October 3, 1904.}
where they took no precautions. I think he begged the question. He adduced no evidence at all that this year, when we have been practi- cally immune, plague has not raged very severely in Canton and vicinity. My information and the information of the Sanitary Board is to the effect that during the current year Hongkong has been conspicuous by its freedom from plague, with plague all round it. As for his remarks on the Law Courts, all I can say is, wait and see their completion and then criticise the building. He advised the Government to put another storey on the Post Office. Perhaps he has forgotten that it is actually going to be done. There is one storey more to be added to it to be kept in reserve for the expansion of official business that is certain to take place with the expansion of the Colony. The last remark I made a note of, Sir, was concerning our roads. I have not been at Tsingtau, but if they have got better roads in Tsingtau than we have in Hongkong, all I can say is that they are very fortunate.
HIS EXCELLENCY-There were certain points that the hon. Colonial Secretary did not touch on in his reply to the speech of the hon. Mr. Showan. with which I will now deal. I could not under- stand the form of the point raised in connection. with the Estimates. The hon. member stated that "miscellaneous receipts" ought not, in his opinion, to include Conservancy Contracts and Profits on Subsidiary Coins-that these are suffi- ciently important items to be dealt with under a separate heading details of revenue. It seems to me that they are so separately dealt with on p. 5. It is perfectly clear there that $54,150 is anticipated to be derived from con- servancy contracts, and $120,000 from the profits on subsidiary coins.
Hon. Mr. SHEWAN-What I wanted to point out was that a small item of $5,000 of interest has a separate heading, while this item of $120,000 is under "miscellaneous receipts."
His EXCELLENCY-It is a small thing; it is a matter of type.
Hon. Mr. SHEWAN-It is a matter of book. keeping.
HIS EXCELLENCY-The hon. member went on to refer to the disadvantage of crediting to revenue proceeds from land sales. "I believe that is a question that has been very often considered and also discussed in this Council. It seems legitimate to credit re. venue with these sales in view of the fact that we are spending largely out of revenne for public works that we anticipate will be remunerative. With regard to the remarks made by the hon. member on the subject of etting trees, I think that he forgot at the moment that in so far as any one person is responsible for the work of the Departments in the Colony that person is myself and not the Colonial Secretary. It seems to me to have been unnecessary to have gone out of the way to bring in the Colonial Secretary in that particular connection.
was
Hon. Mr. SHEWAN-I thought this inaugurated before your Excellency's arrival by the Officer Administering the Government.
SUPREME COURT.
Friday, 23rd September.
IN SUMMARy JurisdictION.
(PUISNE JUDGE.)
INDIAN DEALER REBUKED.
213
Cassum Ahmed, an Indian dealer, sued E. J; Hyndman for $23.21 in respect of goods sold
and delivered.
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
architects in England, I am not entirely in accord with the hon. member. He talked of want of taste in this Colony though I do not know that it was quite in connection with this subject. At any rate I think we are better here for having some good examples imported from out. side, and I do not think we can go to a better place for such examples than to the office of BEFORE HIS HONOUR T. SERCOMBE SMITH Messrs. Aston Webb and Ingress Bell, the gentlemen who are now designing the most important buildings in England and in other parts of the British Empire. Certainly the best building we have in the Colony which I recently had the honour of governing was designed by the same architects who have sent us the designs of the Law Courts. The question of roads at Kowloou has received the very careful attention of the Public Works, and probably the hon. member, if he has recently been there, will have noticed some steps in the direction for which he argued. I should think it is have quite likely that at Tsingtau they splendid roads. It is part of the German policy. When I visited the German colony ad- jacent to the Gold Coast last year I was struck by the great expenditure they had incurred on roads. I was also struck by the fact that the German residents of the Colony itself seemed to consider somehow that the expendi- ture had been in excess of any advantage that was likely to be derived from it. The only matter which remains for me to refer to is the
HIS EXCELLENCY-The Colonial Secretary bas stated, what I have also learned was the case, that while we were successful this year in keeping down the number of cases of plague to considerably less than what it has been in most years since 1894, the epidemic raged in Canton as badly as ever. I do not myself attribute very much importance to that, but I do think it our bounden duty to carry out such measures as scientific men who have studied the question tell us are necessary to improve the health of the community. The hon. member threw some doubt on the Public Works Department spending all the money provided for them in the Estimates. As a matter of fact the works we are now carrying out are on contracts that have been entered into for some time, and are going on smoothly and rapidly; we want to have enough money so that there should not the work-for instance, on the Law Courts and on the Post Office, which the hon. member wished should be pushed on vigorously. The small question of the Clock Tower in Queen's Road is one on which I am not able at present to give any opinion, On the large but which I will look into. question of employing local architects in pre- ference to getting designs from the best
be a check on
question raised--I cannot think very fortunately by the hon. member of want of taste in I connection with the renaming of a pier.
think that question was sufficiently answered by the silence with which it was received.
