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13. Maintenance of Praya Wall and Piers.-Little has been done to the Praya Wall and "iers in the City as the construction of the New Praya Wall will, in the course of a few years, necessitate their removal.
14. A contract was entered into in September for the construction of a new pier at Yaumati having an area of 4,410 square feet, the old one being severely damaged by the gale in July last. This work is progressing satisfactorily.
15. The length of Praya Wall existing in Hongkong and Kowloon is 8 miles and the number of Public Piers is 19. The total expenditure under this heading includes $709.84 speut on the new pier at Yaumati.
16. Maintenance of Lighthouses.-The Lighthouses, three in number, have required no extensive repairs.
17. Maintenance of the Disinfector.-It is satisfactory to record that the Disinfector has seldom been required during the past year. The expenditure under this heading includes the cost of the watchman.
18. Dredging Foreshores.-During the past year 37,713 cubic yards of material have been removed from the Harbour at a cost of $10,614.19 including the cost of maintenance of one Priestman's dredger.
19. Miscellaneous Works.--With the exception of the repair of the sea wall and roadway along the south side of Causeway Bay, no works of any importance requiring special remark have been carried out under this heading.
20. Maintenance of Roads and Bridges in Victoria.-The total length of streets and roads in the City is about 35 miles, about 24 miles of which have been re-made and the remainder kept in repair. The roads and streets particularly in the central portion of the City have been much cut up by the laying of new sewers and water pipes and until such operations are complete it is practically throwing money away to attempt to maintain them in such a condition as would, under ordinary circumstances, be considered satisfactory. During the latter part of the year in such portions of the City as the operations of the Water and Drainage Department were practically completed, the roads and streets have been taken in hand many of which are now in a satisfactory state of repair.
21. The Bridges have all been maintained in a satisfactory condition except the Praya Bridge over the Bowrington Canal which is now undergoing reconstruction and will be referred to under the heading "Extraordinary Public Works."
22. Maintenance of Roads and Bridges out of Victoria.-The roads outside the City have received a good deal of attention during the past year and extensive repairs have been carried out in many instances specially to those from Little Hongkong to Stanley, Stanley to Shaukiwan, Tytam Tuk to Tytam Reservoir, and from Tytam Gap to Cape D'Aguilar.
23. The general repair of the roads in the Hill District is now in hand.
24. During the gale of July last a portion of the sea wall on the Shaukiwan Road, some 100 lineal yards in length, was carried away and with it a part of the road. A new wall has been built and the road repaired.
25. A new road 500 lineal yards in length has been constructed from Shaukiwan to A-Kung- Ngam.
26. The existing Bridges have been kept in a thorough state of repair. There are, however, three bridges on the Stanley Road, viz.: two in Deep Water Bay and one at Tsinshaiwan which were destroyed some years ago and never reinstated. I am of opinion that now that this road has been put in a good state of repair and is becoming more used these bridges should be reinstated; the reconstruc- tion of which I propose to deal with in a separate report.
27. The total length of roads outside the City is about 50 miles including the Aberdeen und Shaukiwan Carriage Roads.
28. The Maintenance of Roads and Bridges in Kowloon.-The Roads at Tsimshatsui, Yaumati and Hung Hom have been extensively repaired.
29. Six hundred (600) lineal yards of new roads are in course of construction and are now nearly completed. Fifteen hundred and fifty (1,550) lineal yards of new roads have been completed, the most important of which is the road along the southern shore from Tsimshatsui to Hung Hom providing means of communication by jinricksha between Tsimshatsui Pier and Hung Hom, a distance of about two miles.
30. Ten hundred and twenty (1,020) lineal yards of streets at Hung Hom have been kerbed and chanuelled and the footways concreted.
31. The total length of roads and streets in Tsimshatsui, Yaumati and Hung Hom is about 9 miles.
32. A new bridge has been constructed over the stream at the north end of Yaumati Village and the Swing Bridge on the Praya over the entrance to the Police dock which was damaged by the gale in July last has been repaired.
33. Street Lighting.-Previous to 1st of December, 1890, the City had for some years past been lighted exclusively by gas supplied by the Hongkong and China Gas Company. At the commencement
1891 there existed 857 lamps.
In October, 1890, a contract was entered into with the Electric Company for the erection of 64 are lights in the central and eastern portions of the City. These were first lighted in December, 1890.
In April last a contract was made for the erection of eleven additional lamps which were lighted in September last,
34. The total number at present erected is therefore 75, the estimated candle power of which is 150,000 and the annual cost of lighting $22,000.
35. There at present exist in addition to electric lights 653 gas lamps exclusive of those in the Military Cantonment. The annual cost of lighting and maintaining which is $23,000.
36. In addition to the foregoing there are fifteen gas lamps in the Military Cantonment towards which the Colony pays $250.50 per annum.
37. Making the total annual cost of lighting the public thoroughfares of the City $45,750.50. 38. The following is a short description of the system of electric lighting adopted; for much of the information I am indebted to Mr. W. H. WICKHAM, the Company's Engineer, under whose super- vision the work has been carried out :—-
39. The Central Station of the Electric Company is situated in Wing Fung Street, in which is installed the Plant for supplying the arc lamps in the public streets.
40. The Plant consists of 3 engines driving 3 dynamos of the type known as "Brush Series Arc Light Dynamos" each dynamo being capable of supplying 50 to 55 are lamps of 2,000 candle power nominal. One of these Engines and Dynamos are held in reserve.
41. The 75 are lamps, at present supplied, are connected in two separate circuits, one supplying 39 lamps and the other 36 lamps, arranged so that the first circuit supplies the lamps in the central and western portions of the City on the Queen's Road level, and the second supplies the lamps in the upper portion of the City and Queen's Road East.
42. The total length of conducting wires employed is about eleven miles. The conductor used consists of a strand of 7 wires each No. 16 B. W. G. tinned hard-drawn copper, and is continuously insulated with vulcanized india-rubber protected by a braided covering, and is suspended from a steel wire bearer consisting of a strand of 3 No. 14 B. W. G. galvanized wires, these bearers being supported on Porcelain Fluid Insulators carried overhead on Tubular Iron Poles along the thorough- fares of the City.
43. The are lamps are known as the Brokie-Pell type, and contain regulating mechanism to adjust the Carbon Pencils as these consume. The Carbon Pencils are renewed in each lamp daily.
44. The Electric Difference of Potential at the terminals of the two circuits of 39 and 36 lamps is about 2,050 and 1,930 volts respectively, and the current supplied in either circuit ranges between 9.6 and 9.3 amperes. As the lamps are connected in series the current supplied to the most distant lamp is of the same value as that supplied to the nearest.
LAND SURVEY DEPARTMENT.
45. During the past year ten land sales have taken place. The area leased being 780,494 square feet, premiums realised $35.839. Eight extensions of existing lots of a total area of 355,020 square feet have been granted. The amount of premium paid is $7,007.55 and annual Crown rent $454.
46. Surveys have been made, boundaries corrected and plans and particulars for the preparation of 90 new leases forwarded to the Land Office.
47. Surveys have been made of Wongneichong, Aberdeen and a portion of Kowloon in all covering
an area of 143-29 acres.
48. One thousand five hundred and eighty-four (1,584) Squatter's licences have been issued, the fees for which amount to $5,502.28.
49. A complete return has been prepared of the lands held by those on the Rent Roll and under the tenure of a Squatter's licence in the island of Hongkong.
1.