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Osbert Chadwick, C. M. G., during his visit to the Colony in 1890.
British Kowloon consists of a peninsula 24 miles in length by an average breadth of a little over 1 mile. The southern extremity of the peninsula is very largely occupied by European residences and Barracks for the Hong Kong Regiment, whilst the coast line to the northwards is fringed with Chinese villages, two of which,— "Yau Ma Tei and Hung Hom - are of considerable size and importance. The interior of the peninsula consists of a series of barren hills intersected in all directions by valleys, a district which to a superficial glance appears far from favourable for the purpose of obtaining a water supply.
Examination showed, however, that the valley bottoms were filled with sand saturated with water and subsequent experiments proved that a daily yield of at least 100,000 gallons might be relied on. On this information, three collecting valleys having a combined area of 95 acres were selected, with a probable minimum yield of 232,000 gallons per day, equal to 16 gallons per head for a population of 14,200 as shown by the census of 1891.
Across the entrance of each of the three valleys, a trench was excavated through the water-bearing sand to the hard ground below and filled in with clay puddle, so as to form a dam and prevent the escape of the water underground. Above the dams, wells were sunk and into these were led, at a depth of about 10 feet below the surface, lines of earthenware collecting pipes.