October 27, 1897.]
We understand that the present promotions include a number of the assistants, who have been transferred from the lower to the senior grade.-China Gazeltr.
1.ONGKONG.
The 1897-98 session of the Legislative Council opened on Monday afternoon, when His Ex- cellency the Governer submitted the Estimates for the ensuing year. Severals Bills were read a first time. Beyond one or two interesting cases in the law courts nothing of importance has transpired during the past week.
Amongst the passengers who arrived by the German mail steamer Sachsen on 20th Oct. was Mr. Ormsby, the new Director of Public Works. The maximum temperature last month was 91.8, on the 29th, and the minimum 72.3 on the 17th, the men for the month being 81.2. The
rainfall amounted to 8.34 inches.
Mrs. Carew was removed from Victoria Gaol on the 19th October to the P. & O. steamer Sumatra, which sailed for England soon after the convict arrived on board The removal was of course kept a profound secret. Mrs. Carew is in charge of ex-Sergeant Phelps and a female warder.
A telegram has been received by the Great Eastern & Caledonian Gold Mining Co., Limited, from the manager at the mines at Mount Macdonald, to the effect that a lode has been struck in sinking a shaft in the Zulu Mine, the average width of which is nine inches and the yield averaging 2ozs, to the ton. The Zala is a recently acquired claim.
A number of notifications relating to Mr. R.D.Ormsby, the new Director of Public Works, appear in the Gazette. All communications in connection with the Praya Reclamation works are to be addressed to him, and he is appointed a member of the Legislative Council, a member and chairman of the Wong-nei-chong Recreation Ground Committee, and the Water Authority under the Waterworks Ordinance.
In the public advertisement of the recent sale of the houses Nos. 355 and 357, Queen's Road Central, by Messrs. Hughes & Hough, the area was not stated, so that from the report of the sale that appeared in the papers at the time it was not possible to work ont the price per foot realised. We learn that this came to no less than $25.66, which we believe is a record for property in that locality. This represents practically the price of the laud only, as the existing houses must be pulled down if the property is to be turned to full account.
Chinese superstition involving illegalities cannot be permitted to have precedence over the laws of this colony. One great superstition a Chinaman has is that if a stranger dies in his house the ghost of the dead man will haunt the place for ever and ever. A lodging house keeper at Yaumati had this superstition and he and four others turned a lodger who fell sick into the street, thus creating a nuisance in addi- tion to seriously jeopardising the poor fellow's life. The five men were charged at the Police Court on Saturday and Mr. Wodehouse did not fail to remark on the great danger and inhu manity of putting a man into the street to die. The lodging house keeper was fined 810 and the other men were let off with a caution, it being considered that they acted under the lodging house keeper's instructions.
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
The Hon. Treasurer of the Alice Memorial and Nethersole Hospitals begs to acknowledge with thanks the following donation to the funds of the Hospitals:-Seamen's Church and Mis- sion Fund, $2119.
COMMERCIAL.
TEA.
333
CANTON, 19th October.-Congou.-Total Settle- ments for the past month amount to only 3,300 boxes at from Tls, 9 to 17 and call for no re- marks. The fourth crop is likely to be an
The steamer Machew was decorated on 20th Oct. in honour of the wedding of Captain Framp-unusually short one this year. A few parcels of ton, of the Shantung. The wedding took place at St. Peter's Church, the bride being Miss Florence Ackers, daughter of Mrs. Ackers, of the Government Civil Hospital.
