of this honourable Council and of the Executive Council also has been altered and, as we all believe, improved during my term of governorship. A Chinese member has for the first time in the Colony's history been given a seat in the Executive Council. This innovation has proved to be a great success. The position has been worthily filled by Sir Shouson Chow and experience has shown how valuable, and indeed I would say how indispensable, to the
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Executive Council is the advice given in person by its Chinese member. The Legislative Council also has been strengthened by the addition of a third Chinese member, by the representation in it of the interests of Kowloon, and of the large Portuguese community here resident, and by the inclusion of two more official members, the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services and the Harbour Master, both of whom control public departments which are vital to the welfare of the Colony. We have, moreover, adopted quite recently with complete unanimity new Standing Rules and Orders which should facilitate the transaction of legislative business in this Colony.
And may I here pause to congratulate honourable members on the businesslike brevity with which our proceedings are conducted? There is not in this Chamber any "playing to the gallery," any exuberance of verbosity, any attempt to make mere debating points or to heckle the Government. Obstructive tactics are never used. All members are alike animated by the desire to do the best they can for the Colony. Accordingly there is whole-hearted collaboration between official and unofficial members in preparing legislative and financial measures for submission to the Council. Difficulties and debatable points are threshed out in the freedom and privacy of informal discussion, whether in the Executive Council or by means of specially appointed committees, prior to the introduction of bills, regulations or money votes for the formal approval of the legislature. So there is seldom any need for long debates in this Chamber and divisions are very rarely called for. In this respect the Hong Kong Legislative Council need not fear comparison with any other legislative body in the British Empire: and I gladly acknowledge the great debt, which as Governor I owe to the unofficial members, for facilitating and expediting the work of the administration. Especially do I wish to thank those members of the Legislative Council who are also members of the Executive Council; for it is in the Executive Council that most of the preparatory work for this Chamber is done. The Executive Council meets every week and, while meetings of the Legislative Council are usually brief, meetings of the Executive Council are often very long. We have been through troublous days together and, if it be true that "there's a good time a-coming," it certainly is "a good time a-coming." We have seldom had before us a choice between right and wrong, safety and danger. We have mostly been confronted by nothing but a choice of dangers. In such circumstances our discussions in Executive Council were frequently long and anxious. I have made deep drafts on your time and your patience; and I am most grateful for your unfailing support and co-operation.
While speaking of the Colony's constitution, I venture to give a word of parting advice. Experience in other parts of the British Empire, but especially in Hong Kong and in China, convinces me that democracy as understood in the United Kingdom is not a suitable or a safe form of Government for peoples in the Far East at the present stage of their political, social and economic development; and I am firmly of opinion that universal manhood and womanhood
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 15
suffrage, general elections, bye-elections, party politics, the wiles of the demagogue and the arts of the hustings could do nothing but harm in Hong Kong. I am satisfied that Crown Colony Government will in future, as in the past, be best suited to the needs of this outpost of the British Empire. But in saying this I do not mean to imply that the inhabitants of Hong Kong, and particularly the Chinese here resident, should not as the Colony grows more populous and more prosperous be admitted to an increasing share in the deliberations and decisions of the Hong Kong Government. I have during my term as Governor endeavoured to pave the way for such development by presiding in person over quarterly meetings of the District Watch Committee, which is the body politic in this Colony most representative of Chinese interests; by presiding at least once a year over meetings of the Directors of the Tung Wah Hospital and of the Po Leung Kuk; by attending and addressing annual meetings of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; and by setting up standing committees such as the Harbour Board and the Labour Advisory Board, with the object of obtaining full information as to public opinion before deciding upon governmental action. I hoped, had I remained here, to address myself to another important branch of this subject, namely the reorganization of the public health administration of the Colony. In our new Director of Medical and Sanitary Services, Dr. Wellington, we have just the man who by professional knowledge and by experience in the Far East is best qualified to advise us in this matter; and, where he gives a lead, I think that the residents of this Colony of all races may safely follow. We need, and we must have, a sanitary organization co-extensive with the Colony and its New Territories, and reform in this respect is long overdue. I do not pretend to prophesy what form it will take; but there is one form which in my opinion it certainly ought not to take and that is the establishment of a municipality. This Colony is so small and so compact that it is in effect a large township, and the Government of Hong Kong is, and must always be, mainly concerned with municipal affairs. I regard myself as being in effect Mayor of Hongkong; and were I and the principal officers of this Government to divest ourselves of our municipal duties, there would be little left for us to do. The creation of municipalities would duplicate the administrative machinery of the Colony to an intolerable extent. It would be excessively uneconomical and it would be open to all the political objections which would beset democratic institutions, if introduced into Hong Kong. I sincerely hope that nothing of the kind will be attempted.
