498
: down with fatal results a retaining wall behind a private house on the upper levels of Victoria. As there would be some difficulty in getting this wall repaired by the owner of the house, who is in poor circumstances, and as this repair is a matter of most serious importance to the safety of the conduit from Tytam Water Supply Reservoir I have instructed the Director of Public Works to put the reconstruction of the wall in hand as soon as possible pending settlement of the incidence of its cost. I further stated at the end of my former despatch that the typhoon of September 28th, 29th, added 4 to the 12 partially or wholly collapsed buildings in Victoria; this should be altered to 6 bringing the total to 18. The estimate of 26 seriously damaged in Kowloon was below the mark. In addition to the 44 privately owned buildings in the different parts of Kowloon - Yau Ma Ti, Mong Kok Tsui, Tai Kok Tsui, Sham Shui Po, etc. mentioned in paragraph 18 of my previous report as having collapsed or been badly damaged on September 18th, further examination has shown some 78 other houses, etc., making 122 in all to have been blown down wholly or in part or to have been made dangerous by the storms on that and subsequent dates. Many of these houses