Captain & Ewen for any appointment I could offer him, as he found himself unable to meet the great expense of living at Singapore, being obliged to keep a house afloat for his wife, when he was away.
In Lord Carnarvon's appointment of Dr. Lonnally to be Superintendent of the Prison at Hong Kong, left that of Assistant Harbour Master vacant. I vainly sought in the Colony for a fitting successor to fill the vacancy, as Dr. Austin was in some way qualified; and I was told Dr. Austin said I should do so when passing through Singapore.
Having arrived at Singapore, I consulted Sir Andrew Clarke who told me that Captain H. Ewen's removal would in no wise be inconvenient to his appointment; and under these circumstances, I offered the vacancy at Hong Kong (which it was urgently necessary to fill without delay) to Captain H. Ewen - subject to Lord Carnarvon's approval.
It appeared that Captain H. Ewen was a landsman and entirely unfitted to fill the office which was a seafaring position. There was a decision upon offering it to Captain H. Ewen who was a member of the Club.
It appears from the paragraph of Dr. Austin's despatch (30th March) that Captain H. Ewen had...