No spectacular public works have been constructed here during the past four years, but there has been steady development both on the island and on the mainland. On the island the most notable achievement is the completion of the Praya East Reclamation scheme; while in Kowloon the construction of what will be a model city of vast dimensions upon an exceedingly well devised town-planning scheme progresses year by year, as hill after hill is cut down and used to level up insanitary depressions and to fill up the foreshore,
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thus extending the deep sea frontage for ocean-going steamers. A notable innovation has been the construction of a spacious aerodrome near Kowloon City, from which the Royal Air Force already operates, and where we hope to see this year the inception both of commercial aviation and of a flying club. Hong Kong will thus take its rightful place among the air ports of the world. On the subject of water-works I recently addressed this Council at length. Therefore I will only say now what pleasure it gives me to see that rapid progress is being made with the harbour pipe-line, with the new Aberdeen reservoir and with the Kowloon bye-wash reservoir. I feel that a determined effort has begun to solve in a permanent and satisfactory manner the water-problem which has been a source of constant anxiety to this Colony since first I knew it.
Our financial situation is, I am happy to say, very satisfactory. The revenue and expenditure of the Colony and the state of its reserve fund from the year 1923 to date can conveniently be tabulated as follows:―
Year ended State of Reserve 31st Dec. Revenue. Expenditure Fund on 1st Jan.
1923....................$ 24,783,762.53 $ 21,571,904.72 $ 12,658,642.41 1924.................... 24,209,639.72 26,726,428.44 15,971,495.23 1925.................... 23,244,365.94 28,266,817.94 13,107,549.29 1926.................... 21,131,581.64 23,524,715.94 8,113,482.68 1927.................... 21,344,535.72 20,845,064.69 3,486,290.54 1928.................... 24,968,398.88 21,230,242.24 3,985,761.57 1929....................* 23,218,950.00 * 21,733,545.00 8,091,633.87 1930.................... * 9,577,038.00
* Estimate only.
These figures reflect faithfully the period of storm and strain through which Hong Kong has passed owing to anti-British manifestations, such as the strike and boycott of 1925, to incessant civil war in China, and to repeated disturbances in the Liang Kuang provinces. They show how the Colony's revenue fell; how its expenditure was curtailed; how valuable the reserve fund was to us in our time of need and how heavily we drew upon it; how in 1928, when friendly relations between Hong Kong and Canton were re-established, our revenue at once revived; how our expenditure was then increased to match, and how our reserve fund was again built up. We began this year with a reserve fund close upon 9½ million dollars, of which eight millions were liquid; and I think that I may fairly claim to have left my successor a heritage better than that which I myself took over.
HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 17
In conclusion I wish to touch briefly upon foreign affairs, for Hong Kong is far from being self-contained or self-supporting and can only prosper if on terms of real friendship with her neighbours. The relations between this Colony and the Portuguese authorities at Macao are most cordial. Visits have been frequently exchanged between the Governor of Macao and myself. We are very good friends and our personal friendship is only a symbol of the spirit of goodwill and co-operation which happily exists between two Colonies, established at the mouth of the West River in close contiguity to each other and faced with similar problems. Three Governors General of the Philippine Islands―General Leonard Wood, Mr. Stimson and Mr. Davis, have been welcomed on their way through Hong Kong during my term of government; and I was fortunate enough to be able myself last autumn to visit the Philippine Islands, where I was shown the greatest kindness and hospitality. I hope that every year will see the bonds of trade and friendship between Hong Kong and Manila drawn closer and I feel that in Baguio, only 48 hours distant from us, we have a health resort, which is easily accessible, where Hong Kong residents are made very much at home, and which should be of increasing value to us as years go by. With French Indo-China also we are on very cordial terms. My predecessor, Sir Edward Stubbs, and General Luard, lately in command of His Majesty's forces in Hong Kong, both visited that fine country during their term of office. I too had visited it twice in bygone years and I had hoped to do so as Governor, but various causes have prevented me from carrying out my intention. I trust before long to hear that aerial communications have been established from this Colony via Kuangchowan with Hanoi and Saigon.
But, of course, our most important neighbours on the western sea board of the Pacific are Japan and China. As regards Japan not only have we a large and valued Japanese element in the population of this Colony, but we received the year before last a very welcome visit from the Japanese first battle fleet and we have also entertained on their way through Hong Kong many eminent Japanese statesmen, among them Mr. Matsudaira, now Ambassador at the Court of St. James', and Viscount Saito, the Governor General of Korea. I was fortunately able to visit Japan and Korea in 1927 and was very courteously received both by Baron Tanaka, then premier and foreign minister, at Tokyo, and by Viscount Saito at Chosen. In Hong Kong the British Empire approaches nearest to Japan, and nowhere are relations between us and the Japanese more cordial in this Colony. Only in the case of China have there been strained relations between this Colony and any foreign country. When I assumed the government of Hong Kong in 1925, an anti-British boycott had been declared at Canton and an effort was being made by a bolshevized Chinese administration to reduce Hong Kong to the condition of "a desert island." This foolish agitation, which was even more disastrous to Canton than it was to Hong Kong, had been begun by Soviet intrigue; and, when communism was swept out of Kuangtung, the traditional amity
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between Canton and Hong Kong was rapidly restored in March, 1928, under the wise guidance of Marshal Li Chai-sum. He and I exchanged visits and I am happy to say that the cordial relations then established have continued ever since, in spite of the recrudescence of civil war in China. The visit to Hong Kong this day of General Ch'an Ming-shu, Chairman of the Kuangtung Provincial Council, accompanied by the Mayor of Canton and many of the principal officials of the Province, is a further token of the friendship between China and Great Britain. I am deeply sensible of the honour done me by General Ch'an in paying me this visit of farewell, and I rejoice that one of his objects in coming here to-day is to launch a steamer built in this Colony by Messrs. Butterfield & Swire for the China trade.
It is essential for the prosperity both of Canton and of Hong Kong that our friendship should grow stronger from year to year, that there should be close co-operation between this Colony and the authorities of the Liang Kuang provinces, and that no sinister outside influence should be allowed to mar the goodwill and mutual confidence which we place in each other. I hope and pray that the conditions under which His Majesty's Government resumed diplomatic intercourse with Russia may insure that bolshevik propaganda will never again be allowed to disturb the friendship between Canton and this Colony; and I am certain that, if this friendship remains undisturbed, the future of Hong Kong, which is so intimately bound up with that of Kuangtung, will be happy, peaceful and prosperous, that the collaboration of the British and Chinese races, which has already produced such wonderful results in Hong Kong and elsewhere in the Far East, will bring even greater blessings to the world hereafter, and that in this era of the Chinese renaissance Hong Kong will play a role of the highest importance and of the utmost beneficence. Confucius said:―"If you wish to establish yourself, seek also to establish others", and the people of this Colony must never forget that the best means of establishing the security and prosperity of Hong Kong is to give all possible help in establishing the reign of law and order and righteousness among our friends and neighbours in China.
ADJOURNMENT.
H.E. THE GOVERNOR.―The Council will adjourn sine die.