(
3455
141
Although I pressed the
Viceroy to state the precise-date
on.
which His Excellency would arrive
at
Hongkong, he declined to do so
on the
ground
that he did not wish
to put His Excellency, the Governor
to
trouble
any
on his account.
I have Fe. (signed) A. W. bewlet,
VISIT TO HONGKONG OF HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR GENERAL
LAU KWAN - YIH.
The following is extracted from the report in the "Daily Press.
"
The visit which His Excellency LAU KWAN-YIH, late Viceroy of Kwangtung and Kwangsi and Viceroy elect of the Two Kiang, which term includes the three provinces of Kiangsu, Kiangsi and Nganhway, paid to His Excellency Governor HENNESSY on Saturday last, the 24th instant, is an event. of considerable importance in more than one respect. Although many Chinese officials of high rank have on various occasions paid visits to Government House on passing through the Colony en route for some other place, this visit of Viceroy Lat is certainly the first instance in the history of Hongkong in which a Chinese dignitary of such high rank has gone out of his way to come expressly and signalize his personal friendship with an English Governor and his seuse of the entente cordiale between the Hongkong and Canton Governments. It is evident that Chinese officials consider that the position which Governor HENNESSY has all along taken in his relations to the Chinese Government as well as to the Chinese population of this Colony, has materially contributed towards cementing the friendship happily existing between England and China. The Marquis of TSENG gave utterance to this feeling on his passing through Hongkong en route for London. CHUNG How repeated the same sentiment on his visit to Government House a few weeks ago; whilst Li HusG-CHANG and TING YIH-CH'ANG have in private correspondence expressed in similar terms their recognition of the attitude Mr. HENNESSY has taken in Chinese affairs.
Last Friday night, shortly before midnight, Viceroy Lau arrived in harbour, without previous announcement of any sort, direct from Canton, accompanied by a small flotilla of gunboats. Early on Saturday morning he sent word to Government House that, having handed over the seals of office to his successor in the Vice-royalty of the Two Kwang provinces, and not yet having taken over the seals of the Vice-royalty of the three provinces of Central China to which he had been appointed, he availed himself of the only spare day he had before his official departure from Canton, to come in person to Hongkong in order to reciprocate the feelings of personal friendship which had sprung up between Governor HENNESSY and himself since his tenure of office in Canton, and to thank him for the great influence which his Chinese policy in Hongkong has exercised towards cementing the good relations existing between the Governments of China and England. His Excellency the Governor sent Major PALMER, A.D.C., at once on board, to arrange the time and place of landing, and twelve o'clock was fixed as the time when Viceroy Lau was to land at Murray Pier. The Commandant of the neighbouring town of Kaulung, Colonel Lai, applied for and received permission to land a company of Chinese marines at the pier, to act as escort to the Viceroy. Half a dozen Chinese military officers of the Viceroy's staff landed their strangely caparisoned steeds and awaited the landing of their chief. This drew a large crowd of Chinese spectators, although the population were generally unaware of the arrival of the Viceroy, the Chinese pupers of Saturday morning having announced that Viceroy Lau would pass through Hongkong the following week on his way to Peking. Owing to the
of presence the Chinese marines and military officers, who crowded the pier, the guard of honour furnished by Her Majesty's 27th Inniskillings drew up at the corner of Murray Barracks, to salute the distinguished visitor. A few minutes before noon, the Viceroy landed at Murray Pier, where Major PALMER, R.E.. A.D.C., Dr. EITEL, the Governor's Chinese Secretary, and the Canton Commissioner of Customs were in waiting. As His Excellency left the Tsing-po, a salute was fired from H.M.S. Victor Emanuel, and on landing he was received with a salute from the Royal Artillery at the Wellington Battery. The Viceroy was accompanied by his Aides-de-Camp, Colonel LAI, and Major U TA-SHING and his interpreter, Mr. SIEH YAO-KWANG, Acting Assistant Magistrate of the Nam Hoi District. Sedan
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