July 24, 1909.]
CORRESPONDENCE.
THE TYPHOON SIGNAL AT MACAO.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE “HONGKONG
DAILY PRESS."]
SIBA paragraph inserted in your issue of to-day stated that the typhoon signal was hoist ed at Macao at the Harbourmaster's during yesterday and that apparently no indication of bad weather was forthcoming.
The signal hoisted did not indicate the position or direction of any typhoon: it was simply an informative signal that something might happen. Now we see the black cone just hoisted at the Hong kong Observatory justifies the signal at Macao. The coming typhoon is now within 300 miles of the colony and possibly the Macao Harbour- master smelled it.-Yours,
Hongkong, July 19th.
ANTI-ROX.
THE NEW OPIUM EVIL.
818,-There are many well meaning persons who entertain the idea that an evil can suddenly be uprooted without the danger of another, and perhaps a worse, evil growing up in its place It is the idea on which the whole anti-opium propaganda has been based, but the public has only to read the summary of Sir Alexander Hosie's latest report on the anti- opium movement, which appears in this morn- ing's Daily Press, to learn how fallacious the idea really is.
C
""
A large business has already developed in Chins in the sale of compounds advertised 88 cures for the opium habit, constitat ing an evil far more disastrous to the physical and moral well-being of the people of China than the habit of smoking un- adulterated opium which it is the avowed object of the Chinese Government to suppress. The native opinm as it often comes into the market -adulterated with deleterious ingredients-is far more injurious to the smoker than the pure drug sold by the Government of India under whose supervision it is examined, weighed packed and shipped abroad.
No antidote has yet been discovered which can cure the drunkard, and it will be found in China that there is no sudden cure for the opium smoker. The so-called " cures which are now being so extensively sold are recognised by all observers as producing worse effects than the disease Yours, &c.
D. 8. G.
Hongkong, July 20th.
MARRIAGE OF MISS PHYLLIS DODWELL.
Miss Phyllis Dodwell, youngest daughter of Mr. George B. Dodwell, head of the well-known firm of Dodwell and Co., was married at Watford on the 24th ult. to Mr. Vernon Parry Kitchen, M. A., Cantab, eldest son of the late Rev. J. G. Kitchen, M.A., and Mrs. Kitchen, formerly of The Priory." Watford. The marriage service was conducted by the Rev. Canon Erskine Clarke, M.A., Vicar of Battersea, and Hon. Chaplain to H.M. the King, assisted by the Rev Canon David Reith, M.A., Vicar of St. Andrews, and by the Rev. Walter Weston, M.A., Vicar of Ewell, and formerly Chaplain of the English Church in Kobe, Japan.
CHINESE NAVAL CONSTRUCTION.
GERMAN OFFERS.
The Berlin correspondent of the London Globe writes:-
Dispatches received here privately from Peking indicate that German offers in con- nection with the proposed naval construction are being well received by the authorities. Tenders have already been received by the Government from fourteen foreign firms, re- presentative of Germany, Great Britain, France, and the United States; but there appears to be good reason for stating that Germany will obtain, at any rate, a large portion of the work, It is as yet uncertain exactly how much money it is proposed to spend on the new Fleet,
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
TRADE IN SHANTUNG.
The following passages are taken from a report by Acting Consul Giles on the trade of Shantung in 1908 :-
The partial failure of the crops reacted very severely on trade, which suffered further from the fall in the price of silver, combined with the appreciation of the latter vis-à-vis of the copper coinage; the silver tael fetched at one time no less than 3,100 cash in Wei-hsien, and 3,800 cash in I-hsien, and it was correspondingly high in other parts of the province of Shantung. This grievously affected the poor people, who make all their purchases in copper. To add to their distress, money was very tight everywhere, and prices rose considerably; con- sequently, the bulk of the population experienced the greatest difficulty in making both ends meet.
FINANCIAL CRISIS.
Numbers of firms in the chief trade marts of the province, finding themselves unable to do a profitable business, shut down. Over 90 are said to have been closed in Wei-hsein alone, and some 190 in Choutsun; a similar state of affairs prevailed in the smaller trade centres.
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the results are said to be satisfactory on the whole. The experiments are to be continued, s grant of Tls. 1,500 (about £200) having again been made in 1908 from the Provincial Exche- quer for the purchase of American seeds.
SPINNING AND WEAVING.
In addition to those already established in the province of Shantung, a new cotton spinning and cloth weaving factory was opened in 1908 in Chi-mo-hsien, not far from Tsingtau. Gins, looms and other machinery of modern make have been purchased abroad, and 20 apprentices have been specially indentured to study foreign manufacturing methods. The raw material is to be drawn exclusively from the province.
COAL MINING.
