possible should be done to avoid the closing
down of the School.
A decision having that
8
effect would almost certainly be the subject of
criticism.
It appears to be beyond question that
the School is doing a good work, though, not
unnaturally, the School authorities rate the
value of their activities more highly thun does
the Governor.
A perusal of the names in the
School Register which will be found on pages
179-204 of the "History and Records" sent as a
subenclosure to the despatch, makes it clear
that the great majority of pupils are Chinese.
Sun Yet Sen was a Day Boy in 1883.
The School had very bad luck in the
failure of two successive purchasers of its
former site and in the fall of land values which
followed. This resulted in the sale of the
after site to the Government) at a price which, withsout
taking into account$ 95,000 forfeited by the second purchaser, left a deficit of $131,866
on the original purchase price. The addition
to this deficit of $40,000 expended by the School
in interest on temporary loans etc, which had
t
to be raised as a result of the purchasers
default, made up the deficit to $171,866 which
was wiped out by the Government loan of $175,000.
The factor which secured the Secretary of State's
concurrence in this loan was the undesirability
of an English institution being indebted at my theat
time to Chinese contractors.
Ten months after the occupation of the
new buildings, the School suffered a further
set-back, through the occupation of these buildings
for