!
CORRESPONDENCE.
THE HOUSING
[TO THE EDITOR OF
DIFFICULİY.
THE HONGKONG- DAILY PRESS.]
THE HONGKONG DAILY PRESь: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 7TH, 1918.
ALLEGED ROBBERY WITH
VIOLENCE.
WOMAN HACKED WITH CHOPPER. At the Hongkong Magistracy, yester day, before Mr. E. D. C. Wolle, a Chinese to the discussion of the housing question. charged with committing a robbery
St.--You have given considerable space
ON BOARD AN AMERICAN TROOPSHIP.
A HONGKONG CONTINGENT'S
EXPERIENCES.
[PROй OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. } After a sea voyage of 14,000 miles from
Canal, and just when we were beginning to be absolutely tired of life aboard ship.
`A WILY CHINESE WOMAN HOODWINKED BY OLD
CONFIDENCE TRICK.
A story of an old confidence trick was related before Mr. E. D. C. Wolfe to the Hongkong Magistraty yesterday when a] Chinese was charged with stealing certain
Chinese women.
but the issue has been very much confused with viclence on August 21st at Arthur Hongkong to New York, rid the Panama sums of money, and jewellery, from two!
ly the introduction of such other subjects As the construction of motor-roads "and
Street. Yaumati."
Evidence was given to the effect that
Inspector Macdonald, who prosecuted,
tramways, the building of "n town hall defendant entered the house, occupied by our good vessel begun to undertake the anid that the defendant had committed
and a theatre, the improvement of the Litw Courts, the creation of a war memorist," the scientife' development of the Colony, etc. all matters of import
auce, but of secondary iraportance to the
supply of houses, which so closely affects the health and lives of the people, especi- ally of the children, as shown by the very high death rate amongst those condemned to live under the worst housing" con- ditions.
awaman only, at 3 am, and attempted work for which she had travelled so far We had to steal a gold-wrist watch. The woman away from har ordinary route. woke up and, finding a stranger by the been a week in New York and most of tside of her, bed, called for help, when us were finding our finances running short defendant immediately attacked her with and wishing to continue our odyssey, when chopper, cutting and wounding her in on Friday morning we found a notice Police whistles were posted in the smoke-room to the effect several places, blown, and Sergeant MeTulloch, accom- that all leave from the ship would stop at noon that day. We hied us ashore for panlod by two or three Chinese detectives
our last purchases and were all aboard visited the scene. They found the woman severely wounded, and there were traces early for tifin to find the American, boy
Defendant
whom we were to carry across the "Her- The housing dieulty is not peculiar to of blood all ever the room, Hongkong, hus here, as in other places, had disappeared. The woman was taken
ring Poad" waiting on the wharf ready there appears to be some hesitancy about to the Police Station and from thence to venturing below the surface of the sub-r. Smalley's dispensary where she was. attended. She was subsèquently removed to ject. The question has been discussed in
the Government Civil Hospital. The Britain in the same timid way for over thirty years with results that show the
"
to embark.
two offences on separate days, but suggest ed that the cases be tried together.
The first Chinese woman who was hood- winked by the defendant deposed that on June 10th she was going on a tram-car to Happy Valley when she got into con versation with the defendant, who was in She happened to mention the same car, that she had $190 with her at the time, and that she wore some jewellery valued at 10. When the conversation became more intimate the defendant showed her a parcel he carried and said that it con- tained $40,000 in bank-notes. He, how ever, had no subsidiary coinage, and therefore suggested to her to give him her money and jewellery, and he would give her his $40,000 in banknotes as security Whilst the conversation was proceeding,
Soon they began to come aboard, and they filled the steamge" until it looked as next day the principal tenant of the house if they must be stowed away in lagers uselsssss of it all. In regard to the pointed cut defendant to the Police and below, so many did we ship. They were he blew funes of smoke in her face that
housing difficulty Hongkong is not only
he was arrested,
Dr. McFarlane stated that be examined the chopper and found traves of blood on
like London, it is like Liverpool. Glasgow, Edinburgh Dublin, and every big towa it in Britain. for the housing problem re- mains unsolved. notwithstanding railways,
the agricultural districts of England th
flene, it is useless to look to
towns.