As regards native-worked coal mines after those in the Poshan Valley, those in the I-chou prefecture are the most important in the pro- vince of Shantung. The Chunghsing Company, previously known as the German-Chinese Mining
*
ompany, with a capital of $2,000,000 (about £167,000) which works coal mines in I-hsien, is the principal concern. Its mines produce about 300 tons of coal daily. The German capital invested only amounts to about $42,000 alto- gether, and it is to be gradually repaid until the capital is solely Chinese; the The crisis severely affected the native banks, name of the company was also altered during five or six of which in Wei-hsien, where the the past year, the word German being monetary stringency was most keenly felt, want eliminated. A German loan of m.8.0,000 (about bankrupt. The biggest failure was that of a £39,300) has, however, recently been contracted wealthy and powerful establishment, which dealt. for the purchase of rolling-stock. In Lanshan. in piece-goods, cotton yarn, provisions and hsien the natives also do a considerable amount cloths, and had widespread ramifications of primitive coal mining every year between throughout the province. The liabilities October and March, at which latter date the amounted to nearly $250,000 (about £41,600): | water floods their shafts and they are compelled considerable difficulty was experienced in to cease operations for lack of pumping realising what assets there were; a settlement machinery. The industry has now been taken had not been effected at the end of March last, in hand by local capitalists intent upon reorganis- nor is one likely to be for some time to come. ing and developing it, capital to the amount of Meanwhile confidence has not yet been restored, about $18,000 (over £1,500) having beer and trade remains stagnant. The prevailing subscribed. Should the enterprise prosper, it is depression made itself felt at Yang-chiao-kou on proposed later on to purchase proper machinery the Gulf of Chihli, hitherto a very flourishing and to extend operations further. There are at port. The imports and exports, with the excep-present 30 shafts, old and new, of which two are tion of duty-free grain, fell off enormously in being profitably worked. the latter half of the year, and the Customs re- ceipts diminished accordingly.
TIENTSI-PUKOW RAILWAY,
STRAW BRAID.
Mr. R. H. Eokford, Consular Agent at Tsingtau, reporting on the trade of that dis- The preliminary arrangements in connection trict, in 1908 notes that Shantung straw has with the Tientsin-Pakow Railway progressed | been exported somewhat freely, its destination steadily during 1908. Not only have the being Ningpo, where it is made up into hats. surveys been completed in the province of The continuance of this trade depends on the Shantung but nearly all the land required vagaries of fashion. It is reported that the between Chinan and the Shantung Chihli Chefoo native merchants have organised a border has been thrown up between Chinan syndicate for the production of plait from straw
and Lok'ou on the Yellow River. Work on the most important piece of engineering on the line--the Yellow River bridge-which is in the hands of the Nurnberger Bridge Building Company, is also being commenced. The total length of the bridge with approaches will be about 2 kiloms.; in the river bed itself there will be four iron supports, making five spans across the river; in addition to this there are to be 17 culverts of an average width of 70 to 80 metres. South of Chinan, work has not yet begun, but the engineers have been carefully surveying the line of route, and work is to be taken in hand this spring.
PROPOSED RAILWAY FROM WEI-H8IEN TO CHEFOO.
The project for linking up Wei-hsien on the China-Tsingtan line with Chefoo by rail has been definitely sanctioned, the gentry and mer- chants of the districts to be traversed having been permitted to raise funds for the purpose. It was originally intended that the line should be built exclusively by Chinese labour with Chinese capital, but owing to the difficulty of getting funds the question of a foreign loan has recently been raised. A start is to be made with the eastern section of the line from Chefoo to Hung-hsien, and the necessary surveys have been taken in hand. The construction of such a line, says Mr. Giles, would undoubtedly be a great boon to Chefoo, which has long been hampered in its competition with Tsingtau, by the lack of railway communication.
COTTON GROWING EXPERIMENTS,
grown in that neighbourhood, and that it is proposed to bring some families from Pingtu and Shaho to teach plaiting. Samples have been shown at Tsingtau, and the qualities appear to be satisfactory. No foreigners are to be allowed to participate.
SHIPPING.
The Indo-China Steam Navigation Company carried on a regular service between Tsingtau and shanghai during 1908, and the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company inaugur- ated a regular monthly service, the steamers calling at Tsingtau en route from Japan to Shanghai, and proceeding thence via the usual ports to London; this afforded merchants the immense advantage of getting their goods for- warded to European ports without tranship- ment, thus saving much expense and damage. It need scarcely be said that this facility is mucy appreciated and will tend to the develop. ment of Tsingtau.
THE HANKOW-SZECHUAN RAILWAY.
GERMANY AND THE UNITED STATES.
The North-German Gazette gives great pro- minence to the following Cologne Gazette telegram from Washington:-
President Taft and the State Department recognize that nothing bat German friendliness Cotton is largely grown in the province of has made possible the American success in re- Shantung, and the authorities have recently gard to the Chinese railway loan, and they turned their attention to the development of express unfeigned pleasure about it. The this industry. Experiments have been made President received the German Ambassador, during the past two years with five varieties of Count Bernstorff, in special audience. It is American cotton seeds, especially in the Tung-believed that the German attitude will affect the chang prefecture, with varying success, though "negotiations for a treaty of commerce.