December 10, 1906.]
CHINESE RAILWAY FUNDS.
The Straits Times of November 29th says:-- There has arrived in Singapore, & Chinese official named Chen Pao s ug, who comes here as the emissary of the Chinese Government to induce the Chinese resident in the Straits Settlements and Jara to invest money in Chinese railways. His Excellency heo, who is a Hokien, came from Swatow, and has made the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Hill
Street his head-quarters, The railways in which His Excellency wishes to enlist the financial support of Chinese resident abroad are chiefly in the Province of Fokien, with connec tions north and south into Chekiang and Kwangtung respectively. This is a district where the Chinese are of an enterprising cha- racter, and it is anticipated that the trade from the various excellent barbours on the Fokien seaboard to the interior will grow rapidly. There can be little doubt of the success of these railways -and indeed, of any railways in China-provided the disgraceful system of likia is abolished; but without a thorough reform of China's system of taxation of goods in transit. the succe-s of the railways is problematical. We are informed that several prominent Chinese merchants in Singapore have already subscribed capital to these railways. If this is correct, we hope they have stipulatel for honesty in the promotion aud management, and also for something mor than a promise that the native Customs tariff will be adjsisted to suit the requirements of trade. If they have not done fear that the dollars subscribed in Singapore are following other similar subscriptions to the * never, never land,' We do not doubt the honesty of purpose of
our risitant, His Excellency Choa. Doubtless, his credentials are above suspicion. But it is a singular phenomenon of Chinese character that while they are, with notable exceptions, strictly honest and trustworthy in their individual capacity, as officials, in China, and often in corporate capacity, they are, to put it as gently as possible, not above suspicion. Why is it that Chen has to come so far afield to collect money? What explanation does he give for the failure of the rich Chinese of Kwangtung and Fokien to support his railway schemes?
A part altogether from questions of honesty and of the restricting effects of extortionate native officials, there
30,
then we
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
399
China. If he is identical with "H.E. Cheang | work on the section from Canton to Whampoa Pat-se "referred to in the extract from the and then on to those passing through Tsang "She Man Po" of April 2nd, 1906-published Shing, Tung Kao, Shek Luog, Pok Lo, Hoi elsewhere in this issue, then we would advise Fung, and Luk Fung, to Chin Chau, and, our Chin-se friends "in the various ports of the at the same time, work will be commenced Southern Ocean to exercise the most rigid care from moy to Chin Chan, where a large before embarking their capital in the railways railway station shall be built, being a station for of Fokien. The Chinese of the Straits Settle the use of both provinces. All districts along ments and the Federated Malay States, who owe which the railway passes shall also have stations their success in life to the free and generous con- for the convenience of passengers and goods. ditions under which they live, under the Briti h lag, will surely hesitate before giving financial support to a Chinese official who endeavoured to cripple the development of a neighbouring British Colony.
The following extract from the "She Man Po, a Chinese newspaper published in Houg kong, was sent to the Chius Association
(Editor of the "She Man Po":-Railways are closely connected with treaty ports. By this movement, H.E. Cheung may be said to have caught hold of the very clue. It is to be hoped that the railway shares will be taken up as eagerly as these of the Canton-Hankow Railway. The only apprehension is that the terms "Official Management" and "Management by Merchants" have not been clearly defined. I write this with great pleasure. I wish to see what the future will be.)
London, enclosing the above extract, Mr. In a letter to the parent Association in
Murray Stewart, Chairman of the Hong- kong Branch of the China Association writes:
MEDICAL MISADVENTURE AT MANILA.
The following from the Cablenews explains & recent telegram:-
The Governor General has issued an official statement of the unfortunate accident that
The Canton-Amoy Railway is the main line joining the two provinces of Kwang Tung and Fokien. H.E. Cheung Pat-Sz. 6th, or 7th, the method of its coustraction. They drew up moon last year, discussed with Viceroy Shum
21 general regulations, which have been sane. ioned by their Imperial Majesties through the Board of Commerce. On the rec ipt of a "I enclose copy of a letter received from the telegram in reply from the Board in the 10th Colonial Secretary, Hongkong, and of the moon, II. Chenag left Canton en route to enclosure therein mentioned. The man entitled different places, first to Whampoa, and then to H.E. Cheung Pat-sz is the same individual as Hoi Fung, Luk Fang, Chin Chan, Swatow 1905, as the moving spirit of the watow Chou- Trang Shing, Tung Kun, Shek Lang, Pok Lo, Chang described in my letter of the 21st April, Fokien (Foochow ), and Amoy, and took with, Chon-Fu Railway. The document at any rate him surveyors and engineers to survey the route. shows that our impressions of a year ago were į
When this task was completed in the 2nd moon fairly accurate as regards Chinese aspirations, of the present year, he interviewed Viceroy and it is still probable that these have much to should be opened as a treaty port; there is the Kowloon-Canton concession." Shum aud proposed to him that Whampoa do with the Viceroy's obstinate attitude towards
ample room in the neighbourhood. It is near the water, which is of considerable depth, and the steamers plying between Hongkong and Canton the first section between Canton and Whampoa pass it. He proposed that the construction of
