166
time, I understood, claimed on his behalf by Mr. Shewan, who was appointed credi- tors' assignee. At that period, Mr. Smith was in America, and though the New York branch of Russell & Co.'s arm was made bankrupt in Americs and one Henry Hannah was appointed general assignee of the firm, it appears that Mr. Smith W88 never personally, in his private capacity, made bankrupt, and the Mr. Hannah, acting under legal advice, accordingly made no claim on Mr. Smith's interest in his private capacity in the promotion of tramways in Hongkong, it app aring to Mr. Hannah that Mr. Smith's interest was paid for out of his own private money. As Mr. William Howell Forbes is dead the Court is deprived of the advantage of knowing what he would have said as to Mr. Smith's claim, but if he had held any interest in his own right instead of as representative of or agent for Mr. Smith it is probable it would have been disclosed in the inventory of his private estate, unless, indeed, in 1891 he supposed that any such icterest was of no value and that the right under the Tram- ways Ordinance of 1883 had expired, as nothing was being then done towards building the tramways No. 1 to 5. From the wording of the recital to Ordinance No. 9 of 1902, it is clear that the survivors of the original promoters (of whom Mr. Smith was one) named in Section 3 of the Tramways Ordinance, claimed in May, 1901, to have certain rights under that 1883 Ordinance, and in view of the allegations con- tained in the affidavit of Mr. Charles Vincent Smith it appears to me that be has established a prima facie claim to the money paid to Mr. Shewan under the impression that it formed part of Mr. Forbes' estate. As I understand from Mr. Looker that he represents Mr. Shewan, as well as Mr. Smith, and that Mr. Shewan has no desire, as creditors' assignee, to appear and formally oppose the application, though he feels he cannot formally consent, preferring to leave it to the Court to decide, I make the declaration asked for in the petition and the order for payment, but I only allow such interest (if any) as has actually been earned by the money in Mr. Shewan's hands.
The Court adjourned.
NOTES FROM THE BOTANIC
GARDENS.
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During the past week the flowers' of Zephyranthes candida have been particularly noticeable in the new garden. This plant forms an edging to the flower-border to the west of the deer-pen, and when out of flower it has a grass-like appearance. The flowers are white, produced in great profusion, and somewhat resemble those of the crocus, which belongs to a slightly different family. We have heard them called locally "rain flowers," and as the species is a native of the marshes of La Plata it is not altogether an inappropriate name. Another species, Zephyranthes rosea, has also been in flower this week just inside the central entrance gate to the new garden in Albany Road, where it is likewise used as an edging. The flowers of this species are deep rose in colour and are rather smaller than those of the previous plant, but more freely produced. It is a native of Cuba. A third species, Zephyranthes carinata, also flowers at this time of the year and has, the largest flowers of the three, light pink in colour. A few plants of this may be seen in the rockery just outside the No. 1 house in the old garden and others near Z. rosea in the new garden. The Zephyanthes belong to the Amaryllis family.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
as the ginger and banans. There are many varieties on flower in the gardens at the present time.
8.82 inches of rain have bean registered since the 1st of August.
REVIEW.
The East of Asia. Vol. II, No. 2. Shanghai: In a special notice prefixed to the current number (Vol. II, No. 2) the proprietors of the East of Asia magazine notify their subsoribers, and the public generally, that after the present issue their connection with Der Ferne Osten, the German edition of the East of Asia, will cease. The magazine is now well established, and we do not know the reason for the split. Some very interesting articles have appeared in the past from the pens of German contributors, and we hope that these will not necessarily cease. The present number maintains the high average, and most of the illustrations are more clearly reproduced than has been the case with some copies of the earlier numbers which we have seen. Some of the pictures of scenery and architecture are really magnificent; a few in Mrs. Little's article mentioned below are unfor- tunately a little faint, but the majority of them
The Vladivostock scenes are excellent.
North-China Herald Office.
Cannas are excellent things for those who are making new gardens and for those who have old ones. They grow much more quickly than shrubs and can be planted in between them and allowed to remain until the shrubs attain a proper size, thus taking away the look of newness in a very short time. From the wealth of flowers that they give almost throughout the whole year, they are most desirable in all gardens. The flowers have been greatly improved by horticul turisis, and they would now be scarcely recog- nised as belonging to the same species as the wild plant, Canna indica, which is a native of Hongkong, and of India from the Himalayas to Ceylon. Cannas belong to the same order'
good.