As the
Hoyunes have been taken in Canton. Scented Capers.-The month's settlements mount up to 21,000 boxes at from Tls. 11 to 27 per picul, the bulk of the purchases consisting of Teas costing Tls. 20 per picul and under: a few fine Teas have been taken at Tls. 22 to 24 per picul. Dur. ing the past fortnight the short supply has become generally apparent, and prices have advanced all round, being now about Tis. 2 per picul higher than those current three weeks ago, At the time of writing the market is practically cleared of all new season's leaf; small lots of fourth crop leaf arrive from time to time and are at once snapped up. ecnting flower is not very abundant and has been very dear, owing to the large demand for it from the Pouchong dealers. Total seitlements to date nre 175,000 against 215,00 boxes at same time la-t season. Stocks in ive hands of leaf suitable for the London market are practically nil, but some 4,000
6,000
old boxes of
leaf still remain. to We do not expect to see our estimate of the total export for the season, viz., million pound-,
EXPORT OF TEA FROM CHINA TO GREAT BRITAIN.
1896-07
Foochow Amoy...............
... 11,01',147
1897-98
lbs. 4,160,447
Ibe. 4,620,151 15,351,500
10,664.212
11,517,247
591,759
484,217
26,439,565 32,173,124
From the Gazette we observe that a quantity of the Taipingshan property is again to be offered for sale, and as we believe it has been put up at the request of intending purchasers the auction is not on this occasion likely to prove a blauk. The property offered is in Taiping. shan Street and consists of 11,475 square feet divided into six lots, of which fire measure 45 feet on each side and the remaining one 45 feet by 30 feet. The upset price is $1 a foot and the annual Crown rent $32 on the larger lots and $22 on the smaller one. The larger lots will contain three houses and the smaller one two. When the property was offered in May last it was put up in one-house lots. total quantity offered on that occasion was only 3,825 square feet in Taipingshan Street, as compared with 11,475 on the present occasion, and as the lots are differently arranged, it is uch exceeded, but at any rate it will be inside 4 million pounds. Hong-leaf Scented Orange impossible to make an exact comparison of the
Pekoes. A few co .tmets for fourth crop leaf of terms, but whereas the upest price was on the former occasion from $4 to $44 in Taipingshan excellent quality have been filled, prices not hav Street and $3 in Taiping Street it is low madeing transpired; there is no fear of overwhelming uniform at $4 for the larger quantity offered quantities being sent forward. in Taipingsban Street, and the Crown rent has | been reduced to less than a quarter of what it was under the original terms, that is, from $50 for one-house lots to $32 for three-house lots.
Canton and Marso A smoking concert was held in the gymna sium of the Victoria Recreation Club on Satur-| Shanghai and Hankow day night, 23rd Oct., Commander W. C. H. Has- tings presiding. A most attractive programme drew a very large number of members and friends, the demand for space being so great that sitting accommodation could not be found for all. A very prettily arranged stage had been fitted up and two new scenes which were used for the first time on Saturday were greatly admired. They wore painted by Mr. W. Farmer, who Shanghai copied two of Turner's studies of Venice. Be- Amoy fore the proceedings commenced Commander Hastings, on behalf of the Club, heartily thanked Mr. Farmer for his kindness in present- ing the scenes, which, everyone would admit, EXPORT OF TEA FROM CHINA TO ODESSA. wore exceedingly good. The concert was a great success, the vocalists being Messrs. E. Mirow, W. Muskett (who also recited), C. H. Grace, J. Kirkpatrick, W. Pearson-Robinson, S. H. Somerton, and C. T. Robinson, while instru- mental music was supplied by the string band of the West Yorkshire Regiment, Musician Haley, who gare two excellent cornet solos. Messrs. R. Houghton and A. S. Bourne, and Mr. Farr, who acted as accompany ist. Mr. Somerton possesses a strong and clear baritone voice, and the audience were so well pleased that he had to give encore songs. Mr. Grace, of
SHANGHAI, 22nd October.(From Messrs. Å B Burkill & course, was also a great favourite and he met
Circular)-London advices with a very hearty reception. Mr. C. T. Robin-quote a fir market. Gold Kilina 9;6 and Blue son was particularly good on Saturday night Elephants 9/10). Raw Silk. There is still a and provoked rours of laughter with his As usual he had to humorous contributions. respond to demands for encores.
