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I am sure need not reiterate. It is that of friendliness and sympathy and an earnest desire to aid China in her effort to become more strictly a nation and to aid her toward the development of her immense resources.
To this the senior Chinese member of the Legislative Council, Hon. Dr. Ho Kai responded that he and his colleagues concurred with Mr.. Taft in his description of the evil tendencies of the boycott, but they did not in any way by that statement mean to express a lack of sympathy with the feeling on the part of Chinanian which had given rise to the boycott. They felt that the exclusion laws had been kdministered with much too great rigour and with greatly more severity then was con- sistent with the rights of the merchant and the student class, and they ventured to point out four respects in which they thought the treaty and the laws might very well be modified and secure from Chinamen generally an approval of the changes.
In the first place, they thought that the term "labourer ought to be more clearly defined. To this Mr. Taft assented. He said that the rulings of the Bureau of Commerce and Labour, were not in his judgment always just, and that it was fer better if possible, as he thought it was, to make a division which would leave no doubt either in the mind of the official enforcing the law, or of the China man leaving his own country to apply for admission to the United States.
Hon. Dr. Hó Kai then resumed by saying that there was a custom among Chinese merchants, for the purpose of continuing the firm beyond their own lives, to take with them into the United States a8 a part of the personnel of their business, shop assistants, or persons who would correspond to clerks andlesmen in the business of a mer. chant of the United States, who were taken out with the idea of s bsequently, a ter having experience enough, entering the firm and becoming partners. Such men, he said, were not coolies and did not belong to the labour class, although of course in the discharge of their duties there was some manual labour to perform, as that of showing goods, of putting them back on the shelves, etc. Mr. Taft said that he thought there was a clear distinction between a labourer and a clerk or salesman in a nierchant's store, and that he personally saw no objection to an exclusion of such a class from the definition of labourer; that he would bring this matter to the attention of the President.
Second. Hon. Dr. Ho Kai said that he thought the certificate of the Consul ought to be final except in case of fraud or forgery. Mr. Taft said that personally he concurred in this view and that the proclamation of the President tended strongly in that direction; that of course the corruption which had heretofore existed had been an obstacle in the way of giving the certificate of the consuls the weight that ought really to attach to them, but in view of the steps, already referred to, he thought that the tendency of Congress and the President would be toward giving much more weight than had heretofore attached to the certificate of the American consular officers in China.
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Third. Hon. Dr. Ho Kai called attention to the fact that there were quite a number of merchants and students who were subjects of Great Britain, in Hongkong Colony and in the Straits Settlements; that there were others who were citizens of the Republic of France in Tonkin and Saigon, and that there were still others who were citizens of the kingdom of Holland in the Dutch East Indies; he said that these were gentlemen of wealth and education, who did not visit America because they would not accept the humiliation of being subjected. to the necessity of producing a certificate, but thought that all the security would be given to the United States that it ought to require by a passport describing their status as merchants or students and as subjects or citizens of their respective governments, Fised by the proper American consul; that this would effect a very few persons; would be entirely safe, so far as the United States was concerned, because the United States might depend implicitly on the honesty of the govern ment officials vised by the proper American consul; and yet the change by which they should be allowed to come in under a passport would be most gratifying to their feelings, and,
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THE HONGONG WKEELY PRESS AND
though a slight change, would accomplish a great change in their view of the law. Mr. Taft said that he hoped some such provision might be introduced into the law, which should remove their sense of humiliation and that he would be glad to bring this to the attention of the President and the State Department.
The Fourth suggestion made by the Hon. Dr. Ho Kai was that the law or the treaty should provide for an improvement in the detention sheds in which Chinamen destined for other countries were housed in the United States awaiting transhipment. Mr. Taft id that he had no knowledge of the details of this matter, but that he would also bring it to the attention of the President and he thought that every humane regulation would be pat in fore to prevent either humi istion or injury to the persons subjected to confinement under the circumstances.
AFFORESTATION AND DEFORESTATION AT HONGKONG. The practical result of the agitation (against the "block" system of tree-felling) that was conducted in this paper, was presented in Report No. 36 of 1905 at the Legislative Council yesterday. It gives the history of the movement from the 14th September, when the Hon. Mr. R. Shewan asked two questions about it. The most interesting
letter is perhaps the following one :~~
Letter from Mr. C. Ford, la e Superinten dent. Botanical and Afforestation Department, to the Hon. Mr. F. H. May, C.M.G., Colonial Secretary:-
Beech Grove, Ripon,
26th October, 1904.
MY DEAR MAY,-I have seen the report of the statement made in Council on Septem ber 15th in regard to the Government policy for tree-felling.
