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Osbert Chadwick, C. M. G., during his visit to the Colony in 1890.
British Kowloon consists of a peninsula 2 miles in length by an average breadth of 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, "Yaumati" and "Hung Hom", are of considerable importance. The interior of the peninsula consists of a series of barren hills intersected in all directions by valleys, a district which, at 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 from an area of 95 acres might be relied upon. Acting on this information, three collecting valleys having a combined area of 220 acres, and therefore a probable minimum yield of 232,000 gallons per day, equal to 16 gallons per head for a population of 14,500 as shown by the census of 1891, were selected.
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 led, at a depth of about 10 feet below the surface, into these were laid lines of earthenware collecting pipes.