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of the Committee of that body which was understood to be intended as an indictment of the Sanitary Board. In the letter em- bodying his views as an unofficial member of the Legislative Council be very grace- fully admits that "from its very nature it is impossible that the Board, as now existing, can adequately fulfil those functions ex- 'pected of it, or that it can be held fully responsible for any inefficiency in the "sanitation of the colony." From that the conclusion should be, not that responsibility should be done away with altogether, but that enlarged powers should be given to the Sanitary Board, and that it should be made altogether an elective body.
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SHOULD THE COLLEGE OF MEDICINE BE ENDOWED.
66
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
[March 26, 1896.
WITH JAPAN.
ment of a similar sum. The question is | THE LEGATION REPORT ON TRADE whether that offer is to be accepted or not. The objections urged to it are two: first, that the Government is at present not in a posi- tion to make a grant of $40,000, and, in the second place, if funds were available, that they are more urgently required for other much needed public works, as for instance, a new Post Office. We agree that the existing Post Office is inadequate to the requirements of the colony and that a new one is badly wanted. Still, the fact remains that our letters are daily mailed and deli- vered and the service can if necessary be continued in the existing building for some time to come. We see no reason, how- ever, why the erection of the proposed new Public Offices, including Post Office, should not be proceeded with at once, and that without in any way affecting the proposed grant to the College of Medicine. The colony is perfectly solvent and the provision of funds is simply a question of financing. The cost of resuming the Taipingshan area has denuded the Treasury of ready cash, but money can be had whenever it is wanted.
A very interesting report on the trade of Japan for the quarter ended the 30th September last, with a postscript dealing with the trade for October, has been written by Mr. LONGFORD, the British Vice- Consul at Tokyo. The promptitude with which the report has been prepared and published is worthy of all praise, and of the quality of the report we cannot speak too highly. The Foreign Office is evidently becoming alive to the importance of the early publication of information on trade, and Mr. LONGFORD's report shows, as did also the recently published report of Mr. BEAUCLERK on the trade of China, that the officials on whom the duty of preparing the reports falls are not wanting in the requisite ability. Mr. LONGFORD takes an almost entirely hopeful view of the com- mercial position and anticipates that the present improvement in trade is an earnest of a greater one to come and that for several years yet a steadily increasing and profitable trade may be At the opening of the Legislative Session looked for both by Japan and foreign coun- H.E. the Governor stated that the cost of tries dealing with her. To show how the the Taipingshan resumption amounted to country is progressing in a commercial 8821,000. Of this sum $386,000 had been sense he institutes a comparison with China. defrayed from the balances in hand, and We are told that ten, or perhaps even five, the remainder had been borrowed from Loan years ago it would not have entered into and other Government monies in the custody anyone's comprehension to compare the of the Crown Agents, which was considered direct foreign trade of either Yokohama or proferable to raising a further loan or to an
Kobe with that carried on at any of the overdraft on the local Banks. As regarded principal ports in China, still less to ven- the liquidation of the outstanding balance of ture on either hope or prophecy that the $435,000 on Taipingshan account, His Ex- time would come,
and come speedily, cellency said that he anticipated for 1895 when the comparison might be made greatly a surplus of revenue over expenditure of to the advantage of the Japanese ports. some $220,000, by which amount the in- Yet we find now that the two ports named debtedness would be reduced, so that the are now distanced only by Shanghai. For year 1896 should begin with a debit balance the four months ended 31st October last on this account of $215,000 only. In the foreign trade of Yokohama amounted consequence of the improvement of Tai- to $55,501,296 and that of Hyogo (including pingshan ณ large area of land will Osaka) to $36,464,987. Taking the annual probably be ready for sale in the course
returns of the China trade for the year 1894 of this year, and with an expanding as a basis, and calculating the Haikwan revenue it is to be hoped that the tael as equal to $1 of Japanese currency, debit balance will disappear at the end of it is found that the average value of the 1896. Then, again, 1897 should witness direct foreign trade carried on at six prin- extensive land sales in Taipingshan. His cipal ports in China during each period of Excellency was justified, therefore, in con-