Sergeant MeTulloch said that when he
Y
་
Western troops--biz, brawny, muscular. looking fellows from the prairie and the stockyard-and they presented a very fine appearance indeed in their full marching order.
Tall and erect, their circalar
oude her dizzy, and while she was in this
paper.
men,
condition the defendant effected the ex-| change and disappeared Before going away the defendant told her not to open the parcel of hank notes or she would be tramways und mater 'buses. In fact, inwent to the house he saw the woman lying"f packs semed to add to their height, and arrested. Believing his stateraent she did! in a pool of blood. He asked her where every man looked the picture of health. not open the parcel till she went home. red of houses is as urgent in th.. defendant had gone and she replied that They were in the best of spirits, too, and it was only then she found out she was the sound of laughter filled the ship robbed, for the parcel contained waste The wear into the next room, When he
Once aboard, there was n short delay
She reported the matter to the improved transport facilities, even if got there he found that defendant had and we passengers were allowed ashore Polici, and when later she was called The next again for the gyrning with strict injune upon to identify the defendant, she did then were Tre fages; is a solution of the escaped through the window.
day defendant was arrested in Kowloon tions to be back in our places by mid-se without any difficulty, from among ten housing problem.
night. Next morning when we, wakened The other Chinese woman who was gull- The principal tenant stated that dewe were slowly sailing down stream, anded said that on Alay 31st she was return- ing from a birthday party when she was fendant used to occupy a room in the a few hours later we joined the rest of accosted by the defendant and another He knew defendant. and went the large convoy and were now off on the lad on the road behind the Pelo Ground. with the detective to Kowloon City and last and most exciting stage of our long The defendant said that the lad had swept up -number of banknotes, worth over $1,000, in a godown, but he had some He there- pointed him out. When defendant was journey.
difficulty in changing them. charged with the offence he stated that when a man owed a debt he had to pay
fore begged her to go to his father's bank could not go himself. After some per- the penalty for it, or something to that
in Wauchat and change the notes, as he suasion she promised to do as he wished, but when she was about to start, he said without giving him some bank-notes security, and suggested that she should be could not allow her to take away
into her face), and give her gold bangles (worth $40) into his har. (by hlowing fumes safe keeping. She refused, but he stupefied
It was only his parcel of bank notes. when she was near No. 2 Police Station, then she gave him the bangles and teck
on her way to the defendant's father's bank, that she found out that the bank- notes were some carefully folded Chinese newspapers.
site.
"A European of Moderate Means "City brings us nearly right down to the rent of the mutter by his question What is the proble The answer must be bouse, nhvions to all. It is, How can the people obtain a suficient supply of the
Most of the troops had never been at best houses possible at the lowest cost possible!" Now, as houses cannot be
sen before and quite a number bad never brought into existence by waving a magic
seen a decent-sized steamer, and all felt very strange for the first day. However, wand. there arises the further question effect. "How are they brought into existence?"? Dr. C. W. McKenny, Superintendent of everyone had something to do, if it were bad time to Here, again, the answer must be obvious the Government Civil Hospital, stated poly to find his position for food and
When one that defendant was admitted to the Horest, and before, the men to everyone who observes. wants a new house, the first thing" re-pital at abou; 6.15 am." on August 21st. realize that they were really off their qui is a place to put it-land for the She was, suffering from several wounds on officers had everything in the vast perfect were all dressed in the greenish coloured The next thing required is land the scalp, three of which were large ones.order. When the men ene aboard they from which to produce materials, stone, There was a large wound in the left side erge with which the American troops are elay, wood, iron, etc. Now there is no of the face. There were some abrasions fitted, and as every man had received a natural difficulty about land.
on the back of the right hand and three
new rig-out before he embarked, they plenty of land for sites and plenty of wounds on the back of the left. She had looked very spic and span. other and containing the necessary lust a good deal of blood and was insa materials; but there is a natural difficulty state of partial collapse. in moving and altering the materials and bave died from shock. combining them together in the form of a house Always and everwhere this is a "Teal difficulty in the way of providing
houses. To get over this difficulty labour the crime, which, of course, must be alls and they looked like engineers from allegations against him..
