June 15, 1903.]
HEALTH OF HONGKONG.
who
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
that of a most awful-looking human being with thick black matted hair and with only a few simply skin and bone. rags on his almost naked body, which was He was hastening away apparently a hawker from whom he had stolen, with something in his hands, chased by a mau, who ran shouting after him. The wretch disap- peared round a street corner like a ghoul and, it is to be hoped, escaped.
Good work was being done at Kweishen by Messrs. Fletcher and Schumaker in a country where distress was very acute. Distributions were made at necessitous villages, an escort of soldiers guarding the distributor. It was arranged that small quantities of rice should be
425
about 100,000 destitate people beyond those being relieved-who numbered about 20,000.
An extraordinary story is reported from Kweishen. One of the European distributors when they saw some of the Yamen coolies cooking was walking with the mandarin in his garden, some meat. The mandarin asked them what they were eating, to which they replied: "Liver from the execution ground." An execu ́ion had taken place there an hour ago—and yet thes› coolies were not starving people! The man- dario simply shrugged his shoulders and said:
What a dirty thing to eat.""
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with some of the troops engaged in the pacifica- Incidentally Mr. Stewart came in contact
tion of Kwangsi, travelling up from Wuchow Kong How in # launch conveying Hunanes braves bound for Lauchow as part brigands. of a scheme for combined operations against
From Sunday, 7th insta nocn, till Satur- day, 13th inst., at noon, 125 cases of babonio. plague were notified to the authorities, and of This total 22 were Europeau, 2 Japanese, 5 Indian, and - 96
Chinese. It is thus apparent that for
some reason Japanese and Indians, so far as the period under review is concerned, are considerably less atacked by the disease than Europeans, who were attacked with alarming suddenuess. For- tunately the epidemic was not of a virulent character, the only fatal case being that of Mr. A. Pasquet, the Frenchman asut to certain centres where relief was neces- was re noved during the week from Canton to the Plague Hospital
sary and no European was available to sup-rin- to st Kennedytown for treatment, He died on
tend. This was to be distributed by a committee Saturday morning, and was interred yesterday effect that so much rice had been sent up for of gentry, proclamations being posted to the at Happy Valley. The latest patient is distribution by the Hongkong Fund. Thus Mr. A. J. Mackie (23), demarcration officer there would be a check on the conduct of the of the Land Court, who was removed from No. 5, Caine Road in his
Kweisben magistrate, also the attack is believed to be mild one.
though most cordial in his manner and well Lieutenant Milward, Sherwood Foresters, has acquainted with European ways, has a great been discharged from hospital, and we under-reputation for severity the local gentry were stand that all the other Europeans are making evident, Mr. Stewart remarks, that had the rice not likely to risk an interview with him. It is satisfactory progress Without being too sanguine, it may be safely assumed that the
been sent up for distribution several months critical period of the epidemic this year has been avidity than it was when he was at Kwei- ago it would have been received with even more passed. Since Thursday the daily returns show a steady fall in the number of notified cases;
The distress was then at its height, when the weather was cold and the lowest figure was recorded on Saturday last, when only ten cases, one that of Mr. Mackie, one Indian and eight Chinese were reported.
THE KWANGSI FAMINE.
SOME 8121KING EVIDENCE,
case
We had recently before us the account given by Mr. C. Clementi to the Kwangsi Famine Relief Committee in Hongkong on the 20th ult. By the courtesy of the Hon. Gershom Stewart, we have been allowed to see certain notes which he made during his trip into Kwangsi and to made a few extracts from them. A digest of these we give below.
On arrival at Wachow it was found that the Viceroy of Yunna and the Governor of Kwangsi had obtained permission from the Indo-Chinese government to get rice free of duty across the Tonkin border for use on the western side of Kwangsi. Bat this rice only served to relieve the country some distanos to the west of Nanning while the Cauton rice was only being applied to the cast of Nanning, which in consequence was in a very bad position. It was immediately arranged, after an inter! view with the Kwangsi Governor, to send rice up to Nanning and certain other places named by the Governor as particularly in need of food. The Governor, by the way, seems to have been a very favourable example of a Chinese official, for his manner was grave but kindly, and he showed no trace of arrogance such as many Chinese officials display toward foreigners.
committees. As the
shen.
tevere and
That the Chinese themselves have been doing a lot of relief work is clear. Mr. Stewart mentions that the Shut Shin Tong had made the following sales of cheap rise:-
1st day 4th moon to Wuchow 2,000 piculs
Tang Yuen 3,60 › Wuchow 2,200
7th
11th 18th
21
13
Yung Hui 4,000
*
21st 24th
要
11
15
Yung Hai 2,000
}
Kweiping 2.200 27th
Kweiping 1,200 They were proposing to send 22,000 piculs more rice for cheap sale. The society bore all freight and other charges, while all customs duties, etc., were waired. Similarly the Kwang Yan Shin Tong had sent 12,000 piculs to Kwai Yuen, 3,000 to Kweiping, 3,000 to Kong How, and 2,000 to Wuchow, partly for free distribution and partly for cheap sale. The latter society also sent up as many as 3,000,000 biscuits.