four mouths in 1894 was as follows:-Shang- sidering the state of affairs both satisfac-hai. 877,541,874, Canton $14,759,814, Amoy tory and hopeful," and under the circum- stances there appears to be no reason for adopting an excessively parsimonious policy in the administration of the public funds. If ready cash were urgently required we have no doubt the Government would be able to make arrangements with local capitalists to take Taipingshan entirely off its hands at once. No such extreme step is necessary, however, and the Government would be fully justified, so far as its finan- cial position is concerned, in making the grant asked for to the College of Medicine. The only question, therefore, is whether the object would justify such a grant, and to that we think the community if polled would give an emphatically affirmative answer. In this matter we owe a duty to our Chinese fellow residents, and, moreover, as the money would come from the rates it would come for the most part out of native pockets. For the Govern- ment to deprive the Chinese of the benefit The Hongkong College of Medicine for of Mr. BELILIOS's munificent offer would Chinese is an educative agency which, if be a great mistake. As to the alter- adequately supported, will have very valuable native scheme of an annual grant, we practical effects in the colony. The Hon. E. consider Mr. BELILIOS is fully entitled to R. BELILIOS, with his well known generosity, hold to the terms of his offer and ask for has offered to provide a site and building an out and out endowment, because an for the institution at a cost of $40,000 pro-annual grant is precarious and might be vided the Government will give an endow withdrawn at any time.
The unsympathetic tone adopted by some of the unofficial members of Council towards the scheme for the erection of a building for the College of Medicine for Chinese and the endowment of the institution will not, we think, be endorsed by the community. The enthusiasm which pervaded the meeting at which the College was inaugurated will still be fresh in the memory of those who were present, and at the meeting held the other day to present farewell addresses to Dr. CANTLIE all the references made to the College and its work were received with marks of approval. At the inaugural meeting of the College in 1887 Deputy Surgeon General LEWER made the following very sensible remarks, which will well repay perusal at the present time:— 'Lately "when the Public Health Bill was under "discussion I was reading the proceedings in the daily papers, and I was very much astonished to find so much lethargy and apathy displayed by some of our citizens on that subject. Men spend sums of money, "which they never enjoy, in insuring their "lives, yet they refuse or seem to refuse to "incur any little additional expense by way "of sanitary improvement that may pro- "duce a little greater longevity or enhanced "health. Surely it is much better to pay a "small sum annually so as to ensure that "those whom we hold near and dear may "be kept in good health. Let us hope that 'by the establishment of this College, with "its professorship of hygiene and public 'health, there will be disseminated such a knowledge of the science and principles "of sanitation that when it becomes necessary to launch another Public Health Bill we shall see it bailed with acclama- "tion on all sides." The instruction of the Chinese in the science of hygiene and in the practice of Western medicine seems to us a plain duty and ought to appeal to the Govern- ment and the public, as well-on prudential as humanitarian grounds. The insanitary condition into which the city was allowed to fall has inflicted incalculable loss on the colony, from which we are still suffering at the present time. Large sums are being expended and very drastic measures taken to improve matters, but, as the Hon. Ho KAI points out in his able memorandum published amongst the official correspon- dence which appeared in our yesterday's issue, everything cannot be accomplished by legis lation; much must be left th education.
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$6,504,897, Swatow $5,425,377, Tientsin $5,578,585, and Foochow $4,588,566, A comparison of these figures with those of the two principal Japanese ports shows how the latter have progressed, and it is satis- factory to be told that British trade has done more than maintain its previous share in the whole and has fully participated in the increase.
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Mr. LONGFORD devotes one of the sec-
tions of his report to the commercial ambi- tion of the Japanese, and says that "Com- "mercial and industrial questions are now "almost as popular subjects of treatment, both in the Press and by public speakers, 'as the most urgent political questions, 'whether foreign or domestic. Among them are such matters as the extension of ex- isting steam routes; the results of treaty "revision on trade, insurance, establishment "of technical and commercial schools, the "training of officers and men for the mercan- "tile marine, improvement of chambers of commerce and of the existing system of tradę guilds; the despatch of commissioners to study commercial conditions abroad; placing Japanese in commercial houses and "factories in foreign countries in order to learn thoroughly their system of business; "the establishment of a floating exhibition of Japanese products; the effect on the
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