should immediately be put in hand, and that, in the meantime, an embankment should be erected at Whampoa for the purpose of opening it as au international treaty port. Besides a very large railway station there should be built occurred in Bilibid prison recently. The report houses in European style, business premises, explains the situation fully and is as follows:- Government offices, godowns and wharves. All Onovember 16th Dr. R. P. Strong, Chief of these should be carried out after the precedent the Biological Laboratory of the Bureau of in Shan Tung, where there is a treaty port Science, inoculated twenty-four prisoners in Bili- opened by (biua) herself, where all nations are bid Prison with an anti-cholera vaccine, with at liberty to carry on business, and their ships which he m de inoculations before, and the use can freely lie at anchor and be loaded or unload.of which is well-known in several countries in arises the questioned. The estimated cost of opening this treaty Europe, particularly in Spain where inocula- whether the Chinese who toy with railway schemes are really fit to carry them
port, which will extend more than 3 li along the tions of this kind have been made with beneficial successful concerns. This is a point that
line of railway, will be between 800,000 and results. will surely occur
90 1,000 taels, including cost of land and On November 18th and 19th two and three to Straits-boru Chinesa, and to those enterprising and industrious sons
At first it was proposed to divide days after the inoculation, a number of these of Sinim who have acquired wealth in Malaya into 8,000 shares of 100 taels each, and to invite the evening of the following day, November the estimated cost for this and the railway twenty-four prisoners became acutely ill, and on and the neighbouring Dutch possessions. We are moved to refer t it, however, by the timely the various ports in the Southern Ocean results
the Fokien and Kwang Tung merchants in 26th, two of them died, apparently from the
of the inoculation, arrival of the interim report of the China
Subsequently various days, Association for 1906-7. Here we have the (.e. Straits Settlements, Australia and other on
seven more priscaers record of the tortuous methods of a typical Vic roy Shum was in a hurry to get this prisoner, whose sentence had expired and who
places) to take sbares. But, later on, diel in
88
the prison hospital, and one Chinese official, His Excellency Shum, the ex- Viceroy of the two Kwang. For no other reason done, H.E. Cheung took the responsibility had been released from Bilibid, died on Novem-
upon himself, of saying that the money could ber 21st at 152 San Jose.
These badvanced although the shares had not yet,
inoculations were made by Dr. been taken up. The necessary cost of build. Strong under authority dated March 1st, 1904,
was to be temporarily which authorization
for "the carrying ing the railway, too, borne by the Authorities on condition that on, under the supervision of the Direct r port and the construction of railway thus ex- tion among inmates of Bilibid Prison with money (for making Whampoa a treaty of the Biological Laboratory, of the investiga- pended) should be repaid when the shares reference to diseases which prevail among
When Cheung had settled them, as outlined within." the above with the Viceroy Shum in the Siao, this authority was granted, over haft conference he returned to Chin Chau, his the prisoners in Bilibid have been inoculated native place, to see about the funds, and as against cholera without any harmful resulta soon as he gets enough funds be will come
whatever. to Canton to commence work. He will begin
All these case of death were promptly with the B-c'ion between Canton and referred to the Coroner for proper action by Whampoa and with all work in connection bim, and upon his instructions, autopsies had with the opening of the latter as a treaty port been made in each instance. An investigation and the construction of the enbankment. In is now being made under his direction to
the exact the meantime he will telegraph to the various determine
cause of death in information towns in the Southern Ocean to immediately each instance, and upon that take up shares in the Canton Amoy Railway, being obtained, the coroner will render which is a main line, so that he can continuously the verdict r. quired by law. work section after section. We further hear It appears that probably these deaths have that part of the railw y between Amoy and resulted from the anti-cholera vaccine which Chiu Chau is considered to be the main line for was used, having in some way become con. the Fokien Province, and the funds for the taminated with plague germs while the vaccine construction are to ba raised from the Fokien was being prepared in the gvernment Labora people, and the funds for building the Kwang tories. A number of years ago, thousands of Tung main line between Canton and Chiu inoculations with this same anti-cholers Taccine Chau are to be raised from the Kwangtung were made by Dr. Ferran in Spain, and similar merchants. The scheme is first to commence instances of "contamination occurred and some
}
apparently, than because the British authorities were anxious to have Hongkong connected with Canton by rail, Shum sought by every subter- fuge in his power to retard the progress of the line. A few days ago, it was announced that the agreement for the construction of the connecting line from Kowloon to anton hanging fire for so long, had at last been signed, the
announcement being made almost simultaneously with Suum's departure and Chou Fu's arrival. Shum was not content with obstructing the
advance of the British line. He endeavoured to secure the prior construction of the short line from Canton to Whampoa, a scheme which would have damaged the prospects of the British line without ensuring much chance of
success
сад
DO
for the other. There is reason why Chinese, if they can raise the capital and utilise it profitably, should not have a multiplicity of railway lines; but blind hostility to foreiga enterprise is criminally foolish, while the most conservative Chinese official must recognise that native lines are more likely to be successful if they con neat with foreign countries and settlements where trade is carried on than by running to badly situated and little frequented ports. We are not so certain that His Excel- lency Chen is not the official who advised Shum to open Whampoa as a Treaty Port, the object being to destroy Hongkong as the port of South
materials.
the
were taken up.
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