64-
pay
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
HONGKONG.
against the deposit. It has been sent out to for actual work on the Hankow-Peking Railway, as it progresses, and for no other purposes, and The Chinese New Year celebrations were in the Belgian Syndicate, who have the contract, full swing at the latter end of last week and the will only pay as the work advances, which pre- colony now seems to be strangely quiet after caution displays a sad lack of confidence on the prolonged noise created by the bursting of their part towards the exalted Chinese personage thousands of crackers and the beating of gongs. with whom they made the contract. Whether But notwithstanding the holidays there has been it will suit Sheng to build the railway at all or plenty doing during the week. On the 20th not on these terms, where such elaborate pre-inst an important meeting of the Justices of cautions are taken to see that the loan is applied the Peace was held and a Committee was solely to the precise purposes for which those appointed to enquire into the sale of injurious who made it intended, it, remains to be seen.quors in the colony. Sir John Carrington From being previously most generonsly confid (Chief Justice) distributed the prizes at St. ing our Belgian friends have apparently grown Joseph's College on the afternoon of the 20th. most offensively suspicious!-China Gazette. On the following day his Lordship sentenced a man to death for committing a terrible murder in Shelley Street. The Canton steamer Powan has been very unfortunate of late. She ran aground in the Canton River on the 19th inst. and on the 25th abs collided with the steamer Kanglee as she was proceeding up the harbour fairway.. Both vessels were badly damaged, but fortunately no lives were lost, al. five firemen narrowly escaped thongh
Last Friday Mr. E. A. Ram was presented with a handsome. gold in recognition of the services he has rendered to Hongkong Cricket Club as hon. secretary On Tuesday His Excellency the Governor Complimentary speeches were made by unofficial officially bade farewell to the Legislative Council.
MACAO
Macao, 17th January.
[FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.] V.B de Souza, who was charged with the embezzlement of Tls. 10,000, the money of his employers, Messrs. Reiss & Co., Shanghai, was brought before the Chief Justice, Dr. Alpoim, this morning. No witnesses were called, the case being decided upon, the depositions taken before the Portuguese Consul at Shanghai. The accused admitted the charge, but asked the Chief Justice to deal with him leinently on account of his having children dependent upon
him.
The Attorney-General appeared for Messrs. Reiss & Co. and Dr. Poiares for the accused.
The Chief Justice found the charge prored, but took into consideration the accused's pre- vions good character, and sentenced him to only two years' imprisonment, which is the minimum term for the offence, the maximum being eight
years.
As an example the punishment inflicted is perhaps more than enough. It is not fear of imprisonment that should deter men from dishonesty, but the thought that conviction brings shame and disgrace not only to themselves but to their friends and relatives and to their countrymen generally. This especially applies to the Portu- guese of the Far East, who are nearly all in foreign employ, and one and all should do their best to recover for their countrymen the trust and confidence which de Souza's conduct may in some measure have forfeited.
After the case above mentioned had been disposed of the Court heard the case of Dr. Poiares v. the editor of the Echo Macaense for abusive language, the result being that the editor was ordered to apologise to Dr. Poiares and pay the court expenses. Mr. N. J. Basto appeared for the Echo.
Permits have been grantel to a large number of Chinese to have their cula-cula tables in the streets during the Chinese New Year holidays. The inner harbour is quite crowded with junks that have come in for the New Year, the number, I believe, being larger than has been usual in former years."
death.
members.
watch
[January 27, 1898.
At the regular meeting of the Eothen Mark Lodge, No. 264, E.C held at the Freemasons' Hall on Friday, 21st instant, the W. M. elect, Bro. S. J. Hanisch, was duly · installed as Worshipful Master for the ensuing year by Wor Bro. A. O'D. Gourdinand a Board of installed Masters, and he appointed and invested his officers as follows-S.W., Bro. D. Mac- donald; J.W., Bro. F. W. Edwards; Treas, Wor. Bro. A. O'D. Gourdin, P.M;; Sec., Bro. G. Piercy, Jr.; M.O., Bro. J. Lochead; S.O., Bro. F. D. Goddard; J.O., Bro. C. W. Spriggs; J.D., Bro. A. H. Bottenheim; TG., Bro. A. Crawford; Tyler, Bro. J. R. Grimble.
Jan., took place in most favourable weather for
The eclipse of the sun on Saturday, on 22nd- observation, so far as Hongkong was concerned, and those who were on the look out for the phenomenon saw it unmarred by the smallest speck of cloud. If the scientific observers on the line of totality were favoured with similar conditions they would no doubt consider them- selves especially fortunate. In Hongkong the eclipse was of course only partial and although on looking at it through a smoked glass a large piece appeared to be cut ont of the sun it was not sufficent to cause any perceptible diminu tion of light or in any other way to attract the attention of those who were not watching for
it..
R. Belilics, C.M.G., has generously offered the We are requested to state that the Hon. E.
There were 2,967 visitors to the City Hall the erection of a Reformatory for juvenile Government to supply the funds necessary for Museum last week, of whom 155 were Europeans. offenders, an urgent want long felt in the Mr. Rounsevelle Wildman is in receipt colony. The site selected for the building and of a dispatch from Washington informing approved is on the spur of the hill opposite him that the rank of the United States Con- Kennedy's stables at Causeway Bay, between the sulate at Hongkong has been raised by Con-site on which the cotton mills are about to be gress to a Consulate-General.
Sir N. J. Hannen, who is on his way to Bangkok in connection with the Cheek arbitra- tion case, arrived from Shanghai by the City of
His Honour is ac Peking on 18th January. companied by Lady Hannen and family.
