it.
462
I suggest, sir, that the consideration of this matter be postponed until it is brought up at the Committee stage of the Appropriation
The suggestion was adopted.
Bill
THE CLEANING OF THE DRAINS.
HON. E. R. BELILIOS-Your Excellency,
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
[December 19, 1895.
another clause when the rules are drafted. to the Sanitary Board, which never had power The rules of the Straits Settlements are some-given to it to carry out necessary work. Quite what complicated and require modification to recently the honourable the Colonial Secretary suit the purposes of Hongkong. and as the spoke at public meeting and bore testimony Registrar, Mr. Kyshe, who has acted as Re- to the quality of Hongkong residents. He gistrar in the Straits Settlements, will be here said:"So far as the public spirit is concerned I have never known any object worthy of support shortly-I think in the course of a month or two-it will be advisable, before these rules are brought forward which has not received support
under your instructions I have amended my settled, to have the advantage of his experience, in every way from the inhabitants of Hong-
first question, and with your permission I now put it:--Will the Government be good enough to say why (experiments having shown the practicability of such a course) steps are not taken to pump up sea-water to the higher levels in order to wash out the drains?
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-I beg to state that as at present advised the Government considers the cost of such a project prohibitive, and, even if funds were available, it seems that it would be more advisable to utilise them for the purpose of still further increasing the water supply from Tytam or Pokfulam-u subject which is engaging the attention of the Government.
THE QUEEN'S STATUE. HON. E. R. BELILIOS-Will the Government kindly inform the Council the reasons for the suspension for many months and the apparently indefinite postponement of all work on the base and pedestal for the Jubilee statue of Her Majesty the Queen? Is there any insuperable obstacle in the way of erection of the statue, which has now for nearly a year been interned in the godowns, instead of being placed in the position for which it was designed ?
The COLONIAL SECRETARY In reply to the first part of the question I have to state that the work was temporarily suspended as it was considered inadvisable during the typhoon season to expose the superstructure while it was being completed. The reply to the second part of the question is, No, and it is hoped the statue of Her Majesty will soon be erected.
on
THE SUPREME COURT FUNDS ORDINANCE, The ATTORNEY-GENERALI have the hon- our to move the second reading of the Bill entitled an Ordinance to amend the law as to certain moneys paid into the Supreme Court or to the Registrar thereof. Hon. members will observe from the memorandum of objects and reasons which I have placed at the bottom of the Bill that the Secretary of State issued in- that an Ordinance should be passed structions somewhat
The the lines of
Suitors Fund Ordinance, 1891, of the Straits Settle- ments, under which the Court moneys are placed on deposit with the Colonial Treasurer and the Government is made liable to make good all moneys so placed on deposit together with interest at the rate of two per cent. per annnm. Where the parties desire to obtain a greater interest than the two per cent. provided by the Bill, they must apply for an order of the Court to snction any particular investment. The Bill is very similar to the Straits Settlements Ordinance above referred to, which was based upon the Imperial Act 35 and 36, Vict. 44. sect. 14-19. It was thought desirable that all moneys paid into Court should in future bear a guaranteed interest so that persons should know that they ran no risk with regard to any money paid into the Court. It is quite true that two per cent, appears to be a small interest. but hon. members will observe that under section 2 all moneys which shall not be required by any written law to be dealt with in any particular way and shall not be required by any order of Court to be laid out in any particular investment shall be placed by direction of the Registrar of the Supreme Court on deposit. with the Colonial Treasurer. If persons are desirous of obtaining a larger interest than two per cent.-if, for instance, they want their money out on mortgage or on any investments that might bring them a larger sum, then they would have to apply to the Court. Of course the applicants must ruu the risk inseparable from investments and mortgages of that kind, which are subject to changes in their value as land may go up or down. And orders might not in all cases he made. The Ordinance is to be worked by a series of rules, which are made and provided by the 4th section, The Chief Justice, with the concurrence of the Governor, may make the rules for carrying the Ordinance into effect. Then there is the sus- pending clause added for which, when we come into Cammittee, I shall ask to have substituted
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and consequently there may be some improve ments he might be able to suggest. Under these circumstances I ask you to vote for the second reading and let the Bill pass into Com- mitte stage and stand over until We have framed the rules.
kong.
I have never come across
such a well-informed community; it has been acknowledged as a most enlightened community, and such a standard of intelligence could not have been maintained except by reading." With the honourable member I can cordially agree in The COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded.
this instance, and I believe that we have in our Bill read the second time and passed into the midst men eminently well qualified to render Committee stage.
THE STAMP ORDINANCE.
