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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AVD
Bill was read the second time and ref. rred to people get on with theirs apparently fairly well. the Finance Committee.
NEW TERRITORIES RENT RECOVERY ORDINANCE.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL, moved that the Council go into Committee on the Bill entitled an Ordinance to repeal The Now Territories Rent Recovery Ordinance:
The COLONIAL SECRETARY Seconded and the motion was agreed to.
In Committee the Attorney-General proposed several amendments and uw clauses and it was,
the Bill stand agreed to let
over till next meeting in order that these might be printed and submitted.
اند
THE NEW 105T OFFICE AND THE LAW COURTS. Hon. GERSHOM STEWART- With your Ex- cellency's permission I beg to move the ad journment of the debate jù order to make some remarks on the answers the questions stand- ing in my name.
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If we go down to the Post Office site we may see people sawing timer. If you look round you see Messrs A. 8. Watson's four-storey building approaching completion. If you go down to our sites to the eastwards you see in frout of you Queen's Building which has boeu in use for somo years and Prince's Bailding, 'which is now approachjug completion. You see in front of the Bank those two very nice gardens which have been in use for six years and on the Opposite side we have the statue of His Royal Highness standing iu a sort of wilderness. I must say I never pass that status but fell an incli ation to apolog si to His Royal Highness for not having given
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better site to the statue. I hope, sir, that theso remarks will be taken in as good part as they are made in. I am induced to mako them with the hope and desire that if we use the proper assistanco, euginooring and otherwi o which we have at hand, wo may give the Direc tor of Public Works immediate and officient relief. We all admit freely that he is a most conscientions hard-working man, bat it seems to me that this Colony has outgrown the limits of the Public Works Department. If that is no, it is a matter for real congratulation. If we become a bigger place we cannot expect the work to be done without a bigger apparatus thau we had in the earlier days. I think that any money that may be expended in the cost of employing private labour will be amply rapaid by the relief afforded to the Depart meut and by the increased comfort which the public will enjoy. It is a noticeable fact that patriolic as we all are we have not a public building of any sort or kind except Queen's College, which is hidden away
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H.E. the GoVERNOR-No.
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Hou. Mr. STEWART-I simply with to veut late the matter. There are a good many other things in which assis'auce might be given to the Publio Works Department, but I wi I coufine my remarks to these qu stions.
H.E. the GOVERNOR Certainly. Hon. Mr. STEWART- As these two matters of considerable public importance, I ventured to ask these questions, and it is very gratifying to bear that some satisfactory arrangement has at last been made about the Law Courts, but it must be borne in mind that we have heard hopeful statements before and have suffered a considérable amount of disappointment. It is clear that the Law Courts sito has been reclaimed for about 13 years, also the site in front of the Club; and yet we still have grass growing on both of them. I fully admit the desire of the Government in this and other matters to do their best for the public interests, but it seems to me that perhaps the cost to us has been somewhat overlooked. It does not seem clear that delays are in any way economical. It is well to bear in mind that Chinatown and nobody over sees. It this Colony which like many posperous con- seems to me that the presont moment is an carus may run on a debit balanc- can only do so opportune moment to put shoulder at a cost of 5 per cent. por aunum. The new to the wheel, because we have found ont all hopes of developing this Colony Post Office site therefore for which we paid that $300,00 in cash costs us lu interest 825,000 to its full limits of beauty and exesilence
been It is no good to go into the loss havo
taken
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by of interest in the past on the sites to the the retention of the Naval Yard in our midst. east of that, but take the two together and I think the best thing for us to do is to develop I am perhaps not overstating the value our Colony as much as we can in that direction when I say they are worth $1,000,000, to the best of our ability. I do not know which is a cost in interest of S50,000 a year whether I have to move a resolution ? or $1,000 a week to us From that point of view it seems to me that we are losing money. although as far as can see we are in a very strong position. We bare got the two old public offices in Queen's Road, I suppose, to sell and apply towards these buildings, and we have got the valuable site in front of the Club, so
that so far as I can we have assets which will enable us to put these two buildings ny without the question of cash coming in at all We have actually got the money, and it seems to me that we have had it for some time. I very fully admit the great troubles and difficulties of the Public Works Department, but I think it is ps sible, if public attention is, drawn to it and the matter is opened up that by a read. justment of duties and the calling in of private assistance we could possibly be able to do a great deal of work at a greater speed than we can at present Iu auswer to my ques. tion No. 5 it was not very clearly laid down who was going to build the Post Office. One hears remarks that the successful architects will do so, but it has not been definitely stated. I would like to mention a small matter in regard to the readjustment of work which I can speak of from my personal experience. I am sorry to say that I the other day had not paid my water rate. I got two letters from the Director of Public Works. found that something was overcharged and I corresponded with him and eventually it resulted in my paying $1.50 to the Treasury.Well, it struck mo as a little bit hard on probably the hardest worked man in Hongkong, whom we expect to be an architect, an artist, an engineer and look after all things, that we should also make him
I do tax-collecting as well. especially thought that, when we have got such an excellent and energetic Treasurer, who will look after the Colony's debts very well. I understand that I cannot say any more on the question of rublio works excepteferring to these two building a but I should like to draw your atten- tion to the fact that it seems very odd that we cannot get on with our work and yet private
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(July 27, 1903.
eight or nine other engineers; his time was su taken up in office work that he had no tims whatever to look round the Colony and s e for himself what was wanted in the way of public works. I should like to know now if he is satisfied with the assistance tho Coloniti Secretary has procured for him through the Agent General of the Colonies,; for if he is satisfied I suppose we shall have no moro complain's about such matters. As to roads, at that time the great questions here were the want of water and the kid roads -
His EXCELLENCY --I am afraid the hon. member is golting a little discursivo.
