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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
declaring Chinese Kowloon, and the out-lying districts. Yaumati, Kowloon, and Hunghom, as places infected with plague'; (2) to consider the regulations to be enforced for controlling the removal of plague patients from this colony." There were present: the President, Dr. J. M. Atkinson (Principal Civil Medical Officer), the Hou, F. H. May (Captain Superintendent of Police, Mr. A. W. Brewin (Acting Registrar Genéral), the Hon. R. D. Ormsby (Director of Public Works), Mr. N. J. Ede, and Dr. Francis Clark (Medical Officer of Health and Acting Secretary).
caster. He and his brother were not merely distinguished warriors, but they were for those days most learned men. They had travelled extensively over every portion of the theu known world, and Prince Henry devoted him. self almost entirely to furthering the progress of navigation and of trade, sending out year by | year small expeditions, maialy along the coast of Africa, to search for new countries and new routes. He made a close study of the travels | and voyages of Marco Polo, and accumulated a great many maps and a large quantity of information. In 1460 Prince Henry died, and there was a lull in further explorations. When King John died, however, he left three ships almost complete in preparation for an expedition to India. These ships were completed by his successor, and Vusco da Gama, an experienced navigator, A brave and adventurous son of Portugal, was appointed to the commaud. He set sail some said on the 25th of March, some said on the second of June, and some on the eighth or ninth of July, 1497, on the voyage which ulti- mately landed him at Calicut, which he reached after many hardships on May 20th, 1498, arriv- ing back in his native country on September 18th, 1499. Two other expeditions quickly followed and further discoveries resulted. Da Gama made a second voyage, this time with 20 vessels and 800 men, being instructed to do what had not been done before, that was to establish factories in India and to leave a por- tion of his fleet and men in the country. These instructious. be followed out, and during the whole of the 16th century the Portuguese bad the exclusive control of the eno mons trade in the East and Portugal might to this day hure been in possession of the vast tract of country over which she acquired supremacy in those days even to the present if it had not been. unfortunately for her and her children, that the government of the country was usurped and Portugal annexed to the Spanish
dominions. The result of this annexation was that before the end of another 100 years nearly all her eastern possessions had passed into other hands. Her glory in these eastern seas had departed so far so her posses- sions were concerned, but the glory must always remain to Portugal and the Portuguese nation who were the pioneers of trade, of com- merce, of empire throughout the east. (Ap- planse.)
On the motion of Mr. A. G. Romano, a bearty vote of thanks was accorded Mr. Francis
for his interesting lecture,
THE PLAGUE
During the week ended 9th April there were 106 cases of plague reported and 87 deaths, of which 21 cases and 17 deaths occurred during the previous twenty-four hours. The Board has now seven gangs at work in the city carrying out house to house cleansing, in consequence of the increase in the number of cases of the disease.
The daily abstract of cases and deaths during the past week is as follows:----
April 10...
11...
"
12...
13...
$1
14.
11
Cases. Deaths.
18 17 8 13 9 10 14 12 12
HONGKONG SANITARY BOARD.
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The PRESIDENT having stated the business before the meeting said he had a return there from Dr. Lowson from which it appeared that there had been six cases of plague notified this month from these three districts and adn ittod to Keunedytown Hospital. Personally be thought that that was quite enough to justify them in declaring these districts infected with bubonic plague. With reference to Chinese Kowloon, reports had been circulated amongst the members containing an account of a visit Dr. Lowson paid to the Hospital there last Sunday. He thought that that report proved conclusively that plague was rife there.
A special meeting of the Sanitary Board was held on the 8th April to consider a further report from the Principal Civil Medical Officer concerning the prevalence of bubonic plague at Canton, Whampoa, and Macao, and it was unanimously agreed to recommend the Govern- ment to at once institute a medical inspection | of all steamers, steam-launches, and passage boats arriving in the waters of this colony from the above mentioned ports.
A notification appears in the Gazette of the 9th April proclaiming Canton, Whampoa, and Macao infected ports.
PLAGUE PRECAUTIONS.
A special meeting of the members of the Hongkong Sanitary Board was held on Thursday afternoon "to consider (1) the advisability of
The DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKs asked
if these cases were residents of these villages and not enses which lind come from Hongkong.
The PRESIDENT---We can give you the ad- dresses if you require them,
The DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS-Because I think a great d ́a! depends upon that.
The PRESIDENT stated where the cases hind been found, all the cases coming from the locali. ties named.
The MECAL OFFICER OF HEALTH said that from Kowloon during January one case was reported, during February one, during March Six, and during the last 14 days there bad been 14 cases, so that the plague had in- creased very rapidly. Ouly three cases had been reported from Chinese territory this year, whilst there had been 20 cases of plague iu British Kowloon.
