!
May 2, 1904.]
lower rates for which the Committee have been agitating for years past.
CONVEYANCE OF AUSTRALIAN MAILS VIA HONGKONG AND THE SIBERIAN RAILWAY.
The Council of the North Australian League forwarded resolutions in favour of the quicker transit of London Mails to Australia and the desirability of inaugurating as soon
as the Adelaide-Port Darwin Railway line is completed of a mail service via the Trans-Siberian Rail- way to China and thence via Hongkong or Canton by first steamer service to Port Darwin.
ELECTION OF A REPRESENTATIVE TO LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
H. E. Sir Henry Blake informed the Chamber that he had granted a year's leave of absence tothe Hon. R. Shewan as from the 5th August last and therefore requested the nomination of a temporary Member of Council in his place. A special General Meeting of the Members was held on the 12th idem, at which Mr. H. E. Pollock, K. C.. was elected by 63 votes to 54! for Mr. E. A. Hewett, His Excellency after. wards signified his approval of the nomination.
IMBECILE PERSONS INTRODUCTION ORDINANCE 1904.
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
1904, Mr. A. Haupt was invited to re-join the Committee.
REUTER'8 POLITICAL TELEGRAMS.
Since the last Meeting the Committee have made a contract with the Reuter's Telegram Co., Ld., for five years at a monthly subscription of $500.
PROPOSED DIRECT PARCEL POST EXCHANGE
BETWEEN HONGKONG AND UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
337
merchandise out of the godown, but all they could manage was to rescue a few candles.
The fire was under control by 2 o'clock, there being any amount of water from the different sources.
The Brigade and sailors worked "like niggers," get at the burning stores. The disaster, luckily, bursting in locked doors with plombs so as to was confined to a single block, a one-story build. ing. There were no great explosions, only one or two minor reports evidently due to kerosene tins.
The Committee have pleasure in reporting and that of Amoy to the Hongkong Government that the joint representations of the Chamber,
Godown No. 9, Mr. Osborne, Sec. of the Go- which were strongly supported by H.E. Sir down Co., states, is insured for $22,000.00 with report, have had a satisfactory issue. Henry Blake, and referred to in last year's Hongkong Fire and China Fire, half each- Parcels may now he sent direct from Hong-fumes from arrack (a rice-spirit from Java) be-
probably total loss. kong by post to places in the United States, and coming ignited by a gas-lamp. Men were work- The fire was caused by
there is little doubt that this service willing in the godown at the time of the first ignition rapidly prove a great convenience and incentive when the atmosphere surrounding the arrack suddenly burst into blue flame. Arrack was in course of being landed from lighters ex 8.8. godown floor, thus causing the fumes. Tjilatjap, and some of the cases leaked on to the importation of arrack is of comparatively recent date and there seems little doubt that it also caused the fire on 10th.
to trade.
ARBITRATIONS.
and seller were referred to the Chamber by During the year 8 differences between buyer Members, and the expert survey reports made on the goods in dispute were in all cases accepted by the applicants.
As one of the objects of the Chamber is to encourage reference to arbitration in trade disputes instead of by redress in the Law Courts. the Committee consider it satisfactory to place on record the increased inclination on the part of manufacturers and merchants in Europe to require surveys to be conducted under the auspices of the Chambers of Commerce.
FINANCES.
FIRE ON THE "SUNGKIA (G.”
The
Station got notice by telephone that Messrs. At 5.58 p.m. on the 30th ult. Central Police Butterfield and Swire had received a telegram from Waglan Lighthouse, to the effect that the China Navigation 8.s. Sungkiang was flying signals meaning she was on fire. At that time the steamer bore east-south-east, distant some three miles.
This bill, which became law on 23rd February, 1904. was introduced in the Legislative Council last August under the name of "Imbecile Inmig- ration Ordinance." Its conditions were so onerous that the Chamber strongly opposed each stage in Council through the Acting Repre- sentative of the Chamber, Mr. H. E. Pollock, K.C., and the Government were induced to somewhat restrict the proposed liabilities under which Owners. Charterers, Agents, Consignees
The Pinnacle Rock Fund amounts with in- and Masters of vessels were to be subjected to terest to $4.256.84 and is separately invested, for landing persons in the Colony who after-partly in Hongkong Hotel Co. 6 per cent. De- wards became lunatic, etc., and a charge on the rates within 6 months of such landing. The par, and the balance in 4 per cent. Hongkong | Wharf, where she was met by the fire-float, in bentures purchased on 31st December last at long afterwards, and proceeded to Quarry Bay The Sungkiang arrived at Hongkong not period of 6 months was finally reduced to three and Shanghai Bank Fixed Deposit. months, the aggregate expense limited to $5,000, mands have been made on the Fund during the
No de-charge of Chief Inspector H. G. Baker. There exemption permitted if it could be proved that year for discovery of rocks dangerous to naviga-steamer's story briefly is as follows:-
were six Brigade men aboard the float. The such person became lunatic, etc., after embarkation. tion at the port or place from which he shipped and the right given to demand from the Authorities a certificate of refusal of permission
to land.
With these concessions the Committee had to be content, but they regard with some concern the recurrent desire of the Government to saddle the shipping interest with expenses which threaten to deprive Hongkong of its advantage as a cheap transhipping port. Your Committee have had in mind throughout their deliberations on this Ordinance that the reten- tion of freedom from direct taxation and the repression of useless restrictions is the policy which the shipping passing through the harbour should be treated if its present volume is to be maintained or increased.