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expressed anxiety that Britain should send a The Kweishen magistrate is recorded to have
Consul to Nanning, and it must be admitted that sach a step is necessary. The French onsul has just gone there from Lungchow and the British-built French gunboat Argue was met on the way up to Nanning,
NEW TUNG WA HOSPITAL
BRANCH.
many had died before relief came. Sales of
OPENING ORREMONY. women and children had been going on on a
H. E. the Governor, Sir H. A. Blake, G.C.M.G., on the 6th inst, performed the cero- large scale. At the time of our informant's mony of formally opening the plague branch at visit maize and vegetables were on sile in the Kennedytown of the Tung Wa Hospital, the shops, which, coupled with sales of cheap rice foundation-stone of whic he laid on 18th by Canton benevolent societies, was of assistance November, 1901. The institution is the practi- to those with a little money. The Kwong cal outcome of the generosity of the leading Yan Shin Teng was making a daily free dissection of the Chinese community, whose tribution of rice, the crush at the distributions sympathies again and again have been stirred being great; about 5,000 people receive 4 oz. by the sufferings of their poorer brethren when of rice-gruel each. But there was a display of stricken by disease. The alleviation of those patient good-temper and very little pushing. sufferings, so far as it lay within the power. One man was seen lying on his back dead with of man and money to accomplish," they his portion of rice untouched in a bowl beside made their tas, and how well they have dis- him. Dead bodies were frequently to be seen charged that task the building at Kennedy. 'in the villages around,
town bears mute but impressive testimony. Standing on an eminence, it presents a hand- some appearance and commands a striking coup d'oeil in the harbour stretching out in front. It is in the Italia Renaissance style of architecture, and of two stories throughout. From the main entrance, which opens into the reception-room, corridors lead to the three ward pavilions constitu'ing the principal part of the building. On the right and left of the main entrance are the two administration blocks, containing doctors' rooms, dispensaries, offices, and stores on the ground floor, and nurses' dormitories on the apper fist. In each of the pavilions there are twenty beds-ten on each floor-so that accommodation is given for sixty patients altogether; besides these, how- ever, the convalescent ward contains eight beds, bringing the total number up to sixty-eight beds. The mortuary is to the south of the main buildings and connected with the wards by a covered way. On the same side are the kitchens, wash-house, servants' quarters, eto. The interior of the hospital is executed ou modern principles, and plastered with Keene's cement; all corners in rooms are rounded, so that dust will not readily accumulate and, if it does gather, can be easily removed. The ventilation, lighting, and sanitary arrangements are of the most approved kind. Present-day requirements are met by the structural separation of the wards from the lavatories by means of a passage, as well as in other minor respects. Being practi cally open on all sides, the site is eminently suited for an hospital, and offers scope for a considerable extension of the institution should it be necessary or desirable. The hospital, it may be added, is to be devoted entirely to the reception of Chinese patients, who will have their choice of treatment by Western or by Eastern methods. The architect of the building is Mr. B. Brotherton Harker, A.M.I.C.E., Queen's Road Central, who has gained great praise on all hands for his work. It may be mentioned that in Vol. II of the Academy of Architecture there appears a sketch of the Tung Wa as being a good examp’e of a hospital built on modern lines.
Altogether Canton benevolent societies have been doing most excellent work, though unfortunately quite unequal to the necessities of the situation. It appears that the societies start operations when on a large scale by borrowing from the Canton Government, the money to be gradually paid back. Where possible they distribute rice free, but cheap sales are more common.
At Kweiping an endeavour was made to find out the amount of rice available from Chinese sources until the new crop was due, in about six weeks' time. Happily there was every appearance of a good crop. At this place ample evidence was forthcoming of a dire state of destitution prevailing, chiefly among the country folk, people coming in from the outlying villages in thousands on relief days. The Cantonese merchants were making dia. tributions every third day to the men and the Kweiping missionaries every third day to the women and children. Numerous examples of
It would save the country people a lot of acutest misery were to be seen. Mr. Stewart travel, Mr. Stewart says, if it could be arranged was struck with the large pr portion of old and to distribute in several centres at once, bat feeble-looking women among the recipients of there is not enough foreign help available. relief. No doubt their men folk had gone else- The missionaries were doing excellent work, where to seek employment and left them without but there were too few of them and the lay support. Round the walls of Kweiping tem- distributors were still fewer. At Kweiping the porary encampments were to be seen, composed system adopted was to give out tickets, each apparently of country people who had come in representing one measure (about 1 lb.) of rice. for food and having nothing to go back to had People got one or two tickets at the discretion
• lingered on as best they could. In an encamp. of the distributor. As a rule a child got one ment in one of the watch towers on the wall a ticket and an adult two. At the end of a leper was lying on the floor with about 30 or distribution in which Mr. Stewart took part 40 people of various ages and both sexes all over 18,00 tickets had been given out, repre- round. Such a thing is entirely opposed, ofsenting 10,000 to 12,00 persons relieved. The course, to all Chinese ideas, and shows how physical dejection had produced a breakdown of moral sentiment, One sight Mr. Stewart describes as impressing him very much was
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Canton merchants were distributing to the men every third day and had about the same number of recipients. According to the District Magistrate the Kweiping district had
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Amongst those present at Saturday's func- tion were the Hon. F. H. May, C.M.G., Hon.