No.323.
Hongkong.
C
C. O.
583
Reck
30 JUL 03)
Government House,
Hongkong, 27th. June, 1903.
Sir,
14570
I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
CA
quqb
Foo
13549
of your Despatch No. 178 of 14th. May referring to your question in paragraph 7 of your Despatch No. 132 of 16th. April, with
reference to the proposed appointment of a Sanitary Commissioner.
2.
My reason for objecting to the appointment
of a Sanitary Commissioner was stated in my Despatch No. 116 of 10th. March, 1903. I considered then as I do now, that all the
duties of a Sanitary Department will be more effectually control-
led by a Sanitary Board on which are found representatives of
every section of the Community than by a Commissioner, who may be
a good man, but who might be quite incompetent and who would in,
either case be practically irresponsible however theoretically
be might be supposed to be responsible to the Governor. The
Principal Civil Medical Officer who has been relieved of his
duty as Senior Medical Officer of the Government Civil Hospital
has now ample time to supervise and control every branch of the
Medical and Sanitary Staff, and it must be remembered that the
carrying out of the details of the duties of Sanitation demands
no very high degree of professional knowledge. The principles of
Sanitation are simple enough and in my opinion the Sanitary Staff properly forms a Sub-department of the General Medical Staff of the Colony, as does the Analytical and Bacteriological Staff. The
continuance of the Sanitary Staff as a branch of the Medical
Department will, I hope, tend to economy. The expenses of
RIGHT HONOURABLE
JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN, M.B.,
Sanitation