'The remains of M. Imbault Huart, the late
French Consul at Canton, were on Tuesday night, 18th January, taken from the cemetery at the Happy Valley and conveyed on board the mail steamer Saghalien for removal to France.
It is notified in the Gazette that H. E. the Go- vernor has been pleased to accept the resignation of Captain J. McCallum from the Hongkong Volunteer Corps upon his appointment to a Battery of Volunteer Artillery in Scotland.
The German steamer Darmstadt arrived here on 21st January, with 1,300 officers and men for Kiaochau. A number of the men were ashore yesterday, and they presented quite a smart
The Darmstadt leaves for Kiao appearance.
chau this morning.
As we hinted some time ago, the Hon. J. H. Stewart Lockhart (Colonial Secretary) will probably be going home on leave about the, middle of March on urgent private affairs, Mr. Lockhart will not be away more than six months, so that he will be back in good time for next year's estimates.
I hear that H.E. the Governor has invited a number of the leading residents to meet atments there." Government House to-morrow to consider the steps to be taken for the celebration of the fourth centenary of the discovery of the sea route to India by Vasco de Gama. The 20th May, 1898, will be the four hundredth anni- versary of Vasco de Gama's arrival at Calicut. The Echo Macaense made a good suggestion a few weeks ago, namely, that two monuments should be erected, which should be commemora tive not only of the occasion now in question, but also of two great men who rendered import- ant services to Macao, Governor Amaral being one and Colonel Mesquita the other.
It is reported here that Mr. Celestino, the Governor of Timor, is going to Lisbon on leave. This is good news if true.|||
The experiment of disposing by auction of the seats for the performance of "The Daughter of the Regiment at Shanghai appears to have been very successful, the prices realised giving the A. D. C. a satisfactory profit over the usual method. The auction took place in the Lyceum Theatro and was fairly well attended. The nine boxes, which usually let for $12, realised rices varying from $19.10 to $25, an average of $21.80; the dress-circle seats averaged $4.60 each, and the stalls, $3.40.
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erected and the polo ground. H.E. the Gover- nor las consented to lay the foundation stone at 11.30 a.m. on Saturday, the 29th inst., when the presence of all wishing to see this interesting ceremony will be welcomed. The foundation stone with suitable inscription is being prepared by the Public Works Department.
The Hongkong Volunteer Corps took ad- vantage of the holiday afforded by Chinese New Year day by spending a very profitable time, the Field Battery Loing engaged in their annual 64-pounder competition at Stonecutter's Island and the Maxim Gun' Company at Deep Water Bay, where they had practice with the machine guns.The shooting and drill of the Field Battery were, on the whole, very good indeed, the rectangle being repeatedly fired into. Once the target was knocked over, and later, during officers' practice, it was shattered by a shrapnel shell, the layer being Lieutenant Macdonald. On the return voyage it was announced that, subject to cor rection, Sergeant Hayward's detachment had won the competition. The targets used by the Maxims were all torn to pieces with bullets, and no fewer than 2,500 rounds were fired.
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Mr. Melton Prior, the well-known artist, is a passenger on the mail steamer Ganges, proceed. ing from Bombay to Shanghai. He leaves India because of the present finish to the Frontier War, and he proceeds to Shanghai,
We have received-fram Staff Captain and to Kiaochau, in expectation of "develop.F. Symons, of the Salvation Army, an intimation that he has been commissioned by Wm. Booth, the "General," to open a Naval and Military Home at Hongkong, principally for men of the Navy and Army, but persons of all nationalities and all grades of Society will be equally wel comed. Suitable premises have been obtained on the first and second floors of No. 79, Queen's Road Central, where a reading and cheap re- freshment bar will he opened as soon as the premises are put in order. 'Staff Captain " Symons, solicits contributions in aid of this undertaking. While acknowledging the good. that has been accomplished by the Salvation Army in various parts of the world it may perhaps not be out of place to point out that. there is already a soldiers and sailors' institute. in the Queen's Road East, another at Kowloon occupying its own building, and that efforts are at present being made and subscriptions solicited for the establishment of a similiar institution in Arsenal Street in a building of its own. It seems to us that it would be better to con centrate effort in this matter and support two really good institutions, one on each side of the harbour, than to have several small com. peting institutions with precarious incomes and unable to offer the class for which they are intended a really comfortable and attractive place of resort.
The regular meeting of the Victoria Preceptory was held on the 20th instant. Sir Knight D. McDonald was installed Eminent Preceptor for the ensuing year, the installation being performed by P.E.P. Sir Knight John Bryant, assisted by P.E.P. Sir Knight G. C. Anderson, P.E.P. Sir Knight R. Cooke, and P.E.P. Sir Knight E. C. Ray E.P. Sir Kaight D. McDonald then invested his officers as follows:-First Constable, Sir Knight P. R. Simmonds; Second Constable Sir Knight F. D. Goddard; Prelate, F. W. Edwards; Trea- surer, Sir Knight C. W. Spriggs; Registrar, Sir Knight Jas. Lochead; Marshal, Sir Knight G. J. B. Sayer, Capt, of the Guard, Sir Knight R. Mitchell, Almouer, Sir Knight Ugo Nervegna; Herald, Sir Knight Wm Baker; First Standard Bearer, Sir Knight H. B. Bridger; Second Standard Bearer, Sir Knight A. G. Aitken, Organist, Sir Knight, F. W. Hall; Tyler, Sir Knight J. Maxwell.