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Harbours.
Mountain system.
A report on the harbours in Mirs Bay, with which Commander De Horsey, of H.M.S. Plover, kindly furnished me, will be found in Appendix No. 14.
The general trend of the mountain system is north-east and south-west. There are two main ranges-the southern range and the northern range. The southern range extends from Sharp Peak, which forms the south point of Mirs Bay, to the peaks oppo- site Stonecutters Island, and may be regarded as ending in the mountains of the island of Lantao. The most noticeable peaks in this range are Sharp Peak, 1,540 feet high, with one spur to the north, 1,630 feet high, and another spur running into Tolo harbour, ending in the magnificent twin peaks named on English maps the Hunchback Hills, and called by the Chinese "Saddle Mountain," with a height of 2,305 feet; peaks 1,895, 1,440, and 1,240 feet high immediately to the north of Kowloon city, ending in a peak 1,600 feet high to the north of Taikoktsui. The southern range here drops rapidly into Hong Kong harbour, opposite Stonecutters Island, but re-appears in the island of Lantao, where it reaches an elevation of 3,050 feet near the west end of the island.
The northern range extends from Crooked Harbour in the north of Mirs Bay to Castle Peak Bay and the southern point of Deep Bay. It commences with elevations of 1,655 feet, 1,500 feet, and 1,200 feet, and in the Pat Sin Ling, or Eight Peak Mountain, north of Tolo Harbour, attains to a height of 1,857 feet. From Tolo Harbour it trends south-west, with elevations varying from 1,300 to 1,500 feet, until it reaches its highest point in the splendid range of Taimò Shán, which rises to a height of 3,000 feet. It then decreases in elevation in the direction of Castle Peak, which is 1,806 feet high, but has a lower spur to the north, forming the southern arm of Deep Bay, in which there are two peaks rising to an elevation of 1,200 feet.
Besides these two main ranges, there are cross ranges of lesser altitude, which divide the watershed between Mirs Bay and Deep Bay with low hills in some of the valleys.
The heights of the mountains are taken from the map sketched by Lieutenant E. G. Young, R.E., which gives a clear idea of the mountain system of the new territory. (Map. IV.)
WATERSHEDS.
The watersheds of the territory being as a rule close to the east and south coasts, the more extensive valleys and plains lie to the west and north, and drain into Deep Bay. Such are the valleys of which the town of Sham Chun is the centre, and the valleys and plains of Pat Heung and Shap Pat Heung, lying to the north-west of the range of Taimò Shán. A remarkable feature in the Shap Pat Heung plains is the abrupt and clearly-defined line between hill and plain. The plain extends from the shores of Deep Bay for some miles into the interior, never reaching an elevation of more than 10 or 15 feet above high water mark, but from this point the hills rise abruptly at an angle of 15 to 20 degrees.
RIVER SYSTEM.
The river system, like the mountain system, is divided into two sections—a northern and a southern. The chief river of the northern section and the largest in the territory is the Sham Chun river,* which has three branches or tributaries, a northern, an eastern and a southern. The northern branch rises in the mountains on the borders of the Tung Kun and San On districts, and, flowing in a south-westerly direction, joins the main river to the west of Sham Chun; the eastern branch rises in the low hills west of Starling Inlet, and flows in a westerly direction, joining the main river to the east of Sham Chun; the southern branch has its source in Kau Lung Hang, to the north of Taipó Hü, and flows in a north-westerly direction, falling into the main river a mile below Sham Chun. All these branches are good-sized mountain streams, and most valuable as irrigators of the cultivated land through which they flow. They are, how- ever, of no value as highways of trade, as they are too shallow to be navigated by even small craft. The Sham Chun river, from the town of Sham Chun to its mouth, is at high tide from 60 to 80 feet wide, has a depth of 7 to 12 feet, and is navigable for junks and launches. The bar at its mouth is about 6 or 7 feet in depth, and is reported at low tide to be only 3 feet in depth.
The Sham Chun river system is separated from the Ün-Long and Kam Tin, or southern river system, by the Kai Kung T'au range of mountains. The Un-Long river rises in the northern slope of the Taimò Shán range, and, flowing in a northerly direc- tion, empties itself into Deep Bay. The Kam T'in river, which has its source at the foot of Taimò Shán, flows in a north-westerly direction, joining the Un-Long river at the * See Photographs, Album I., Nos. 32, 36.
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