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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL.
For ocean vessels under the British flag, this table shows a decrease of 320 ships of 36,410 tons. This decrease loses any significance it may at first sight appear to possess when viewed in conjunction with my report for 1904, where an increase appeared of 352 ships of 930,300 tons, which was shown to be practically due to special circumstances connected with the late war. These special circumstances being removed with the advent of the Baltic fleet in Far Eastern waters in April, 1905, the shipping tended to return to its normal state, and we are left with a net increase over the figures for 1903 (neglecting those for 1904) of 32 ships and 893,890 tons.
In British river steamers there is an increase shown of 1,616 ships, which is due to the additional small steamers put on to the West River run, and to two very small craft plying between here and Mirs Bay, which have been treated as river steamers, though they do not strictly satisfy the definition. The decrease in tonnage, of 143,338 tons, is accounted for by the fact that three moderate sized vessels were taken off the run early in the year, and much smaller craft substituted.
For foreign ocean vessels an increase of 149 ships of 469,938 tons is shown. Here, again, reference to my 1904 report is necessary in order properly to appreciate the significance of the figures. During that year, on account of the war, there was the enormous decrease of 1,149 ships of 1,910,589 tons, of which Japanese shipping accounted for 834 ships of 1,809,000 tons. The causes militating against the employment of Japanese ships were not removed until late in 1905, indeed, they are not completely removed even now, so that the increase now shown is but the partial restoration to normal conditions, and should really be read as a net decrease, on the figures for 1903, of 1,000 ships of 1,440,951 tons.
In foreign river steamers the decrease of 61 ships is due to the fact that two small Chinese vessels have become British, and the increase in tonnage to the more frequent running of two moderate sized French steamers.
The remaining increases and decreases do not present any points of importance, with the exception of the large increase in steam launches plying within the waters of the Colony, which affords good evidence of the enhanced internal traffic in the Colony.
The actual number of ships of European construction (exclusive of river steamers and steam launches) entering during the year was 889, being 506 British and 383 foreign.
These 889 ships entered 3,926 times, and gave a total tonnage of 6,756,600 tons. Thus, compared with 1904, four more ships entered 61 less times, and gave a collective tonnage increased by 212,890 tons.