The ACTING COLONIAL TREASURER-Sir, I have to move the second reading of the Bill entitled An Ordinance to further amend the Stamp Ordinance. 1886. The main object of the Bill is to amend the law so as to allow the stamping of certain documents after execution without payment of a penalty. The theory of stamping is that all documents liable to duty should be stamped before execution. but in practice in England it was found very incon- venient to insist. this principle being carried out. The practice at home was there- fore modified accordingly, and it was presented to this Government that the local law should be altered on similar lines. The other change of importance is the reduction of penalty on documents stamped after execution." considered that the present penalties, ten and twenty times the deficient duty, are practically prohibitive in many instances. move the second reading of the' Bill.
on
ro-
It is
I therefore
The COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded. The Bill was considered in Committee, and passed through all its stages without amend
ment.
THE APPROPRIATION BILL FOR 1896. The COLONIAL SECRETARY—We are now in Committee on this Bill, and I have already re- ported to your Excellency the discussion that has taken place in the Finance Committee. I that we now proceed to consider this propose Bill item by item as in former years.
The Glorerament and the Sanitary Boar'. When the item “Governor and Legislature, $81,259" was read.
Hou. T. H. WHITEHEAD said-I beg to move the reduction of this vote by the sum of $100. My object in doing s so is to complain of the action of the Government in regard to the Sanitary Board, and of the protracted delay on the part of the Government in reconstructing the Board on a proper husis. In your opening address to the Council on 28th November, 18944.
That a Sanitary your Excellency then said--“ Board, meeting once a fortnight, could properly control and direct such a staff I do not be lieve, and that four or five independent gentle men could be found who have time and inclina- tion to devote several hours daily to such a task is beyonil the bounds of possibility. I hope shortly to be in a position to inform you definitely what steps it, has been decided to take to place the Sanitary Board on a new basis." A year later. at the opening of the prosent session on 25th ultimo, your Excellency inade an explanation and stated. “Some opposition has been offered to my views in certain quarters, and it is not improbable that a compromise will eventually be suggested by the Secretary of State, but as yet no decision has been arrived
ut.
There are those who have pretended to see in the action of the Government an attempt to deal a deathblow to the Sanitary Board. I dis- claim any such motive; and even had such been my object I should at least have adopted measures better calculated to effect it-measures which would have left no doubt whatever as to my intentions." Sanitary methods in Shanghai and Singapore under the management of a Municipal Council have so far given satis- factory results, while our system is con- tinuously and adversely criticised and not reason, as the most ob- without good noxious and the most poisonous odours are to be met with in every street in the town. The accumulations of filth discovered in the native part of the city last year were permitted by official neglect. The blame cannot be attributed
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good service on a properly constituted Sanitary Board. It is a matter of the greatest importance to the colony that the reconstruction of the Board should not be longer delayed. I submit that a copy of all the correspondence between the Colonial Government and the home autho rities, and other documents, including the reports of the unofficial members on the subject, should not be longer withheld, but should be laid the table I hope the Government will deem it expedient to do so without further delay. The Council and the community are now, after waiting twelve months, fully entitled to know what has been done. With a view to giving the Government an opportunity of replying to the points raised I trust that one of my official colleagues will second pro forma this motion, as was done by a former Colonial Secretary, Sir G. O'Brien, on a similar occasion.
Hou Ho KAI-With a view to give an op- portunity for discussion I beg to second the
motion.
There were no other remarks and the vote was taken as follows-
FOR.
Hon. A. McConachie. Hon. T. H. Whitshead. Hon. E. R. Belilios. Hon. Ho Kai. Hon. C. P. Chater.
AGAINST. The Acting Captain Super-
intendent of Police,
The Harbour Master. The Director of Public
Works.
The Acting Colonial Treas
surer.
The Attorney-General. The Colonial Secretary. His EXCELLENCY—I have much pleasure in informing the hon. member representing the Kamber of Commerce that I will lay the papers before the Council when I am in & position; to do so; but not having received any definite decision from the Secretary of State I am unable to do do so at present.
The Reform Petition. Hon. T. H. WHITEHEAD-I beg to move the reduction of this vote by the sum of $100. My object in doing so is to submit, sir, with every respect, that the Council and the community now entitled to know what has been done by the Government in connection with the petition, dated May, 1894, and presented to the House of Commons in March last, praying for reform, in the constitution of the local Government. At last meeting the Council was informed that the matter being still under the consideration of the Secretary of State it would be premature to publish any part of the correspondence. [ The petition was signed by an overwhelming majority of the British residents, and by men representing very vast interests in the colony. One of those who signed was Mr. Mackintosh, of. Messrs. Butterfield and Swire, a very able In a letter I and a very farseeing man,
him he says that recently received from
The community will never rest satisfied until we have the management of our municipal affairs in our own hands." Another of the signatories to the petition was Mr. Jackson, of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank, who has rendered very valuable services to Hongkong. When the petition was drafted Mr. Jackson informed me that "he could not see how any independent man could have any objection to signing it." Sir, there is some reason to think that the community's wishes in this matter have been thwarted by the Government. In fact, I have been credibly informed that the honourable the Colonial Secretary has openly* stated that his elaborate memorandum on the subject has completely squashed the petition and all chance of its success.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-I rise to order. I should be obliged to the hon. ́member if he'