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more boats, a great saving in time and expense.
Kowloon is always easy of access, the course being across both wind and tide in both Monsoons. West Point is directly the reverse, the course always insuring a foul wind and contrary tide either going or returning, besides the inconvenience of the interposition of the whole of the Aberdean shipping between the Man of War Anchorage and the Coal Store - therefore I strongly recommend that no permanent buildings be erected at West Point but that any which shall be erected, shall be placed at Kowloon.
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It is further desirable that a supply of Coal as large as possible should be kept in the Dockyard, as there is little doubt that the deleterious gases arising from it, lead to fever in crowded Localities of which St. Thomas' in the West Indies affords proof.
The plans I forward are as follows:-
1st A Plan of the Kowloon Peninsula on which is marked the Boundary and Neutral ground, and the ground round which Batteries are proposed should be reserved and other Government purposes.
2nd Plans and sections accompanied by a memorandum by Lieutenant Bird, Royal Engineers, shewing that a Coal Store could be provided with a Wharf Wall of 440 feet in length, capable of containing 4800 tons of Coal at an expense of about £34,000 which could be extended a...