1
are
110-
Glimpses of Vladivostock," which these last scenes illustrate, is the title of an article by the Rev. Joseph Whiteside, who is evidently much struck with the officialism of the place, Miss E. P. Hughes writes sympathetically of the Japanese women's university near Tokyo, and is very hopeful about the work to be done. Mr. L. Odontius compares Plato and Confucius, their life and teaching. He is a controver- other creeds as a sialist and only looks on preparation for Christiauity, on its attitude toward which "the future of the black-haired race depends." Mr. C. Westphal describes the into Peking, entry of the Son of Heaven illustrated by photographs which are fortunately of necessity on a small scale. Mr C. Fredrich writes instructively on the kowtow, the name of which is now curiously spread over the world. Mrs. Archibald Little's article deals with Chinese architecture and has many beautiful illustrations to add to its interest; most of the reproductions are admirable, and Mrs. Little deals with her subject wall A short note on Chinese fans, by Mr. E. Rah- strat; one nota Mountain and Cliff at Weihaiwei," by Mr. C. E. Bruce-Mitford; another on refuge-towers in North Yunnan by the Rev. S. Pollard; a well illustrated article on a curious collection of bronz s made by H. E. Tuan Fang; and finally a description of the superstitious corruption of Buddhism in Kwang Mei, Hupeh, help to make up a very enter- taining uumber of the East of Asia.
**
HONGKONG'S ASSETS AND
LIABILITIES.
The following statement of Hongkong's assets and liabilities on the 30th June is published in
the Gazette:
Advances, &c. Subsidiary coins
ASSETS.
Total assets Balance ..
Total
LIABILITIES.
Deposits not available Crown agents' drafts Money order remittances Balance overdrawn, bank Balance overdrawn, Crown agents
4
Total
Subsidiary coins in transit Estimate of silver at miut
Total...
$ 36,692.75 1,050,000,00
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[August 29, 1903.
RAILWAYS AND TRADE IN YUNNAN.
Å " Commercial Report on the Province of Yunnan, with special reference to the Barma- Tengyuch trade" is published from the pey of Mr. Litton, H. F. M.'s Consul at Tengyneb, a town of ten thousand inhabitants, 130 miles east of Bhamo, which, was declared an "opeu port" by the Burmo-Chinese Convention of 1897, but it was not till May 8, 1902, that the Chinese Imperial Customs started business there. Summing up his account of the railway schemes in Yunnan, Mr. Litton says:— -" In connection with French or Burman railway sohemes in Yuunan it should always be borne in mind that, once cheap and fast communication is established, once the present destructive
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'em of inland taxation on trade is abolished, an extensive interchange of products which now do not appear at all in our returns may spring up. Yunnan is a high plateau in which European cattle, fruit, veget ables, and other products of a temperate climate will flourish. The problem is to secure good communication with Annam and Burma, both low-lying tropical countries whose products are of a totally differout character to those of Yunnan. For instance, if there were a railway from Bhamo to Tengyueh, I believe that Tengyueh could in a short time supply all Barma and perhaps part of India with potatoes, beef, and mutton, etc., of a quality little inferior to what we get at home. Therefore my opinion of such a sc eme as the French railway is less pessimistic than the opinion of some of those who are officially
connected with it. If the number of foreign officials with high salaries is to be kept down, and if the chicanery of the mandarins is to be crushed, I fail to see why the day of divideuds should be so far off. In any case, the comple- tion of the Tonkin-Yunnaufu railway will much enhance the value of any mines near it.",
THE ALLEN CASE IN MANILA.
On the 20th inst. at Manila, the writ of habeas corpus issued by the Supreme Court in behalf of F. S. Allen was returned before the Supreme Court. Collector Sbuster appeared to answer to the writ and show why the petitioner should not be released from custody. The petition for the writ alleged that the petitioner was illegally restrained of his liberty and was about to be deported from the Islands contrary to law. The writ opened the whole question of the right of the Collector of Customs to exclude the petitioner from the Islands. The point was raised by
for the counsel th petitioner that the act of Congress provides that its enforcement in the United States shall be by the Treasury Department and the Com- missioner General of Inimigration, and Collector Shuster was neither of these officials. The Collector of Customs replied to this argament that in the transition period between the passage of an act or the initiation of a bureau or depart- ment of the Government and the completion of the establishment, the old machinery of Government might exercise functious which are
intended for a different set of officials when the latter shall have been provided.
It is argued that the enactment of the law and its application to the Philippine Islands $1,086,692.75
are the work of Congress and that Congress 1,590,241.59 made no provis on for the extension of one provision of the Act to the Islands and the $2,676,934.4 withholding of another. This construction of the law was compared to a law of procedure $ C.
without courts. The Supreme Court has taken 487,984.55
the matter under advisement. In case the 31,000,00
16,091.82 Collector of Customs is sustained by the Court, 1,793,741.08 it is understood, says the Gablenews, that an 09,113.91 effort will be made to take the matter to the Supreme Court of the United States. $2,676,934.34
$500,00) 979,404
..$1,479,44
It is notified in the London Gazette that Sub-Lieutenant G. Gipps has been promoted to the rank of lieutenant in His Majesty's fleet for services during the operations in North China, 1900.
A Chemulpo message, dated August 17th, to the Shanghai Times, says that the demands of the British and Japanese Ministers for the opening of Wiju by the Corean Government to foreign trade has drawn forth a strong protest from the Russian Minister, M. Pavloff, who urges that the point should not be raised til the Manchurian question has been settled- naturally at some date in the Greek Kalends. Japan is still pressing for the opening.