punished by a heavier finc. But the one of the big works at home. They wear holders of land, which they will neither these "dungarece on all fatigue duties use themselves nor let others use, treated in comparison as if they were real and when loafing around ship, with the benefactors of the community. Consider result that their uniform lasts, twice "as ing much legislation, the wonder is not long as it would otherwise, that there is a bousing problem but that the situation is not worse
There is
can build houses, there can be no special difficulty about labour. There is a suffi- cient number of men, architects, masons, bricklayers, carpenters, plasterers and others to build all the boases required. Thus, there is plenty of land for sites and material, and plenty of labour, so the resi bstacle to the supply of houses is not the natural difficulty of moving, altering and combining, the material.
She might
J
Mr. Wolfe remanded the ease till to-day
Err
If Buch
Under
his
Both the women had implicitly believed that the parcels contained bank-nous. “
On Saturday morning when they began to move about we thought that they must
The second woman identified the defend. ant from among a number of Chinese She have shipped a different lot while we were said she wanted her bangles back, but the ashore for the evening, as every man we Magistrate said they had no doubt been saw was dressed in a suit of blue over-melted down long ago.
The defendant completely denied the! The Magistrate sentenced him to a scar's hard labour on the two charges.
The
Altogether, until we reached the danger- zone life on board was quite bearable; but when the order came out to wear life- at night we began to wish that the voyage' belts all day and to sleep in our clothes were at an end. We began to feel nearer accompanied us for 10 days steamed round the convoy and took the salute from the different units before turning her back on deck, we found ourselves surrounded on us, and next morning, on getting up by British torpedo-craft. We now knew that the convoy was to be divided into two parts and that we were in the Liverpool contingent, though many of us would have| liked to be in the Glasgow lot.
is required, but as there is no exceptional skill required in their construction to make houses more difficult to produce than other commodities costing equal
From Sunday morning onwards the day labour, and as the very people who every where are most in need of houses can obstacles were put in the way of getting was full up for all of us on board. either build houses for themselves or sites and material, and such taxation troops were up at 6 a... and had the render services required by others who imposed on the use of it, one could hardly place all cleaned up and were washed home when the American cruiser that had
get a snow but in Greenland.
great ready for breakfast by 8 o'clock. The next present, methods it, to a very extent, pays the landholder better to keep event in the day was boat-drill, and this the land idle and wait for a higher price than either to build on it himself or sell was gone through very thoroughly twice Land daily for several days until it was wonder it to someone else to build on it. monopoly is also the greatest obstacle to ful in what a short space of time everyone the extension of railways, town-planning,
was at his post and the bugle had blown and other public improvements,
The remedy is surely obvious. Make it for dismissal. My boat was commanded profitable for the landholder to build on bis land or otherwise use it, and unpro- by an officer in the medical department of Ritable to keep it idle. This could easily the U.S. army, who (after instruction and be done by abolishing the taxation of advice from "Heary, the Navigator," houses and other improvements, and con centrating the whole burden on the value better known in Hongkong as Mr. Howe, of land, whether used or not. Those who of the P.W.D.), proved a very capable
the price of tax on land-values increased th. As the captain and soon had us all well up unimproved land would fall, and the in the nomenclature and in the different whole natural supply would become avail duties necessary to launching the bont
The value of land, which is entirely created by the community but successfully. The provisions were not now appropriated by the landholder, entrusted to any of the Hongkong men in would then go to meet the expenditure of the boat probably we looked too bungry
But the houses or other the community. improvements produced or paid for by the on the short rations that we wero, getting landholder would be left to him absolutely free. The great obstacle to the production after leaving New York, but in the stroke of houses being removed, the supply would of the boat you would have recognised a
I submit that the real obstacle to the supply of houses is the artificial arrange ments set up by legislation. In the first place, the land-lhe only place where --houses can be pat and the only place from which boasing materia: can be produced —is monopolized by a small proportion of the whole population, so that the masses are denied the right to provide houses for themselves, as they cannot, get either materials with which to build, or sites to build on. Houses can be built-or. in
to
did not want to use it
able for use.
