September 27, 1902.]
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT, where the chief and third engineers were found launch hire whilst he was living on the Hong. guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to four kong side. For this 360 a month witness could and three months' imprisonment respectively; not say how much time the overseer had to give they had neglected to see that the ship's boilers to this particular work; he believed that Andersen was overseeing on another building. Wi'ners were in a proper state of repair. He mentioned these i. stances, explained Mr. Deunys, as cases did not expect him to be exclusively in the ocenrring in the Colony where parties had been employ of the Land Investment Co. for the convicted of the crime of manslaughter, but 860 a month, but he could not say that Andersen where, in the ordinary every day sense of the had under his charge 118 houses at one and the word, there was no criminal int ntion whatever same time, including the fifty already spokoa of.
No one would suggest for a
Witness did not consider 118 houses too many on their part moment that anyone connected with the building for one man to supervise as oversees, provided were in the same neighbourhood. of the houses in question had any intention they that they should fall down. But manslaughter Witness knew nothing of Andersen's capabili did not require any proof of malce afore. ties as an overseer; it was very difficult iu Wit- thought. Mauslaughter had been defined by Hongkong to get god overseers.
ress did not know Andersen W18 a sailor Fitzjunes Stepben as unlawful homicide, and in another authority on building collapses it by profession, but a very large number of sailors The notice produced was was stated that in the case of the death of any acted as overseers. person by reason of the carelessness or incom- sent by witness, as secretary of the Land petence of the architect, he might be held Investment Company, to the Public Works responsible for manslaughter, as, for instance, Department, stating that work on the honses was if he allowed the house to be built out of the a' out to be commenced; the notice was stamped
and perpendicular
it fell down in
by the architects, Messrs. Leigh & Orange. killed someone And not Accompanying the notice were the two plans suyuruce aud
was the architect
but produced-one a plan of the 30 houses on responsible
Kowlonu Inland Lots 1,107 and 1,108 and 50 also Was
single person who had any duty to perform in connection with the the other a plan of the 20 houses to be building of these houses and failed to per- built upon Lot 1,118. The houses on Lot 1,118
It would be put
the road, the opposite side of on form it, or did :o carelessly. to the jury, after all the evidence had been and the northern house on Lot 1,113 was almost heard, that if they found anyone guilty of exactly opposite the most southern house of Lot 117. Witness did not know if the plans were culpable 1egleet of duty, that persoa should be
psed, but the work was proceeded with. and found guilty of manslaughter and sent to the
Of
on Course, every Supreme Court for trial.
overv
con
act of negligence was not criminal negligence: everybody in this world was guilty of negligence in one way or another. But supposing that in the present case the jury found that the work was scamped for the purpose of putting money into the pocket of the contractor or anybody else, then the person who scamped the work, although he had no idea whatever that the houses were going to come down, would be guilty of manslaughter, and it would be the duty of the jury to bring in a verdict against him.
Formal evidence as to the collapsing of the two houses and the identification of the deceased was then taken.
"Here are perfectly new houses," said Mr. Dennys, supposed to be built of the best material. They fall down and kill ten people, besides injuring others. There must be some thing wrong somewhere: whether there is any criminal responsibility is another matter. But these houses cannot have been built in a proper and satisfactory way, I submit to you, gentlemen. and there will be very little difficulty in finding that the facts are as I represent them to be And gentlemen, the nufortunate people killed in this case were people living in the house. But it might have been anybody; it might have been you, gen lenien, and it might have been myself, walking along the street. The time has arrived, gentlemen, when something mus done to prevent newly-built houses from falling down in this way, for they are a danger not only to the inhabitants of the houses. Lut fo everybody who happen, to be in the street near these places. Continuing. Mr. Dennys said there were two or three points to which the jury must specially, perhagis, direct their atten
The collapsed walls; tion in the present case. were end walls, and in relation to, such walls Section 16 of the Buildings Ordinance cuarted | only that they were to be solid across their entire | thickness, and properly bouded and put together with good lime mortar or cement mortar. The specificatious under
the houses in the present case were built provided for good lime mortar, and the jury would have to! consider carefully whether good lime mortar within the meaning of the Ordinance was used. | Section 12 of the same Ordinance provided that no wall ́should exceed 335 fret in length, clear of any return or cross wails, without the approval of the Director of Public Works. Now, the jury would find that in the cas» l-fore them the wall considerably execoded 35 foot in length, without any return or cross walls. After hearing the evidence, Mr. Deanys thought that the jury would come to the conclusion that the attention of the Director of Public Works was never called to the fact, and that no special approval for that wall being over 35 feet was ever grant-d. Mr. said he did not mean to say that if the attention! of the Director of Public Works had been called to the matter he would have acted differently from the way adopted by the officer who acted for him; it was quite possible that he would have acted just in the same way as had Mr. Tonker. Possibly it would ba contended that the walls could be built to exceed 35 feet in length without the approval of the Director of Pubic Works That question was raised some time ago by the architects acting in this manner. They built a bouse with a wall exceeding 35 fors Director of Public Works objected to it, and they accepted the company decided to erect twenty matter was referred to Government, and the honses on Kowloon Inland Lot 1,118, making architects wou the day. Since then. Mr. Gifty houses in all. The tenders rere exclusive Dennys believed, neither the Director of Public
