602
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841–1941
To vote a small sum; $1,000, TON
sure you will agree to most heartily. The road is a great advantage to the Colony, and will associate with it the name of my predecessor, and by this vote we shall be assisting in making road what it ultimately will become, a first-class road. My predecessor put down a sum of $3 for the Central School for 1877, but a larger sum, $52,000, was spent upon the site alone, myself signed warrants, in addition to that sum, for $7,000, for the site of that school. I will put $25,000, nearly the same sum as Sir ARTHUR KENNEDY, but the Secretary of State is desirous of full details of the estimates, plans, and specifications of this work, before anything else is done, a truth that is the usual course under the Colonial regulations. That Sir ARTHUR KENNEDY was just in buying the site before preparing plans, &c., you will readily admit, because in this Colony the specifications, and estimates depend very much upon the site, and accordingly, though the Colonial regulations require a Governor, before spending any money, to send plans of the whole complete, I think everyone will understand there was nothing to be done, but to secure what was reported to be the best site, and then have plans prepared and submitted for Lord CARNARVON's approval before any further step was taken.
Now there is another item which is mentioned, but, strictly speaking, is not in our estimates. That is, the breakwater to save the junk population in typhoons. On that I propose to spend the sanction of the Secretary of State, $50,000. Plans have been prepared and submitted to competent Naval Authorities, amongst others to Admiral RYDER, who has given a report upon them, and plans will be sent home at once. The project commends itself to you, I have no doubt. You are aware that in the last typhoon there was a serious loss of life. A considerable number of men, women, and children of the junk population perished, and the loss of life was so great that it amounted, I believe, to not much less than five thousand. Her Majesty the Queen noticed it, and She directed Lord CARNARVON to write specially to my predecessor conveying Her condolence and extreme regret for the misfortunes of Her subjects in this Colony. Indeed, in that great calamity, interest was felt in every part of the British Empire. The loss of life was very sudden; the greater part must have perished, according to good authorities, in about fifty minutes during the height of the typhoon. When I came to the Colony, I found that some Naval gentlemen, Captain BONHAM BAX, Commander WATSON, and Admiral RYDER, had been in consultation with the Surveyor-General, and were of opinion that it was possible to construct a breakwater by which the lives of these people would be saved in any heavy typhoon. Accordingly, I looked over all back papers, consulted with the
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