COPY
No. 4.
Captain Arbuthnot Leslie, A.D.Q.
!
Dear Sir,
73
Hongkong, April 4th., 1905.
We should be greatly obliged if you would
lay this letter before His Excellency the Governor.
the undersigned licensed pilots of Hong-
-kong would most respectfully beg that enquiries be made with
regard to the Petition to His Excellency the Governor on the
part of the Chamber of Commerce asking for more pilots to be
licensed.
We are now eleven in number and are posi-
-tive we are able to do the work. Last year a certain number of
European British subjects and householders of hongkong competed
in the examination and eight candidates passed, who all hold
British Masters Certificates. Since the granting of these
licences all piloting has been done to the entire satisfaction
of Agents and Shipowners, and now we are informed by the Bar-
-bour Master that an examination is to be called for an un-
-limited number of pilots.
In an interview with the Harbour Master
we were informed that he had received no complaints whatever as
regards insufficiency or shortage of pilots, and we find from
our daily experience that the ships coming to Hongkong requir- -ing pilots are not sufficient to keep the already licensed
pilots constantly employed.
The present earnings of the members of the Pilots Association has averaged $200 per man per month.
Should there be an increase in the present
number