of making the sites, these having been prepared Works nor his subordinates had objected is the
previously. The tender of the Loong Cheong case of the length of a wall exceeding the limit firm was subsequently accepted for $145,000 allowed by the Ordinance. But because of the
for the whole fifty houses, ruling in a previous cas, it was no justification
were practically the same; that worked out at whatever for extending beyond 35 feet a wall in
82,900 for each house. The accepted tender another house altoget! er. The English Art of
Witness had been was not the lowest sent iu. 1894 provided that where walls exceeded the length provided for in the Act they should ho of additional thickness, and in the present case the walls, if they had been built in England, would have been thicker than they really were, In the present case the architects sent in their plans to the Director of Public Works, but if the plaus did not comply with the Ordinance it was the duty of the Director of Public Works to refuse to pass them. Under Section 78 of the Ordinance it was further provided that upon receipt of notice of the commnene, meat or resumption of any building or work, the Surveyor-General or the officer appointed by him for the purpose should take such steps as appeared to him to be necessary for the due observance of the provisions of the Ordinauer, by inspecting and surveying every such With building or work during its progress. reference to criminal liability, if anyone were criminally liable he was guilty under the law of the crime of manslaughter. Mr. Dennys instanced the case of the steamer Wan Lannig, in which case the captain was tried for man- slaughter on the ground that he had not taken the necessary steps to see to the proper ballasting of the vessel, a neglect which was consideret to be responsible for the loss of the steamer, There was also the case of the Yesse steamer,
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An.ustus Shelton Hooper, secretary of the Hongkong Laud Investment aud Agency Co., Ld., was called to give evidence as to the con- struction of the Louses. At the end of 1900 or the beginning of 19 1 his company instructed Messrs. Leigh & Orange to prepare plans and specifications for the erec.ion of thirty houses da Kowloon Inland Lots 1.107 and 1,108, Teuders were obtained for the construction of the houss, but before any tender was definitc-
ll of which
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19.h March, 1902, the P.W.D. issued a certificate, signed by Mr. Tooker, pro. Director of Public Works, stating that the flitsen new houses on K.I L. 1167 had been built in com- pliance with the provisions of the Iuildings Ordinance No. 15 of 1889. No certificate had been received for the houses on K.I.L 1,108; ao Within application had been made for one, the past month or two a certificate had been received for K.1.L. 1,118 The fifteen houses on K.I.L. 1.18 were practically completed about June; witness was not aware that the reason a certificate wasnotapplied for for these houses was that the northern wall of the most northernly house bad to be reconstructed. When witness heard of the collapse he went to inspect the place with Mr. Leigh; he saw the ruins, but could not account for the way in which the walls had collapsed; he thought it likely that one wall fell and brought down the other. If the houses had been built strictly in accor dance with the specifications, witness did not consider it likely that they would have callapsed. First-class work was specified for both in labour and material, and witness's its professional advisers firm depended on
Witness for seeing that work carried out.
not able to
say whether first-class be bad or was not used; material
Witness was not aware not examined it whether the south wall of the most southerly house on K.I.L. 1,107 was now being taken down. There was a good demand in certain localities for houses of the clas、 provided for in the contract, and there had been no stiuting of cost or any attempt to cut down the contractor as to price; witness regarded the contractor as one of the best in the Colony, and capable of
W88
was
The hearing was at this point adjourned.
in the Colony for sixteen years, and in that time he had been Superintendent of ('rown Lauds and Government Assessor for two years and nine months, an office which necessitated his inspect.doing first-class work. ing every tenement in the Colony for the purpose of valuation. Whilst in the Government service he was appointed secretary of the Land Invest- ment Co, as soon as it should be formed; that was thirteen years ago last May. During all that time witness had kept in touch with the value of prope.ty, and knew the current prices of building. The Land Investment Co. probably owred the largest share of property in the Colony, and had been building for the last
Witness cons.dered
thirteen years.
that
Charles Brown and Robert Smith, who on 10th August 1st, at Shanghai, stole a launch belonging to Messrs. Geo. A. Derby and C. W. quelch, have been convicted of piracy aud sentenced to one year's and nine months' imprisonment respectively. Emith was formerly a lance-sergeant of police here, and after his dismissal from the force figured for a brief
period as barman in the Hongkong Hotel.
$145,0 0 was a very fair price to pay for these fifty houses; the contract did not include goods
During the twenty-four hours ending mil. that were to be ordered from home, such as steel girders; the $145,900 was for local material and night on the 11th in t. 17 suspected and 7 labour. Witness knew culy one of the two part-genuine cases of cholera were reported in Kobe. ners in the Looug Cheong firm-Tan Ling; be The disease is spreading at Tadotsu, Kagawa had been employed several times before by wit-prefecture. Up to the 11th inst. 21 cases were The architects employed to supervise and reported. Of this number 11 ended fatally. su, erintend the erection of these fifty houses In the city of Yamaguchi the disease made i ́s were Messrs. Leigh & Oranga, who ngaged first appearance on the night of the 10th inst. when three cases occurred, two ending fatally. Norwegian named Harry Andersen as over-
One of the patients was a fish vendor, anl was seer, to be daily on the work and to see that the plaus and specifications were carried out; he attacked at the fish market. The market was was paid in a mouth and a month for accordingly closed and isolated.
Bess.
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