FINANCE COMMITTEE.
A meeting of the Finance Committee was held after the Council, the Colonial Secretary (Hon. F. H. May, C.M.G.) presiding.
LAND COURT.
Th. Governor recommended the Council to vote a sum of $250 in aid of the vote Land
a branch office in the
Court, New Territory, other charges, for repairing the house-boat used by the Land New Territory, which was damaged by the Court Department as
recent typhoon.
The rote was passed.
TAIPINGSHAN GARDEN.
The Governor recommended the Council to rote a sum of Five hundred Dollars ($500) in aid of the vote Botanical and Afforestation Department, Other Charges, for Taipingshan Garden-levelling and laying out.
The vote was agreed to.
THE APPROPRIATION BILL.
The Committee proceeded to consider the Appropriation Bill item by item.
HARBOUR REFUGE.
The CHAIRMAN said he was authorised to inform the Committee that it was regretted that it had not been possible to include any sum for the construction of a harbour refuge. When an hon. member asked a question about this matter recently he was informed that it was being considered. It had received con- sideration, but owing to the large requirements for other works, principally waterworks, it had not been found possible to include it.
THE NEW PRISON.
of age, admitted the de t. In reply to his The defendant, a boy of barely fifteen years Lordship he said he bought some of the goods for his sister and some for himself. He was s clerk with a mercantile firm in the Colony and earned $30 a month.
His Lordship reprimanded the plaintiff for selling goods on credit to a boy of defendant's years and said he should be more careful in future.
Asked how much he could pay, the defendant undertook to pay the debt in instalments of $5 per month.
Referring to a vote of $10.000 for a prison. the CHAIRMAN said that last year, on the re- commendation of the Public Works Depart ment, a site on Stonecutters Island was selected for a prison, and the sum was actually inserted in the Estimates and voted by the Council for the construction of such a prison; but now it was proposed not to adopt the site on Stonecutters' the reason being that the military authorities,
he which, thought, would be obvious to hon. members, wanted control of the whole island. It was hoped that a site which would commend itself equally to the Public Works Committee would be found for the construction of this prison. They would be consulted with the matter in den course.
for
reasons
The different items in the Bill having been approved, the Bill was left in Committee.
His Lordship gave judgment accordingly, the first instalment to be paid on the 1st Octo- ber.
|
Tuesday, 27th September.
IN SUMMARY Jurisdiction.
BEFORE HIS HONOUR T. Sercombe SMITH (PUISNE JUDGE.)
A NEW TERRITORY LAND CASE.
A case was called in which Ma Fu Shan, 17, Gage Street, sued Tang Yun Kwong, land owner, Kowloontsai, and Ng Sik Ki, trader, of the Sze Wo shop. Yaumati, for $1,087.16 (restricted to $1,000), being $950 paid by the plaintiff to the first defendant by way of deposit on the signing of an agreement, dated March, 1903, made between the plaintiff on the one side and the two defendants together with one Poon Ming on the other, whereby it was agreed inter alia that if the defendant should fail to obtain a certificate or other evidence of his title to certain premises mentioned in the agreement and thereby agreed to be sold to the plaintiff within two years from 18th March, 1903, or if the decision of the Land Court or any superior Court should be adverse to such title (which was the case), the said deposit should be repaid to the plaintiff with interest at the rate of 10 per cent. from the date of the | agreement; and $137.16 interest on the sum of $950 from 18th March, 1903, till 26th August, 1904. The defendant Ng Sik Ki was sued as surety for the repayment of the deposit and interest.
Mr. A. C. Holborow, of Messrs. Deacon, Looker and Deacon, solicitors, appeared for the plaintiff. He stated that Mr. Brutton, who had been representing the first defendant, had withdrawn from the case on the previous day.
Evidence was given by Ma Fu Shan, the plaintiff; Mr. J. R. Wood, registrar in the Land Court; and Tang Yun Kwong, the first defendant.
His Lordship reserved judgment.
Wednesday, 28th 'September.
IN SUMMARY JURISDICTION.
BEFORE HIS HONOUR T. SERCOMBE SMITH (PUISNE JUDGE.)
A WANT OF SECURITY.
Two cases
were called in which the Yu Loong firm, 5, Lower Lascar Road, sued the Kwong Fai firm, 222, Des Voeux Road West, for $266.85 for goods sold and delivered, and Shiu Cheong, traders, 104, Shaukiwan, for Mr. E. J. $156.34 goods sold and delivered. Grist, of Messrs. Wilkinson and Grist, solici tors, appeared for the plaintiffa, and Mr. J Hastings, solicitor, for the defendants.
Mr. Hastings said the defendants had received notice, before this action was brought, from one of the partners, not to pay these sums to the plaintiffs. There was a partnership dispute going on as to which there was a suit in the Original Jurisdiction against Wong-Ping