Without full knowledge of what the plans are, it is not possible to make a fair judgment on the whole, but from such information as has reached me I gather broadly that it is supposed that pine trees arrive at maturity for felling at the age of 25 years and that their felling and re-planting are necessary in order to preserve the aborescent growth of the Colony.
can only imagine that the Government has accepted advice to that effect, and that the prospect of immediate revenue to be obtained from the fellings has had no influence in the Government's decision, but may not the prospect of revenue have had some influence in suggest ing to the mind of the originator of the scheme the plan for turning trees to this account and have somewhat obscured bis judgment in relation to the chief object, viz., the greatest and best return to be obtained from living trees, and that if so the Government has not obtained the best advice to which it was entitled!
In my opinion it will be many years hence before there will be necessity for beginning general felling and re-planting, and when that time does arrive it will probably be found that neither the system of "block" nor selection fellings are the best suited to Hongkong which will require modification of the methods of rotation felling of other places, as it required modification in the formation of plantations.
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In Hongkong there are pine trees 60-70 years old in good health and condition-50 years seems the estimated age of pine trees as given to the Government as I see from the newspapers. Even if trees actually died at 50 years, general fellings need not be made when they are only 5 years old. There are other things, which operate in the renewal of plantations besides felling and planting, which should be taken into consideration. A little reflection shows that, if trees are to be felled at 25 years, there would never be any trees which had arrived at half their natural full stature and age; and those which are the largest at 27 years would most likely be those first doomed to the axe under the projected system, whereas such trees are the most vigorous as the result of growing in the most suitable environments and conse- quently would be the longest lived and would attain the greatest dim nsions. These at least should be spared until they are upwards of 50 years old. It is time enough to renew planta- I tions when the trees have reached their largest
(September 18, 1905,
size, and in the case of ongkong trees, which are only good for firewood and not timber, when they show signs of degeneracy, and not as a rule under 50 years old. Until then ordinary thinning of plantations, such as has been carried out hitherto, is all that is necessary, except in some rare cases.
In regard to pecuniary questions it should be considered that one tree of 50 years old should be worth more than two at 25 years. But the difference would be lost if the tr es were felled at 25 years, and besides this loss there would be on the debit sid, the cost of re-planting at that time in addition to the original cost of planting, so that there would be the cost of two plantings, instead of one, in 50 years, and thus the cost of production would be nearly doubled, by which the Government would be so much the loser.
I have expérienced the greatest reluctance in dealing with this subject, but after a consider able interval' for reflection I still feel a serious responsibility would rest upon me if, for any reason, I neglected to communicate the results of my experience at a time when grave results might ensue from a mistake which might follow the best intentions, not the last reason of which is the criticism of the plan of my successor, for whom I have much regard; and the best way of demonstrating it is to indicate the rock ahead which might be calamitous to all concerned.-Believe me, etc.,
CHARLES FORD.
The contents were communicated to Mr. 8. T. Duan, the Superintendent of the B. and A,` Dept., who replied Mr. Ford advocates a 50-year in preference to a 25-year rotation. He says it would make the Island more beautiful and that it would be more lucrative.
He says the chief object is the greatest and best returns to be obtained from living trees.
In the first plea Mr. Ford is right from the point of view of wild beauty. It is, however, useless to look forward to regular plantations of large p nes because only here and there is the ground good enough to produce them. In the great majority of localities the pines ehow a very small increase and often failure after a period varying from 10 to 3) years, the par- ticular term being probably decided by the roots coming in contact with the solid rock.
The question of health-giving and water- conserving properties is not affected by length of rotation.
A short rotation is better where risks of fires, etc., exist.
The short rotation is more profitable. It is true that a 50 year tree is worth more than double a 25 year tree, but it takes up the room of at least 4 of them/
For purposes of economic management it is beneficial to select a rotation that shall serve for as large a proportion of treas as possible. A 50 year rotation would only be possible on a small proportion of the Island,
It would probably be better to grow more valuable trees if a long rotation is decided upon. On the whole, I recommend the cultivation of the pine on a 25 year rotation leaving belts along the roads.
8. T. DUNN.
His Excellency the Governor, in view of the divergent advice, decided to ask advice from the Inspector General of Forests in India, and in the meantime ordered the wholesale tree felling to be suspended. Mr. Dann prepared a report for submission to the Indian expert, in which it was stated that "the average tree appears to show a marked decrease of growth at about 25 years "It closed with these two paragraphs-
"Local objects of Afforestation as affecting Rotation. The object which the original pro posers of afforestation in Hongkong bad in view was undoubtedly the covering of the bara hills of the Island with verdure, at the same time eventual profit was put forward as a justi- fication of the expenditure. Two other advan tages are also spoken of: (1) water-conserving, and (2) health-giving properties. Although the area planted is small there can be no doubt that the rainfall must be slightly affected by it and the planted ground does undoubtedly retain the rainfall far longer than bare groand, As, however, Hongkong depends mainly for its water-supply on the rapid filling of its reservoirs during the torrential rains of the summer months, and only in a minor degree on continu- ons mountain streams, this factor is not im-
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