The shipping Firms and Agencies supported the action of the Committee by addressing a petition to His Excellency the Officer Administering the Government in which very strong arguments were brought forward for the! withdrawal of the Bill, but unfortunately His Excellency refused to comply with the wishes of the Petitioners.
MEMBERS.
The present membership is 144. showing an increase of 8 Firms and Public Companies and 3 private individuals, who now number 117 and 27 respectively.
The income shows a satisfactory increase through the increased membership, but on the over that of the previous year, chiefly resulting other hand the expenditure has been greater. The surplus is 8694.27, bringing the Reserve Fund up to $12.847.29 at the end of the year.
It will be noted that in order to obtain a larger income in future years, the Bank De- posits on general account have been withdrawn and re-invested on 31st December last in Hong kong Hotel Co., and Hongkong & Kowloon Wharf & Godown Co. 6 bearing interest at 6 per cent, and 5 per cent. cent. Debentures
per annum respectively.
per
ANOTHER FIRE AT THE KOWLOON GODOWNS.
NO. 9 GODOWN RAZED TO THE GROUND.
Naval Yard.
Hongkong and Kowloon Wharf & Godown Co., Fire broke out at No. 9 Godown, of the
at about midnight on on the 28th ult. The first engine on the scene was that of the Godown Company, and the second an engine from the the building, merchandise stored therein being The blaze soon spread right over of an inflammable nature. At one corner there seemed to be spirits, or kerosene oil, the Messrs. Deacon and Hastings and Edwards, fire there showing very fierce. The sky was Piry & Co.. Ld., have resigned their member-lighted for miles around, great tongues of fire ship, and the Holland-China Trading Co. took rising high into the air. Two steamers lying over the membership of Messrs. Hota s'Jacob alongside the wharves were covered with sparks & Co.
it being found necessary to use hoses as a safe. guard against their catching fire. Eventually, the fire became so hot, they had to let go their moorings and anchor in the stream. Consider- ing the enormity of the conflagration there were very few spectators, most people at that time being in the land of dreams." Perhaps there were 300
The following have been admitted to member- ship subject to confirmation at the Annual Meeting
Messrs. Goddard and Douglas, Barretto and Co., Lamke and Rogge, E. C. Wilks and Co., Chun On Fire Insurance Co., Ld.. Shiu On 8. S. Co., Ld., Osaka Shosen Kaisha, Java-lookers-on. Engines continued to arrive, the China-Japan Lija, China and Japan Telephone and Electric Co., Ld., Deacon, Looker and Deacon, Mr. E. H. Sharp, K. C., Mr. G. C. Moxon, and Mr. A. M. Essabhoy.
THE GENERAL COMMITTEE.
Government fire-float crossing from Hongkong, and a manual being dragged from the Torpedo Depot. The contents of the building consisted of matches, matting, candles, trusses of hay, and other inflammables.
Since its election at the last Annual Meeting The roof crashed in at about one o'clock in May last, the only changes taking place allowing the flames to ascend without obstruc. have been the temporary substitution of Mr. tion. It was a grand sight, the Brigade and H. E. Pollock, K. C., for Mr. R. Shewan assailors fighting the flames, while marines and ex-officio Member in August last, and Mr. C. Indian regulars kept the public out of the way. Michelau having left the Colony in January, An attempt was made to get some of the
She left Hongkong for Manila on Friday
morning-Saturday—when about 100 miles chandise and a number of passengers. Next afternoon. with a full cargo of general mer-
from Hongkong, it was discovered that fire had broken out in No. 3, the after-hold. This contained a great variety of freight, alight. Other goods in the same hold were matches included, and it was these that got
which, of course, cases of Tansan, the boxes and straw of were inflammable, bags of sugar and rice, bales of cotton, potatoes and onions. Water was directed on the flames as well as possible, but the fire was difficult to get at, and it gained on the ship in spite of all fforts to extinguish it. There was nothing for it but to put back to Hongkong; so the captain altered his course, pointing the ship's nose in the direct opposite direction to that she had been going. On arriving here and making fast alongside at Quarry Bay the fire-float ex-
pumped out, and the vessel proceeded to an tinguished the flames by pumping 12 feet of water into the ship's hold. Next morning this was
Works, where she began to discharge the anchorage off the Royal Dutch Petroleum damaged cargo. A quantity of rice, sugar, and of goods, also, were more or less burned. cotton has suffered by water, and an amount The Sungkiang, it will be remembered, recently received a thorough overhaul, new decks, and extensive repairs at the hands of the Hongkong & Whampoa Dock Co., at the Kowloon es-
tablishment.
THE "SADO MARU” ᎪᎢ HONGKONG.
A Daily Press representative, from a visit to the Nippon Yusen Kaisha 8.8. Sado Maru on the 25th ult., gathered some interesting details of her voyage from Europe to Hongkong.
When the war broke out the Sado Múru. was at London with a general cargo aboard for the Far East. What was to be done? Russian warships, it was said, were infesting the waters of the Mediterranean and Western Islands. Clearly, the voyage to Japan would be a dangerous one. merchandise was discharged, the vessel subse- To begin with, all the quently, on the 17th February, going to Cardiff for coal. At the Welsh port she ballasted with