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and around them; of course, vastly increasing the risk of fire, and endangering the health of the soldiers. Indeed some blocks of the Barracks are so isolated from each other, that, as it has been often remarked, it is quite possible that a part of the garrison might be attacked in detail, in the event of a sudden outbreak among the turbulent Chinese populace, or of a sudden onslaught from the pirates of the neighbouring mainland.
7.
I have written the above remarks in a spirit of simple justice to the official authorities of the present day, both in England and in the Colony; none of whom cannot, with any reason, be held responsible for the lacks of their predecessors. Henceforward, I trust that I may be permitted to ignore, as far as possible, the past, and to confine myself to the future.
I have lost no
8.
time in bringing the entire subject of sanitation before the Executive Council