those
Eight weeks and a half the journey took from Hongkong, but the longest section was the last stage across the Atlantic, for we were only going at about half-speed vessels of the convoy, and the speed of the in order to keep along with the other whole was, of course, determined by the some of the ships in the convoy, and.one slowest ship. We had some old friends in ship, in particular Hongkong people formerly belonging to another nation and would have recognised as one of
The last two nights aboard were the lately fitted out in the Colony. most exciting. Orders were issued that everyone was to sleep in his clothes and to wear his life-belt all the time. who could not sleep on deck were kept certs were organised below decka and these amused until very early in the 'morning. However, there were very few hours of darkness in this northern latitude, and
On last
Con-
d wealth of any kind produced-only anturally increase and, the tax on houses prominent half back of the E.K.FC by permission of the land-holder. The being abolished, the cost of living in a charge for such permission may be low at house would be less by the amount of the After boat-drill and before luncheon there the time soon passed. first where there is not Best when and why be cheap atat cat tax. And the obstruction to the produc were always lectures for the officers on the ing we sighted the coast of Ireland and those ships of the convoy that were bound ar on the planet Mars, or in the Sahation of building materials being removed, armies and insignia of the British and then the Mall of Kintyre, where we left
the supply would increase and the price
Our next landmark was the which we passed very desert. But, whether as ground-rent or decline and the cost of the building itself French, and, below, French lessons for the for Glasgow.
decreuse, permission
There would be no need for selling price, the charge for use land gets higher and higber with the Governments to supply houses, or to lend men. The Y.M.C.A, detachment on board.Mull of Gallo fast-time, and we now growth of population, thus forming an money to Building Societies, or to give worked hard and kept the men busy all knew that, barring an accident, at the last ever-increasing obstacle to the supply of preferential. treatment to particular the time. They brought a fair-sized minute, we should
in Merrie England the night ashore houses where and when houses are most classes.
Let Governments remove the obstacles library aboard with them, and it was very troops were even more eager to get ashore required." To say: It is the old ques tion of demand and supply does not help they have imposed, and the working much used, while the facilities given for than those of us who had spent two months on the ship, and they had all their packs. matters a little bit. It neither removes classes can then provide houses for them-writing home were greatly appreciated at an early hour. We did not get the obstacle nor helps to get over the selves as they now provide houses and
The regiment had a very good silver up the Mersey, until evening, nor ashore everything else for others. This we pray
difficulty.
In the next place, just as if the law makers desired to keep the number of houses at the minimum and of the very poorest quality, all the houses that are built, in spite of the tribute paid to land monopoly, are subject to a further charge in the shape of taxes, which is levied according to the quality of the house. This acts as a fine on building. It is if it were crime to occupy a house: all, and the better the house the greater (Continued at foot of next dolumn.)
1
elose about
The American
for: Liberty to use the carth. If we want band which gave a performance each after till next day, but the reception, our boat more, better, and cheaper houses we must noon; while in the evening after dinner load received from every ferry and remove the obstacles of monopoly of land
One afternoon there good humour. From the windows of and taxes on houses. If we are afraid to there was always music in the dining-room stesiber that passed put everyone in a every house on the New Brighton and break egg-shells we must do, without by a string band.
was a boring show and other variety Birkenhead side people were waving us omelets. Yours respectfully,
items, which caused great amusement and welcome, and next morning they, lined the enthusiasm. There was a rope expert on streets of the eify to see the troops leave board from one of the big American show for their concentration camp. and he was exceedingly clever, his work with the Insion being wonderful.
(Continued at foot of news Golumn.)
J. H. MCGUIGAN. Hongkong. 6th Bertember, 1818. We think our correspondent has over looked the fret that in this Colony the and belongs to the Crown, ie, the com- manity. ED., H.D.P.]
"(Other Local News will be found on page 8.)
LANE, CRAWFORD
1
AND COMPANY,
FURNISHING DEPT.
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SUMMER BLANKETS.
BORDERED CASEMENT CLOTHS.
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SIZE So" x 60" WHITE WITH BLUE STRIPES AND BOUND Each End Blue Silk
A
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$6.50 THE PAIR.
A BIG RANGE, OF THE LATEST DESIGNS.
FROM 70C. THE YARD.
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LANE, CRAWFORD & CO.
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