May 1, 1905.]
REPORT ON PUBLIC WORKS.
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The report of the Director of Public Works for 1904 is published in the current Hongkong Government (rasette. The actual exp-nditure for the
was $2,011,437.77, ̃ ̄or year $660,000 greater than any previous year.
The amount of premium realized for land sales by auction was $434,785, as against $468,098 for 1903. The actual amount of premium paid into the treasury daring the year was $487,122.20 (to this should be added the sum of $98,200, a portion of the premia realised by the sale of Marine Lot 289, which it was arranged should be paid in January, 1905), bringing the total up to $585,322.20 or considerably over the estimate which was $400,000. It included the following sums :— Premis derived from sale of rights
to erect piers
$28,179.25 Fees for boundary stones to mark lots 960.00 The land sales in the New Territory were very satisfactory, the total premia for lots sold by the Public Works Department amounting to $23,325. It having proved too expensive to deal with applications for the purchase of small areas of land from this Department, the Assistant Land Offoer for the New Territory was given authority to sell such small lots by Public Auction at the Branch Office, Taipo. In addition to the nine lots stated above, there- fore, 43 small lots were thus sold realizing $1,177, making a total of $24,502. In addition to the 43 lots, 18 permits to occupy land for short periods for storing and other purposes were issued, the fees for which amounted to $83.0.- A scheme for dividing the New Territory into sui able Districts for the pur pose of land sales and the issue of leases was prepared but has not yet been finally approved.
Extensions.--The extensions granted in Hongkong were not important. Messrs. Blackhead & Co., the owners of Kowloon Marine Lot 34, were granted by the Secretary of State an area of 75,996 square feet, most of which was sea bed in front of and adjoining the lot; & small extension to Hong Hom Inland Lot 24 was also granted to the Dock Comp+ny.
Resumptions.-Arrangements were made with the owners of Kowloon Inland Lot 1011
to surrender a portion of the lot, required in carrying out the scheme for providing main thoroughfares in Kowloon, on payment of $25,000, and also with the owners of lots 69, 79, 80 and 81 for a portion of these lots for a similar purpose at a cost of $25,00).
A portion of Inland Lot 8 having an area of 26,702 square feet, including a number of houses, was resumed under the Crown Lands Resumption Ordinancs, 1900, in connection with the Kau U Fong Resumption Scheme, the total amount paid to owners being $224,551.47.
Rural Building Lot 83 having an area of 1,650 square feet was surrendered to the Govern- ment by the owner for the sum of $3,000, the ares being required for th extension of the Chair Coolie Quarters at the Peak. Inland Lot 509 was purchased by the Government for waterworks purposes for the sum of $6,500.
Grants on Short leases.-The grants on short leases included an area of 45,000 square
fest which was leased to the Kowloon Bowling Green Club for a period of 3 years at an annual rental of $36; an area of 250,448 square feet at Lai Chi Kok in the New Territory, leased to the Transvaal Mine Owners Association as an Emigration Camp for coolies bound for South Africa, for a period of 5 years at an annual rental of $2,392; a quarry at Tai Wan in the New Territory having an area of 52,500 square fest, at an annual rental of $300; and a wharf on the Sham Chan River in the New Territory for a period of 5 years at an annual rental of $75.
Grant од nominal terms include -In
Hongkong. An area of 54,450 square feet at
Mount Caroline for burying funeral 1228 containing disinterred remains; an ares of 48,382 square feet as an extension to the Jewish Cemetery; an area of 5,566 square feet for a
District Watchmen's House at Wanchai; an ares of 20,000 square feet as an extension to the Alice Memorial Hospital; and an area of $78,900 square feet for a Naval Infections Diseases Hospital at Mount Parish.
In Kowloon. An area of 5,200 square feet to the Church Missionary Society as a garden,
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT,
and an area of 21,000 square feet to the same Society for the erection of a Church and Minister's House. Both these grants are just within the old Boundary line South-west of Kowloon City.
In New Territory. An area of 1005 acres for a Christian Chinese Cemetery near Kow- loon City, and an area of 4.75 acres at Sham Shui Po for a Chinese Cemetery.
Permits. The permits to occupy lands for short periods comprise areas let for storage, boatbuilding, breaming and other purposes, and a few quarrying permits for the more remote parts of the New Territory.
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Radjustments of Boundaries.-The re- adjustments of boundaries were mostly in en- nection with the lots for which it was not p >8. sible, from the nature of the sites, to define th limits accurately on the ground and were generally of small extent. The only case worthy of mention is one which Messrs. Black- head & ('o. gave up a portion of their lots for the purpose of widening Des Voeux Road, Kow- loon, and were granted an area to the seaward side of their lots.
Conversion of Lots.-The only conversion of
ay importance was in the case of Inland Lots 501 and 502, situated at Praya East, which were converted into Marine Lot 283 in order that the owners might participate in the projected Reclamation Scheme.
A sum of $4,552.75 was realized by the letting of sites for the erection of booths and stands at Happy Valley during the Race Meeting:
Squatters The number of Squatters Licences on the Roll at the commencement of the year was 975, representing an annual rental of $2,410.13. During the year, 703 were written off, leaving 272 still on the roll; the fees received during the year amounted to $2,340.32. The claim of several Squatters' Villages came before the Squatters' Board in March, and those whose claims were good were granted leases, but as a number of these people had already paid their Squatters' fees for the year it was decided to leave them on the roll and date their leases from 1st January, 1905.