The PRC-IDENT-You cannot tell where they came from?
Dr. CLARK-Oh yes; I can give you the address in each case if you like. Having given the addresses, the doctor added: - They are scattered about."
The PRESIDENT said that the cases he had men- tioned were cases taken alive from Kowloou to the Hospital. In addition there were 13 bodies which had passed through the public mortuary from Kowloon of which the cause of death has been given as plagne by Dr. Lowson. Other. bodies found on the Kowloon side of the Har- bour in an advanced stage of decomposition were also supposed to be cases of plague,
Mr. Eō- With regard to the districts in British territory the declaration that they are affected with plague morely means that we shall cleanse them and so on?
The PRESIDENT--Yes; house to house visita- tion, and disinfection and cleansing of all in- fected houses.
Mr. EDK said that with regard to Chinese Kowloon he supposed it meant medical inspec- tion of those who came from there, though it did not necessarily follow, because they had to recommend that to Government, and they had not done that yet. They might declare these places infected, and, the next question was- What steps are you going to take? It takes a boat about five and thirty minutes to come from Chinese Kowloon to Hongkong, and he believed the boats ran half-hourly. Were all these launches going to be inspected, and when were they going to be inspected ?
The 'RESIDENT said the medical officers would do it.
Mr. EDE-They will have to go down there first.
The PRESIDENT said they would be inspected in the Quaratiny anchorage.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE -As far as I can make out the Medical Officer has more than be can do already.
The PRESIDENT-] have not been so in formed.
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The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE said that the man who was doing the work on Tuesday began at six o'clock in the morning and was busy all day. He had one boat, with some 1,200 Chinese coolies to deal with-or he
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[April 16, 1898.
saw them; an examination of them was utterly impossible, he should say,
The PRESIDENT said that correspondence was now going on between himself and the Govern- ment with reference to further medical assist- ance for this work, so he thought they might rest assured that if further medical assistance was required it would be provided.
Mr. EDE said it would take a very long time to examine all the people who came over.
The PRESIDENT said be thought there would be very few people coming over after the first few days' medical inspection had been instituted. Mr. EDE said the period of incubation was six to nine days, and if a patient was
not
near enough the time at which the plague developed for it to be discoverable when he passed here he questioned whether medical inspection would have the effect they desired.
The PRESIDENT. in reply to this remark, reminded Mr. Ede of the Chinese passenger who died on the Fatahan from the plague the other day on the way from Canton to Hongkong. The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE That might be one case out of a million. The PRESIDENT-But you said you would wager there would be no case.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE said they had the experience of 1894. They had two doctors theu and they found no plague patients. He thought himself it was time wasted. There was far more useful work to be done.
The PRESIDENT-By whom? The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE -By these same doctors.
The PRESIDENT-We have not got the doc- tors; we have to obtain them for this special work.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE -But when you do get them.
The PRESIDENT-We shall not have them at all unless we have some special work for them to do.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE said they would be doing more useful work in taking precautions in other ways.
The PRESIDENT thought it was the duty of the Sanitary Board to prevent the introduction of plague into the colony. They knew plague exited at Kowloon, and he thought it was these duty to declare it an infected port. Whether medical inspection was of use or not was another question.
The ACTING REGISTRAR-GENERAL-What does that commit us to ?
The PRESIDENT-To nothing, only until we have declared it an infected port.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE One or two plague cases from Kowloon won't make one iota of difference.
The PRESIDENT said that from the evidence before them there were more than one or two cases there. There were 30 at least in the place.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE -Where do they come from?
The PRESIDENT-I don't know. The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE -Most have come from Hongkong.
The ACTING REGISTRAR-GENERAL-I can- not see where else they can have come from.
The CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE said he knew as a positive fact that some of the cases had come from Hongkong. A launch which be put on the lookout for cases found three cases going to Kowloon from Hongkong within 48 hours. The officers did not turn them back. They took their names and let them go.
The PRESIDENT thought some of the cases might have come overland from Swatow to Kowloon. When Swatow was declared an in- fected port last year people came overland. It was only 80 miles. From Dr. Lowson's report it will be seen that several of the cases at the Native Hospital at Kowloon (Chinese) came from Canton and Macao.
The PRESIDENT proposed "that the outlying districts of Honghom, Yaumati and Kowloon Point be declared places infected with the bubonic plague."
Mr. EDE seconded, and the motion was carried.
The PRESIDENT said the next question was whether Chinese Kowloon should be declared an infected port. He moved that it be so.