MISCELLANEOUS.
Another destructive fire occurred at Shang hai on the evening of the 17th October. The outbreak originated in a native eating house in Foochow Rond, and was caused by a person trimming a kerosine lamp with a naked light beside it. Fifteen houses were totally destroyed. The property was owned by Messrs. D. Sassoon, Sons & Co., and was fully insured.
Mr. W. Chatham, in his Public Works report for the first half of the year, says in connection with the new road from near Victoria Gup to Mount Kellett Road, that undoubtedly the widening and improving of the remaining por- tion of the road to Victoria Gap should be gone on with as early as practicable. This recommendation has already been adopted and the work put in haud. From the Gap to the point at which the new road branches off there is a considerable dip, which will have to be filled up,
Mr. Ede some years ago, when he was levelling his lots, offered to do this filling in work for nothing, which would have been a convenience to himself as affording a ready means of disposing of the excavated earth, and a convenience to the public. The offer, however, with the wisdem character-ceedings of the istic of Government departments, was declined. and the colony will now have to pay a substau- tial sum for work it could have had done for nothing and the convenience of which might have been enjoyed for several years past,
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The N. C. Daily News of the 18th October says-We learn on good authority that the counsel for the plaintiffs has given notice to the defendants', counsel that the suit laid in the Supreme Court at Hongkong, "The Emperor of China r. Bennertz & Co.." has been with- drawo. This will, of course, stop all the pro- Commission appointed at Shanghai to take evidence, which has been The with- hard at work for some days past, drawal of this suit leaves the s.8. Ningehow | unrestrictedly in the possession of Messrs.
Bennerta & Co., for the present at least.
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EXPORT OF TEA FROM CHINA TO UNITED STATES AND CANADA.
-1896.97 118. 10,592,786
Foochow
1897-98 lba. .12,692,083
.10.283,975
11,825,073
5,897,972
5,426,028
28,875,130
27,843,881
1807-08
lbs.
1890-97
1b3. 22,925,118 Shanghai and Hankow...19,375,fi65 EXPORT OF TEA FROM JAPAN TO UNITED STATES AND CANADA.
Yokohama Kobe
Sons'
1897-08
li. 22,600,702
1896-07
21,473,880
13.500 618
10.44 +354
36,107,320
31,911,213
SILK.
want of orders from all quarters and transactions in White Silka are almos' nil. The only pur- chases we have heard of are: Large Elephant 3 at 11.470, Double Butterfly 9/12 Moss No. 2 Tls. 372), Gold Beer Extra 9/12 Moss Tls. 342}, and Mars chop No. 1 X Red Hand Filature Ts. 5531. Yellow Silks have been rather freely dealt in, settlements aggregating 250/300 bales. Arrivals, as per Customs. Returns, 14th to 20th October, 455 bales White, 376 piculs Yellow, and 148 piculs Wild Silks. Filatures to date is : to Amerie 2,36) bales, to Waste Slk. Business is on Continent 1,896 bales, to London 1 bales, to Japan 4 bales, small lines. We quote Curlies 1. 2 and 3 'I ls. 47) to Ils. 45}, and Szeobuen Frisuneta (whole bales) Tls 214.
The Export of Steam1
Prices calculated by Maerten's Tables at 11 per cent; Exchange 2/61; Freight Tl. 7.81 er bale:
Trallets. – Large Elephant 3 Taysaam.-9 by 12 Moss Double Butterfly 2..
Gold Bear Extra Yellow Silk. Tunglob
Mienchew -Kopun
Szechong Hand Filaturca.--Mars Chop Croisev No,1 Wild Bill.-Szechuan Thawah Raw......
"
**
Tis. Stlg.
per por
pel. Ib.
470 11/0 372) 8.91
3421 811
360 86
815 a 323 7,8 x 7:8) 317) a 325 7.6) a 7,8)
235 5/8 ..... 153) 131 190 47