Military Lands.-The negotiations between the Colonial Government and the Military Authorities for exchanges of land were still
unconcluded at the close of the year. The Military Authorities were granted a lease for 10 years of an area a little over 255 sores in extent near Kowloon City as Rifle Ranges and Reserve in consideration of their having relinquished their Ranges on the site of King's Park, the Government agreeing to pay cost of construc- tion of butts, &c., which, including a diversion of road and resumption of cultivated land within the area, amounted to $26,450.52. The Ranges are practically completed.
Naval Lands-The Admiralty were granted an area of 402,400 square feet in Kowloon for shelter, also an area of 282 acres at Long the purpose of erecting a coaling pier and boat Harbour and Jones Cove in the New Territory for the construction of Rifle Ranges, the land
to revert to the Colonial Government whenever it ceases to be used for this purpose. A strip 50 feet in width from the North of Kowloon
Marine Lot 36, having an area of about 17,500 square feet, was handed over to the Colonial Government for the purpose of forming a 100- foot road in connection with the scheme for providing main thoroughfares in Kowloon, the Admiralty receiving in exchange the portion of Austin Road situated between their properties -Kowloon Marine Lots 41 and 35.
Piers.-The Government, by Notifications No. 562 on 5th August, 1904, decided to dispose of certain Pier sites in Hongkong. Those opposite Marine Lots to be sold to the owners of the lots, if they desired, at fixed rates; others opposite Crown Land by Public Auction. The right of erecting piers under leases was granted
in two cases in Hongkong and ten cases in Kowloon, the premis derived in the case of the Hongkong Piers amounted to $27,229.25 includ ing one of the Pier sites referred to above, which realized a premium of $27,000 : and of Kowloon Piers to $950, the annual rentals
THE HOSPITALS. ~
GOVERNMENT CIVIL
The report of the Principal Civil Médical Officer for 1904 appears in the current Hongkong Government Gazette It is here stated that the
Government Civil Hospital as a building is behind the times and the question of building a new hospital more in accord with modern Admissions to the hospital were 209 less than requirements cannot be much longer delayed.
in 1903. The mortality rate was slightly lower, viz., 4.99 per cent. as against 518 per cent. in 1903.
Malarial Fevers.-The diminution in the number of admissions from this class of disease still continues, the number admitted being 22! as compared with 346 in 1903, a result undoubt edly due to the active anti-malarial measures which have been carried out in recent years in the Colony, and to the more general prophy? lactic use of quinine, at any rate, amongst the to November are those in which malarial fever Police Force. As usual the months from July
is most prevalent.
Influenza-There were no admissions during the year as compared with 58 in 1908.
against 123 in 1903.
Dengue. There were only 43 admissions as
Typhoid Fever-There were 42 admissions as compared with 28 in the previous year, 21 of these were imported cases.
the number of admissions, the figures being 1^6 Dysentery. There was a decided increase in
as against 50 in 1903, the disease, however, appears to have been of a milder type, as there were only 6 deaths as compared with 11 in the previous year.
Beri-beri.-There were 70 admissions as compared with 36 in 19 3, undoubtedly this disease has been much more prevalent during the last year. It is unfortunate that notwith standing the number of investigations which known as to its etiology. have been made there is nothing definitely
were
Injuries. Amongst these there admitted in February and March one Russian Officer, two Petty. Officers and four sailo;s who were wounded on board H.I.M.S. Faryag off Chemulpo.
They were suffering from shell wounds and all ultimately recovered, although one of the sailors caused us considerable anxiety, time it appeared that the limb would have to be his left arm was very much shattered and at one
amputated; however, aided by a sound constitu- tion he recovered and was discharged in June with all the wounds healed.
TUNG WAH,
The admissions were 210 in excess of those of the previous year. It is satisfactory to note the increase in the number of those attending for European treatment in the Out-patient Department.
Beri-beri.-There was a great increase in the being 742 as against 277 in 1903, this is also number of admissions from beri-beri, the figures by far the most fatal disease, 329 deaths being attributed to it.
On account of an outbreak of beri-beri at the Po Leung Kuk Institution and the increased * number of cases in the Tang Wah Hospital I recommended to the Government that an inves tigation into this disease should be made, this conductel by Dr. Koch and the Government was agreed to_and_an_enquiry is now being Bacteriologist. It is to be hoped that as a result of their researches some light may be thrown upon this disease about whose etiology so little
is known.
Moriband cases. It will be observed that
there were many more brought in dead than in the former year, the numbers being 502 as against 388. The reason for this was that, with a view to obeaking dumping of dead bodies in the street, it was decided in connection with Plague procedure for 1904 that in doubtful
osses when the dead body of a Chinesoģis removed from a house for diagnosis, it should be
removed to the Tung Wah Hospital Mortuary instead of to the Public Mortuary. The Tung Wah Hospital was suthorised remove dead bodies and undertook to kë being $900 and $3,08) respectively. Licence | staff of coolies for this purpose. All that or the following temporary Piers for variouss necessary in case of death was for the periods were issued-13 in Hongkong, 22 in' to report this to the Tang Wah, who Kowloon, and 14 in the New Territory, the the body and provided free burial. amount of fees for these being $3,841.87. significant that the number of dumped -