+ CONFIDENTIA)
REC
34054
[Res? || JUL 185
GOVERNMENT HOUSE.
HONGKONG. 25th. April, 1918.
146
Despatches.
Sir.
54.
mor's Confidential of 19th. May, 1917.
etary of State's Confidential of 11th. September, 1917. rnor's Confidential of 27th. December, 1917. Gar
9070
With reference to the correspondence noted
in the margin on the subject of the
future salary of the Director of Public Works, I have the honour to bring to your
notice that the present intention of Mr. Chatham, who will attain the age of 60 years in July, 1919, is to retire about the end of that year. He feels that for the sake of his own health, which is still good, and for that of his wife, which is indifferent, it would be wise not to stay in this climate much longer.
2.
In Mr. Chatham the Colony has been fortun- -ate in obtaining an exceptionally efficient Director of Public Works to whose engineering skill and foresight in anti- -oipating the future she owes a great debt of gratitude. To enable you to form an opinion of the importance of a number of the public works which have been carried out since Mr. Chatham became Director of Public Works in 1901, I enclose a list of the principal items for which Mr. Chatham has been responsible since his appointment up to the present time. In addition to them he has given a great deal of attention and time to the preparation of development schemes for different localities in order to safeguard the consideration of application for Crow RIGHT HONOURABLE
1 and
WALTER LONG, M.P.
&c.
&c...