Bon. Mr. SuKWAN-These are included in the matter of public works which my friend raised.
HIS EXCELLENCY-No; that was about the building of the Law Courts and the Post Office. Ho. Mr. Sиeway—I think he moved tho adjournment of the debate to disenss public works.
HIS EXCELLENCY-Yes, especially with reference to these two matters. However, I do not think the hou, member has very much farther to go.
Hon. Mr. SHEWAN-Woll, regarding the roads, we recommended that three or four samples of roads should be made, different materials to be used. Mr. Tooker, who was Assistant Director of subsequently mado
Works, recommended that thes Public should have wood pavements and said that tho presont roads had no foundations. Mr. Danby and 1
HIS EXCELLAN Y—I think the hon, member is going very far afield.
Hou, Mr. SHEWAN-It opens up a large field. HIS EXCELLENCY-Yes, but it is c ming near four o'clock.
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Hou. Mr. SHEWAN--Oh well, if the argument is one of time I am willing to sit down,
Tho hou, member thereupon resumed his seat. The COLONIAL SECRETARY -The question of the site of the Law Courts and the site of the now Post Office and other offices that are going to ho built on the site of the new Post Office is a subject which has been a very voxed one indeed, and one ou which local opiniou
the as much among officials differed opinion of non-offieials, Sir William Robin - appointe l a committou to consider this matter in 1894, and that committee reported and recommended a certain scheme. Then, unfortunately for rapidity in the carrying out of the work, there was a change in the Public Works Department. The new Hon. R. SHEWAN-Sir, I beg to sscoud the Director did not approve of the scheme
81 fnで predecessor, motion of my hon. friend, and I do so with fathered by his sce
memory sorves me, and & great pleasure, because I agren-I had almost my
fresh said with the whole of his remaks, but at any committee was appointed. It was not until
1896 that that second committee reported, ; rate with most of them, although there are on or two with which I certainly do not agree.
and after some correspondence with the Boero- the first place he referred to some Government tary of State as to the design of the buildings official whom he seemed to think able and it was finally decided to employ an omiuent | euorgotic Now, I do not know whether he mean, firm of archit cts at home--
Hon. my hon. friend on the right~{ Director of Public
R. SHEWAN -Who decided--Mr.
or the Hongkong Govorn Works--or my bon. friend on the left- Colonial | Chamberlain
mout? Treasurer! I am quite willing to admit that one
The COLONIAL Secretary—Aston, Webb, may be able and the other energetic, butas to both being both abis and energetic-- I am not so sure & Ingress Bell. All this took a good deal of about that. The e was another romark in the time and added to the delay. As for the speech of the hon member with which I cannot site of the Post Office, which was acquired agree that about the statue of His Royal last March, it must be remembered that not ono department but several-some fire Highuses bein like a voice in the wilderness,
or six-hal to be accommodated in that building. It took some considerable time Hon. Mr. HEWAN-That is what I under- to flud out what these departments wanted, stood him to say: a voice crying in the and it also took some time to collato information wilderness." If I am wroug I stand corrected so that the architects might have something to At any rate, there is no wi deruess near the go upon. It may be we have lost something in Bauk. Tho motion to adjourn the debato, how interest through not availing ourselves of thess ver, is very opportune, for it opens up an useful sites earlier, but at the same time I would field for anybody who wishes to talk about remind the hou, members who have spoken that things that are going on in this Colony, the value of the property is increasing all the was glancing through some of the evidence time. brought before the Commission appointed Hon. R. SHEWAN-Hear, hear. to enquire into the Public Works Depart- The COLONIAL SECRETALY-We might ment, and I was very much amused as I sell the present rite of the Law Courts
the Post Office read it to think how little has ceu dong to and
some years later, remedy matters after all the trouble we took and I think the Senior Uno Member and the many hours we spent listening.to those will agree with me that if we do sell it, we will witnesses. Mr. Chatham's evidence was to the got a great deal more for it than if we had sold affect that he had no time to attend to matters it three or four years ago, which seemed to me to be of the very least importance and which con'd have been dous in two seconds. He said he wanted, in addition to him- solf, an Assistant Director of Public Works and
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Hon. Mr. STEWART-1 did not say "voice iu the wilderness.”
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Hon. G. STEWART-That is speculation. II.E. the GOVERNUE—I think the hon. member in these speculations forgets that any of theso public works-the Post Office, the